Canada sees surge of 18th Century illness as medical doctors say ‘it is larger than we thought’

Cases of a disease often associated with 18th Century sailors are on the rise in Canada.

This week medics in northern Saskatchewan have identified 27 instances of scurvy, which is caused by a severe and prolonged lack of vitamin C. Specialists are pointing out that these confirmed cases underscore a wider issue of poverty and food scarcity in rural and isolated areas nationwide. “Vitamin C comes from lots of different food sources, but if you don’t get those food sources, the body can’t do what it needs to do,” Dr Jeff Irvine told CTV News.

Dr Irvine, a physician researcher with Northern Medical Services in La Ronge, was called upon to assess the extent of scurvy in his community after a colleague diagnosed a case of the disease.

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He reviewed the last 51 vitamin C blood tests conducted on patients over the past 14 years. Out of these tests, 50 were carried out between mid-2023 and spring 2024, and 27 showed deficient levels of vitamin C.

The blood test results combined with physical examinations led to the conclusion that the 27 patients, aged between 20 to 80 years old, had scurvy, according to Irvine.

“We have reason to believe that the scope of the problem might be larger than we think at this point,” said Dr. Nnamdi Ndubuka, a medical health officer with the Northern Inter-Tribal Health Authority.

Common symptoms of scurvy include fatigue, joint pain, bruising, bloody gums and loose teeth. It’s a tricky disease to spot due to its scarcity and because checks for vitamin C aren’t standard practice, explained Irvine.

The main source of vitamin C is via fruits and vegetables, with recommended doses varying depending on age and sex. Adult men should consume 90mg of vitamin C each day while adult women should get 70mg per day.

According to the numbers from Statistics Canada, food uncertainty leapt to 22.9% in 2023, up from 18.4% the prior year. In Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan, the rates of food insecurity hovered between 28 and 29%, with Black and Indigenous communities suffering the most.

The struggle is particularly grim in northern and rural areas, observed Hassan Vatanparast, a professor at the University of Saskatoon College of Pharmacy and Nutrition.

Costs to transport goods and the limited shelf life of fresh food mean that local stores in isolated and rural spots tend to stock long-lasting, non-perishable items, said Vatanparast, which leads to a dearth of vitamin-rich options.

Moreover, residents face steep prices for fresh produce, adding to the challenge.

“We have bigger issues than vitamin C deficiency. It’s about health equity, it is about food insecurity, it is about equitable distribution of resources and accessibility and availability,” Vatanparast said.

Scurvy can develop from one to three months of insufficient vitamin C intake, Irvine clarifies. However, signs of recovery can appear within days once the vitamin is replenished, either through diet or supplementation.

In La Ronge, all patients received treatment with vitamin C supplements. “It is a very easy thing to prevent and very easy thing to treat. You just need to have vitamin C available to do that,” Irvine remarked.