Scurvy

Your gums bleed at the lightest touch. Small sores open in your mouth. Your skin grows thin, bruises appear without any recognizable cause, and wounds no longer want to heal. Your joints stiffen, your limbs grow heavy, and a feeling of leaden exhaustion settles over everything. Medically, the matter is clear: scurvy is a severe vitamin C deficiency. Without vitamin C, the body can no longer produce collagen — and collagen is the substance that holds connective tissue, vessel walls, gums, and skin together. Without it, the tissue slowly disintegrates from within.