1858-1930

Dutch Physician and Pathologist

Christiaan Eijkman was a Dutch physician who shared the 1929 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Sir Frederick Hopkins (1861-1947) for their demonstration that beriberi is caused by poor diet. This work subsequently led to the discovery of vitamins. Eijkman helped to establish the first laboratory dedicated to the physiological study of people living in tropical regions. His work helped to show that there were few physiological differences attributable to the change in geography. Eijkman also developed a well-known fermentation test to readily establish if water has been polluted by human and animal feces containing E. coli.

Christiaan Eijkman was born on August 11, 1858, in Nijkerk, the Netherlands. A year later his family moved to Zaandam, where his father was appointed head of a newly founded school for advanced elementary education. It was here that Christiaan received his early education and training...