Welcome to the Nebula Original Series Mysteries of the Human Body. In this series, we’re going to take a look at some of the most baffling diseases and epidemics from history, human oddities and the afflictions they suffered from, rare diseases that defy explanation, common conditions we still can’t cure, and the mystery of aging and death. It’ll give you a whole new view of the body you inhabit, and the secrets it still holds.
The human body is an amazing machine, but when things go wrong it can be a real mess. Most of these messes are understood by the medical community after decades of research and study. But some simply defy explanation. From diseases that accelerate aging to diseases that stop aging, ones that cause your muscle to turn to bone and ones that make filaments grow out of your skin, to allergic reactions to water and deadly cannibal conditions, here are some of the weirdest.
Weird diseases are one thing. But what happens when a weird disease starts to spread, eventually affecting dozens, hundreds, even thousands of people in various areas around the world? There are stories of unexplained maladies, from a disease that leaves you dead in a puddle of sweat within hours, to epidemics of uncontrollable dancing, to hundreds of people pulling on their private parts (yes, this is a real thing). These are the strangest epidemics of all time.