Health and Medical History of President
John Tyler
President #10: 1841-1845
Lived 1790-1862
Lived 1790-1862
"Tyler was never in truly good health."
1a
Health and Medical History of President
John Tyler
President #10: 1841-1845
Lived 1790-1862
Lived 1790-1862
↓
Lived 1790-1862
2023
1776
Revolutionary War1776-1783
War of 18121812-1815
Mexican-American War1846-1848
Civil War1861-1865
Spanish-American War1898-1899
World War 11917-1918
World War 21941-1945
Korean War1950-1953
Viet Nam War1964-1975
Desert Storm1990-1991
Bush's Wars2001-2021
Lived 1790-1862
2023
1776
Revolutionary War1776-1783War of 18121812-1815Mexican-American War1846-1848Civil War1861-1865Spanish-American War1898-1899World War 11917-1918World War 21941-1945Korean War1950-1953Viet Nam War1964-1975Desert Storm1990-1991Bush's Wars2001-2021
"Tyler was never in truly good health."
1a
Maladies & Conditions
· thin · symmetric paralysis · dysentery · frequent colds · general ills · stroke
Odds & Ends ·
Doctors ·
Resources ·
Cited Sources
Maladies and Conditions
Tyler was very thin all of his life.
1a
While a 30 year old Congressman in Washington, Tyler developed an illness that remains difficult
to diagnose. Based on Tyler's clear description of the illness
MORE
it would today be described as a symmetric, generalized, subacute paralysis. His recovery was
so slow and prolonged that he resigned from Congress for two years
1b.
Possible diagnoses include Guillain-Barre syndrome, myasthenia gravis, tick paralysis, diphtheritic
paralysis, and botulism
1c.
Tyler retired to his Virginia estate after leaving the White House. He suffered repeated attacks
of dysentery in the summer
1c,
the causes of which are unknown
1a.
Tyler had little faith in doctors. He regularly "took the waters" at various spas
in Virginia. He became a believer in sulfur hydrotherapy. He also took "massive"
doses of calomel regularly, which may have contributed to his gastrointestinal problems.
1c
Tyler frequently suffered from respiratory infections in the winter.
1d
During the last 8 years of his life, Tyler was afflicted with numerous unspecified aches and
pains. He was prone to colds, arthritis, and kidney problems
1c.
He wrote: "I have many aches and pains. They will attend on a sexogenarian, however, so
be it, for I am convinced that it is all wisely ordained by providence"
1e
In January 1862, while serving in the Congress of the Confederacy, Tyler became dizzy and vomited,
as he had in numerous previous episodes. He complained of a chill, and went downstairs for
a cup of tea. He then slumped to the floor, unconscious, but revived
1e.
Tyler was ordered to bed the next day, and the day following complained of a suffocating
feeling. He was treated with mustard plasters, brandy, and a morphine-containing cough medicine.
He died soon afterwards
1e.
Most likely, Tyler died of a stroke. The episodes of dizziness beforehand were probably
transient ischemic attacks
1e.
Odds and Ends
- When an influenza epidemic swept the nation during Tyler's term, it was called the "Tyler grippe." 2a
- Tyler's first wife died in the White House 3a. While President, he married a woman 30 years his junior. Tyler had eight children by his first wife, and seven by his second 1c.
- Tyler's last surviving grandson is still living, in 2021, into the presidency of Joseph Biden 4.
Doctors
During Presidency
Resources
Cited Sources
- Bumgarner, John R. The Health of the Presidents: The 41 United States Presidents Through 1993 from a Physician's Point of View. Jefferson, NC: MacFarland & Company, 1994.
a p.64 b pp.64-65 c p.65 d pp.64, 65 e p.66Comment: Devotes one chapter to each President, through Clinton. Written for the layperson, well-referenced, with areas of speculation clearly identified, Dr. Zebra depends heavily on this book. Dr. Bumgarner survived the Bataan Death March and has written an unforgettable book casting a physician's eye on that experience.
- Boller, Paul F. Jr. Presidential Anecdotes. New York: Oxford University Press, 1981.
a p.97
- MacMahon, Edward B. and Curry, Leonard. Medical Cover-Ups in the White House. Washington, DC: Farragut, 1987.
a p.15
- Brockell, Gillian. The 10th president's last surviving grandson: A bridge to the nation's complicated past. Washington Post. 29 Nov. 2020.
Other Sources
George Washington · John Adams · Thomas Jefferson · James Madison · James Monroe · John Q. Adams · Andrew Jackson · Martin van Buren · William Harrison · John Tyler · James Polk · Zachary Taylor · Millard Fillmore · Franklin Pierce · James Buchanan · Abraham Lincoln · Andrew Johnson · Ulysses Grant · Rutherford Hayes · James Garfield · Chester Arthur · Grover Cleveland · Benjamin Harrison · Grover Cleveland · William McKinley · Theodore Roosevelt · William Taft · Woodrow Wilson · Warren Harding · Calvin Coolidge · Herbert Hoover · Franklin Roosevelt · Harry Truman · Dwight Eisenhower · John Kennedy · Lyndon Johnson · Richard Nixon · Gerald Ford · James Carter · Ronald Reagan · George Bush · William Clinton · George W. Bush · Barack Obama · Donald Trump · Joseph Biden