History of Vitamins
The importance of certain foods for maintaining health and preventing certain diseases was known already before the discovery of the vitamins. Thus English naval surgeon James Lind emphasized the importance of fresh fruits or lemon juice for preventing scurvy, a disease which is caused by vitamin C deficiency and was in his times very common among sailors, already in 1753.
However, James Lind did not know that scurvy was a disease which is caused by deficiency of vitamin C and that fresh fruits or lemon juice are successful in preventing scurvy because they are natural sources of vitamin C. Vitamin C was not discovered until the 20th century and identified as cure for scurvy until 1932. However, scurvy became one of the first diseases closely associated with dietary deficiency and attracted attention of other scientists who began to link certain dietary deficiencies also to other diseases such as beriberi.
However, the reason for importance of certain foods, fruits and vegetables for preventing or curing some diseases was not completely understood until the progress of science and techniques which enabled the discovery of vitamins in the first half of the 20th century. Successful isolation and synthesis of all vitamins played an essential role for understanding and preventing as well as for curing of diseases which are caused by vitamin deficiencies.
Discovery of vitamins was followed by discovery of their natural sources as well as introduction of vitamin supplements. Thus the severest diseases caused by vitamin deficiencies are very rare in today’s developed countries.