Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Blue People



In 1820 "Blue People" where recognized, with there blue skin. Most people just call the disease "Blue People Disease" although the scientific name is Methemoglobinemia. People infected with the disease, skin appears blue. This is caused because in there blood flow they have an high amount of methemoglobin [methb]. In easier terms, this means there isn't enough oxygen in the blood for it to be a normal skin shade. 



In the very beginning when blue people where first recognized, they where thought to be angels since they came from the mountains. (closest to the sky) There's many names there people where called one was,  Blue Moovians was one of the earliest. People thought of them are outsiders because of there skin some thought it was cautious or even ghost. People noticed they had human traits , confirming them to be 'safe'. Most where found in mountain regions in Kentucky. Scientist haven't found anything that is fatal with this disease, the low oxygen in the blood can be treated with medicine. The disease won't kill you & is passed down in the family, even if it;s in the family it's still had to catch.



In   1820 ,Martin Fugate ( a french  blue orphan ) moved to the mountains of Kentucky there he married a red-headed women also blue, Elizabeth Smith together they had 7 children. Four of the seven came out blue. They moved to the mountains in Kentucky isolated themselves. s  With seven kids , each found love with families near by. ( Combses, Smiths, Ritche ) .  In the picture on the left  , captures the family with the blue children . A girl in the picture  is named Luna Stacey she was 'blue' as well. She had 13 children and died  at the age of 84. Since she had so many children they keep the family alive.





100 years later in the family was normal , until Benjy. He was born blue like he's previous family before him. The family took him to different hospitals not knowing much of there own family history. A couple of weeks later baby Benjy only had blue finger nails and blue lips. The disease wore off, somewhat . Later they found out that him and he's family are in the family of the Fugates. Even now the last names Combses, Smiths, Ritche and Fugates still run in families.


 A inquisitive hematologist , Madison Cawein wanted to know more of the disease. She eventually found a nurse who had already met a 'blue' woman. The woman was a Combses who lived nexted to Ball Creek Also in Kentucky. She had a brother named Luke who was a tint of blue. The search for 'blue people' started. Patrick & Rachel Ritche where also blue found in Hardburly. Cawein uncovered more blue skinned people in the woods of Appalachia.




The man was also born blue , he is different for the others because he worked in the circus . January 1924 he passed away. The ones he works close with always asked him why he was   so.. Blue? He answer  I've been like this since birth.  At 68 he checked himself into the hospital saying he  feels like he can't breath.  He had Argyria , so the doctor says.  Argyria means that you have  sliver in your body , making your tissues  a deep-blue. Him having the disease that made his skin blue, had nothing to do with Argyria. Doctors suspected he in dosed himself with sliver nitrate when then man was in the British Army Officer. After he pasted away , a doctor came to find out he had 3 and a half ounces of sliver in he's organs. That's not it though , he didn't die from having sliver in he's body he pasted because of  pneumonia. Pneumonia is a respiratory issues causing an infection in the lungs. ( This also made him seems more blue.