Food was a problem at sea because it would spoil very quickly. At the beginning of a voyage, a ship carried many fruits and vegetables, but they would rot if the crew did not eat them soon.

When the sailors were at sea for several months without any fresh food and no vitamin C in their diet, they would get a terrible disease called scurvy. At first, their gums turned black and started to bleed. The sailors couldn’t even chew their food because their teeth hurt so badly! Soon, their teeth would fall out.