In 1854, an unusually severe outbreak of cholera occurred in London.

While cholera was not an uncommon disease, physicians at the time weren't sure what caused it.

This time, one doctor took a completely different approach, stopping the epidemic, and ushering in a new field of medicine.

Learn more about John Snow and the Broad Street Cholera outbreak of 1854 on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Book your ticket to happiness with Sun Express Airlines. And Cholera is a disease you don't hear about as much anymore.

While people are still affected by the disease and some die from it.

It's something that can be treated and is even easier to prevent.

However, at one time, cholera used to be one of the deadliest diseases in the world.

Cholera comes from the bacteria Vibrio cholerai, which probably originated in India.

The bacteria causes an infection of the small intestine, resulting in severe diarrhea, vomiting, and muscle cramps.

Cholera-induced diarrhea can be so bad that it can result in severe dehydration and

electrolyte in balance, and it's even possible in severe cases to go from first symptoms to death in a matter of

hours.

Today the fatality rates from cholera are low, but in the past, before treatments were developed,

it was possible to see fatality rates as high as 50%.

So just to lay the foundation for the story, cholera was a very nasty disease.

In the mid-19th century, doctors were very familiar with cholera but

weren't sure what caused it. Modern medicine hadn't yet been fully developed and

there was competing theories as to what caused cholera. The first theory, and one which had been around

for over 2,000 years, was the myasma theory. The myasma theory held that diseases such

as cholera and the plague were spread by foul air. The air was contaminated by rotting

organic matter. Hence if you were around a dead body or raw sewage, the myasmas which emanated

from the organic materials were the cause of the disease.

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