The Butterfly Caste: A Social History of Pellagra in the South

by Elizabeth W. Etheridge

Book by Etheridge, Elizabeth

290 pages, Hardcover

First published July 31, 1972

Reviews

[Marita · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been indispensable to me in my research of pellagra, its origins, and the historiography of its story. Most Americans have never even heard of pellagra, and most are unaware of what a massive problem it was up until only a few years ago. This is due largely to the enrichment of flour. It’s an incredible story, but also ongoing. For now the problem has revealed new dimensions. Has the enrichment of flour now swung the pendulum back the other way? Are people now getting nutrient overloads that are causing a new set of health issues, such as anxiety? The field of epigenetics has posed the question - could exposure to a genetic insult to a mother or father in the past be passed down to descendants? Might this lead to new and more precisely targeted treatments or even cures of existing mental illness or other health conditions such as diabetes? Either way, answers begin by studying the disease and tracing the history of it, and Elizabeth Etheridge has provided an essential beginning to that kind of study.

[Evan Þ. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the title, this's more properly a (very interesting) history of the revealing of pellagra in the American South in the early twentieth century, and the investigation of what it was and how to treat it. Surprisingly to me - until I thought about it - it took a while for anyone to guess that pellagra was related to the poverty of the lower-class Southern diet (stereotypically, corn and molasses and fatback pig), even longer for the Northern physician who'd guessed it to prove his hypothesis, and longer still for the proud Southern upper classes to accept the truth. But even after that, it took years longer for pellagra to finally be killed: until niacin was isolated and added to refined flour.

This's a very interesting book, though sadly hard to come by; if the subject interests you and you can find a copy, read it.

[Turtle Soup · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book I read for my public health course. I chose it out of a wide range of possible books because pellagra itself is an interesting disease. Unlike many public health threats in the history of the United States, pellagra was not caused by something, but rather by the lack of something. In context of other notable diseases such as cholera or yellow fever, pellagra is an interesting case. It is this inherent unique quality which makes the history of pellagra compelling, and this book rather interesting. I won't say it was a gripping read, but it held my attention and offered a new perspective on US public health, one that especially addresses social determinants of public health.