Tens of Thousands Were Treated for a Deadly Disease While Confined to Psychiatric Hospitals on These Two Venetian Islands

Tens of Thousands Were Treated for a Deadly Disease While Confined to Psychiatric Hospitals on These Two Venetian Islands

In the 19th and 20th centuries, San Servolo and San Clemente housed patients suffering from pellagrous insanity, a condition caused by a vitamin deficiency

The Venetian Islands For Those Suffering Pellagrous Insanity

When Europeans colonized the Americas, they found corn, an easily-grown and inexpensive grain. Eventually, many of the poorest people in Europe were eating little besides corn, made into polenta in Italy, and began to suffer from a disease called pellagra. For hundreds of years, no one knew what caused pellagra, but some suspected it was caused by a fungus or insects associated with corn. Only in the 1920s did they realize it was a nutritional d…