How common is scurvy? Robbie Williams diagnosed with '17th-century disease'

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Like Robbie Williams, you whitethorn deliberation of scurvy arsenic a "17th-century pirate disease" – surely thing from this millennium (ahem). But, arsenic the 51-year-old vocalist recovered out, it isn't conscionable the scourge of sailors.

Speaking to The Mirror, helium explained however helium had shed 2 chromatic portion taking medication, which helium has likened to weight-loss cause Ozempic, and however it led to the uncommon diagnosis.

"I’d stopped eating and I wasn’t getting nutrients," helium said, describing his reduced vitamin C intake. "I was sad, I was anxious, I was depressed."

The Angels hitmaker explained however this bout of "ill health" caused him concern. "It’s been astir 10 years... I thought I was astatine the different extremity of the arc. I thought this was the extremity of my story, and that I would conscionable spell walking into this marvellous wonderland. So for it to instrumentality was conscionable confusing."

What is scurvy and however uncommon is the condition?

Depressed brunette young pistillate with pillow successful hands sitting connected sofa astatine home

Scurvy is caused erstwhile you don't person capable vitamin C successful your diet. You whitethorn beryllium much astatine hazard if you don't devour caller fruits oregon vegetables, you devour small food, you fume oregon you person a semipermanent dependency connected drugs oregon alcohol. It astir commonly affects babies, children and older people.

According to the NHS, symptoms see fatigue and feeling weak, associated and/or musculus pain, feeling irritable oregon sad, and tegument that bruises easily. In immoderate cases, teeth tin autumn retired arsenic a effect of swollen, bleeding gums.

Although it was precise prolific betwixt the 16th and 18th centuries, with an estimated 2 cardinal sailors having died from the disease, it is incredibly uncommon these days, owing to however readily disposable definite foods are and however varied our diets are these days.

That said, determination person been assorted reports of the illness successful caller years, indicating that a vitamin C deficiency whitethorn beryllium much prevalent than we mightiness assume.

An nonfiction published successful the Oxford Academic diary examined the Low Income Diet and Nutrition Survey (2003–05), which offered a typical illustration of the low-income/materially deprived UK population. It estimated that 25% of men and 16% of women successful the low-income/materially deprived colonisation had plasma vitamin C concentrations indicative of deficiency, and a further 5th of the colonisation had levels successful the depleted range.