In 1920, 18th amendment prohibited the sale and import of all alcoholic beverages. Attempts were made to produce legal alternatives to usual alcohol. A cottage industry started with this intention. Alcoholic extract of ginger was considered to be a patented medicine This liquid extract of Jamican ginger was called "Jake" and could be sold legally.
To curb the abuse of Jake, a standard formula was defined for its manufacture (USP) . The extract had to contain 5 grams of ginger per ml of the solvent. This resulted in a highly unpalatable bitter concoction.People were encouraged to mix this with soft drinks to make it taste better Agriculture department
occasionally boiled the product and studied the extract in detail including the weight of remaining solids.
In order to make the product cheaper, alternative solvents were tried. Harry Gross, president of Hub products, used TOCP (TriOrthoCresyl Phosphate) thinking it is safe. Shortly after its release, thousands of people in Tennessee, Oklahoma, Kentucky suffered a mysterious disease manifesting as an ascending paralysis. An estimated 50000 people were stricken with paraparesis or paraplegia.
Dr. Epraim Goldfain was the first doctor to recognise it. In February 1930, he saw a man with a rapidly progressive foot drop. Within a short time he had 65 patients presenting with this mysterious affliction. Most of them were poor workers habitually consuming Jake. Working on this and other similar clues, the Maurice Smith and Elias Elvoe of NIH after analysing the samples determined that the toxic component to be TOCP These findings were confirmed by animal studies. Music industry picked it up and it went into 12 blues from 1928 to 1934. An United Victims Of Jamica Ginger Paralysis was formed with 35000 members belonging to the poor class.
Later 105 people including 35 children died of Ethylene Glycol poisoning. Food, Drug and Cosmetics act was passed in 1938 to prevent any sale of medicines without safety testing. Die to weak laws, Gross got away without any Jail time till he again exported 640000 oz bottles to California after the ban He then served a 2 year jail sentence.
Symptoms of Ginger Jake paralysis developed in a week of the intake starting with the abdominal cramps, later involving the legs and then the paralysis ascended. Sensory symptoms and bladder involvement was rare. Some developed spasticity later suggesting a motor neuron involvement. Peripheral nerve and spinal cord were also seemingly involved
The Ginger Jake paralysis taught us a lot about other neurotoxins also. Organo Phosphare Induced delayed Neuropathy was picked up later. Thus TOCP could involve peripheral nerve (long fibres) and the spinal cord. The Ginger Jake tragedy was one of the largest mass poisonings in the history of neurology, many others were picked up later. These interesting cases included Peripheral neuropathy from Arsenic contaminated beer, Myoclonic encephalopathy mimiking Crutzfeldt - Jakob disease from GI preparations containing Bismuth; Encephalopathy and cerebral edema Triethyltin laced antibiotics to name a few.
Needless to say the Ginger Jake was withdrawn and the disease disappeared!
To curb the abuse of Jake, a standard formula was defined for its manufacture (USP) . The extract had to contain 5 grams of ginger per ml of the solvent. This resulted in a highly unpalatable bitter concoction.People were encouraged to mix this with soft drinks to make it taste better Agriculture department
occasionally boiled the product and studied the extract in detail including the weight of remaining solids.
In order to make the product cheaper, alternative solvents were tried. Harry Gross, president of Hub products, used TOCP (TriOrthoCresyl Phosphate) thinking it is safe. Shortly after its release, thousands of people in Tennessee, Oklahoma, Kentucky suffered a mysterious disease manifesting as an ascending paralysis. An estimated 50000 people were stricken with paraparesis or paraplegia.
Dr. Epraim Goldfain was the first doctor to recognise it. In February 1930, he saw a man with a rapidly progressive foot drop. Within a short time he had 65 patients presenting with this mysterious affliction. Most of them were poor workers habitually consuming Jake. Working on this and other similar clues, the Maurice Smith and Elias Elvoe of NIH after analysing the samples determined that the toxic component to be TOCP These findings were confirmed by animal studies. Music industry picked it up and it went into 12 blues from 1928 to 1934. An United Victims Of Jamica Ginger Paralysis was formed with 35000 members belonging to the poor class.
Later 105 people including 35 children died of Ethylene Glycol poisoning. Food, Drug and Cosmetics act was passed in 1938 to prevent any sale of medicines without safety testing. Die to weak laws, Gross got away without any Jail time till he again exported 640000 oz bottles to California after the ban He then served a 2 year jail sentence.
Symptoms of Ginger Jake paralysis developed in a week of the intake starting with the abdominal cramps, later involving the legs and then the paralysis ascended. Sensory symptoms and bladder involvement was rare. Some developed spasticity later suggesting a motor neuron involvement. Peripheral nerve and spinal cord were also seemingly involved
The Ginger Jake paralysis taught us a lot about other neurotoxins also. Organo Phosphare Induced delayed Neuropathy was picked up later. Thus TOCP could involve peripheral nerve (long fibres) and the spinal cord. The Ginger Jake tragedy was one of the largest mass poisonings in the history of neurology, many others were picked up later. These interesting cases included Peripheral neuropathy from Arsenic contaminated beer, Myoclonic encephalopathy mimiking Crutzfeldt - Jakob disease from GI preparations containing Bismuth; Encephalopathy and cerebral edema Triethyltin laced antibiotics to name a few.
Needless to say the Ginger Jake was withdrawn and the disease disappeared!
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