pellagra, and beri-beri. In other words, he suggested that the etiology of
these diseases would be found to lie in the lack of the vitamine factors.
His views at the time were largely hypothetical since the only one of his
avitaminose then demonstrated was beri-beri, but the hypothesis attracted
attention and developed a new method of study as it had in matters of
normal nutrition.

Between 1907 and 1912 Holst and Frohlich had made exhaustive studies of
the causes of scurvy and had reached the conclusion that its cause was due
to the absence of some factor, admittedly unknown, but as strongly
indicated as in the case of beri-beri. Holst pointed out that a guinea pig
restricted to a diet of oats became affected with scurvy. McCollum as well
as others were attracted to this problem and in 1918 McCollum stated that
scurvy was not due to a lack of a dietary factor but to the absorption
from the intestine of the poisonous products resulting from abnormal
decomposition of the food and especially of protein food. He studied the
guinea pig on an oat diet and drew the conclusion that while it does
induce scurvy this result is not due to the absence of any specific factor
in the oat diet. He showed that while the oat kernel contains all the
chemical elements and complexes necessary for the growth and health of an
animal these elements are not in suitable proportions. It lacks certain
mineral salts and its content of the "A." vitamine is too low to permit
oats alone to give satisfactory growth results. Furthermore its proteins
are not of as good quality as those of milk, eggs, and meat. By merely
supplementing the oat diet with better protein, salts, and a growth
promoting fat, he reported that a guinea pig could be developed normally
without further addition and that therefore it was impossible to show that
any unknown factor was responsible for the scurvy symptoms. McCollum also
reported that the guinea pig could develop scurvy even when his diet was
supplemented with fresh milk and since milk was a complete food it