{"id":462123,"date":"2026-03-07T06:55:22","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T06:55:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/462123\/"},"modified":"2026-03-07T06:55:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T06:55:22","slug":"pain-in-legs-could-be-sign-of-victorian-disease-says-pharmacist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/462123\/","title":{"rendered":"Pain in legs could be sign of Victorian disease says pharmacist"},"content":{"rendered":"

The condition can be fatal if it is not addressed but it\u2019s also easily treatable in most cases\"Person<\/p>\n

The condition is more rare now than it was in Victorian times but hasn’t been eradicated completely(Image: GETTY)<\/p>\n

A disease that was common in the Victorian era is steadily growing in cases again in the UK, with some researchers pointing to GLP-1 drugs as a potential culprit. However, people may not realise the wide array of symptoms <\/a>that could indicate they are suffering from this rare condition.<\/a><\/p>\n

Scurvy <\/a>is usually associated with gum and mouth issues, but one pharmacist has revealed the skin, muscle, joint and mood symptoms that are also tied with the condition. Superintendent Pharmacist at Boots<\/a>, Claire Nevinson, explained: \u201cScurvy is a rare disease caused when someone has a severe vitamin C deficiency.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cMost people get enough of the nutrient from their diet, as vitamin C is found in many fruit and vegetables, but scurvy can develop when a person has a long-term absence of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Person<\/p>\n

Swollen or bleeding gums are a well-known sign of scurvy(Image: GETTY)<\/p>\n

This deficiency affects a range of functions and systems in the body. If left untreated for long enough, scurvy can be fatal and people experiencing symptoms must try get treated as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

Little known symptoms of scurvy:<\/p>\n

Feeling tired and weak all the timeFeeling irritable and sad all the timeJoint, muscle or leg painDeveloping red or blue spots on the skinEasily bruised skin<\/p>\n

The pharmacist added: \u201cIt’s important that scurvy is treated quickly. Without treatment, scurvy can cause serious problems and in some cases, may even be life-threatening.<\/p>\n

\u201cMild cases of scurvy are often easily treated by adding more vitamin C to the diet, including fresh fruit and vegetables. A GP may also recommend taking vitamin C supplements or in some cases, may refer to a specialist for treatment, support or advice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Globally, the rise in cases of scurvy is being linked to GLP-1 weight loss medications. Researchers in Australia <\/a>have been raising the alarm about the potential these drugs have to trigger nutrient deficiency.<\/p>\n

\"Glass<\/p>\n

A medium-sized orange has around 70mg of vitamin C(Image: GETTY)<\/p>\n

Last year, Robbie Williams revealed he had been diagnosed with scurvy after taking weight loss medication. He explained that the appetite-suppressant helped him shed nearly two stone but because he had \u201cstopped eating, I wasn\u2019t getting nutrients\u201d, he told the Mirror<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Vitamin C is found in a wide range of fruit and vegetables, including peppers, broccoli, brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes and kiwi fruit. Although the most well-known source is oranges with around 90% of an adult\u2019s daily recommended intake in a single medium-sized orange.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The condition can be fatal if it is not addressed but it\u2019s also easily treatable in most cases…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":462124,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[10577,59,102,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-462123","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-fitness-and-health","tag-gb","tag-health","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462123","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=462123"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462123\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/462124"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=462123"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=462123"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=462123"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}