Rose Eveleth flags a treasure trove for American history buffs, a curious website by “Doctor Zebra” that allows visitors to “peruse the weird medical history of every single U.S. President”:
President are people, and they struggled with the same illnesses and bad habits as the rest of us. And this one website chronicles them all—the weird bodily ailments of every United States President. The site might not be the prettiest, but it’s got all the information there. From John Adams’s baldness to Herbert Hoover’s problem with performing his handshaking duties. Seriously:
The annual White House reception, in which Hoover had to shake hands with thousands of visitors, was a problem. His hand was at times so swollen that he could not write for days. Once he received a bad cut from a diamond ring that was turned inward; the reception was abruptly halted.
The list also has serious ailments like throat cancer, scarlet fever and sudden death. You can also sort by organ system, and see just which presidents had trouble with eyes, ears, hair and heart. Surprisingly, while 16 presidents are listed as having problems with alcohol (John Quincy Adams, Martin van Buren, William Harrison, Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Ulysses Grant, Rutherford Hayes, Chester Arthur, Grover Cleveland, William Taft, Franklin Roosevelt, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush), only two are listed as having liver problems (Zachary Taylor and John Kennedy).
Explore more of the site here.
The Dish 