The siege of Madrid (1937-1939). Nutricional and clinical studies during the Spanish civil war

Abstract

During the Spanish civil war, the city of Madrid was subjected to a blockade of food supplies. The hunger among civil population gave rise to conditions comparable to a “hyponutrition experiment similar to what might be done in the laboratory”. This paper analyses the content of nutritional studies (methodology, results, etc.) performed in Madrid between 1937 and 1939. These studies focused on three population groups: the civil population in general, breast-feeding mothers and those suffering from deficiencies. Two types of contributions are identified: the development of a whole technology designed to measure, calculate and evaluate the nutritional status of the population; and the clinical descriptions of various nosological bodies seeking to label and classify the effects of malnutrition; in short, the development of an entire medical know-how (scientific and technological) in times of hunger.