The Forgotten Plague During Prohibition

TL;DR

During Prohibition, bootleggers turned to alternative sources of alcohol, such as industrial alcohol. One popular brand, Jamaica Ginger, caused paralysis and became known as "jake leg."

Transcript

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Key Insights

• 🇺🇸 Prohibition led to an epidemic of alcohol poisoning in the United States, causing deaths and toxic effects.
• 👯 Jamaica Ginger, a popular brand of patent medicine, was a significant source of alcohol for many people during Prohibition.
• 🥺 The addition of poisonous substances to industrial alcohol, intended to render it undrinkable, led to unintended consequences and health problems.
• 🙂 The Jake Leg Incident shed light on the failings of the 1906 Pure Food and Drugs Act, which did not mandate federal testing of food and drugs.

Questions & Answers

Q: What were the initial suspicions about the cause of the unusual paralysis in Oklahoma City?

The doctors initially suspected polio or Guillain-Barré syndrome, but tests ruled them out, leading them to suspect alcohol poisoning.

Q: What was the purpose of adding poisonous substances to industrial alcohol during Prohibition?

To prevent the consumption of industrial alcohol meant for industrial purposes, the US government mandated the addition of poisonous substances, such as methanol, to make it undrinkable.

Q: Why did bootleggers turn to alternative sources of alcohol during Prohibition?

As the existing stockpiles of liquor and smuggled alcohol began to run out, bootleggers had to find other sources, such as homemade moonshine and industrial alcohol.

Q: How did chemists discover the cause of the paralysis?

Chemists from the National Institute of Health tested various brands of Jamaica Ginger and found the presence of tricresyl phosphate, a neurotoxin that induced paralysis.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• In the 1930s, an alarming number of patients in Oklahoma City presented with muscle paralysis in their lower legs, later referred to as "jake leg."

• The paralysis was caused by the consumption of Jamaica Ginger, a popular brand of patent medicine that contained a high alcohol content.

• Chemists discovered that the paralysis was caused by a neurotoxin called tricresyl phosphate, which was accidentally added to the medicine.