Tag: Captain cook

For centuries, scurvy was the bane of long-distance sailing, killing an estimated two million sailors between 1500 and 1800. Against this backdrop of disease, the simple, preserved food known as sauerkraut emerged as a critical lifesaver, thanks to its high vitamin C content. This article explores how sauerkraut's unique properties made it a surprisingly effective tool in the fight against scurvy.

For centuries, scurvy was one of the greatest perils of the sea, claiming more lives than storms or naval battles. Before the link between vitamin C and the disease was understood, sailors dealt with scurvy through a mix of folk remedies, unproven medical theories, and, eventually, scientific experimentation.

Over his three Pacific voyages, Captain James Cook famously lost only a single crew member to scurvy, a remarkable achievement for his era. The answer to what Captain Cook used to prevent scurvy is not a single cure but a multi-faceted approach, combining dietary elements, ship hygiene, and discipline.

During the Age of Sail, scurvy was a terrifying scourge, killing more British sailors than combat. The debilitating disease, caused by a vitamin C deficiency, posed a monumental challenge for explorers and navies, forcing them to find a solution to the critical question: **What did they eat to prevent scurvy?**

Captain James Cook famously took thousands of pounds of sauerkraut on his voyages, and his crew experienced remarkably low rates of scurvy. This historical evidence strongly suggests that, indeed, sauerkraut helped prevent scurvy by providing a stable, reliable source of vitamin C during long periods at sea when fresh produce was unavailable.

An estimated two million sailors died from scurvy between the 16th and 18th centuries alone. The disease, caused by vitamin C deficiency, was a devastating scourge on long sea voyages, and sailors avoided scurvy by discovering and rediscovering effective treatments, often by chance, over hundreds of years.