Bit-Induced Diseases [2007]
An extract from the second article in our Fear of the Bit series, this table presents a list of over 40 diseases caused either directly or indirectly by the bit.
Those 22 diseases that, in my experience, are specific to the bit and not caused by any other factor are printed in bold. The first three respiratory diseases are ones that, until now, have always been classified as of unknown cause. Many of the other diseases are most frequently caused by the bit (e.g. the scared horse syndrome) but they are not exclusively caused by the bit. The five items printed in italic are diseases for which the evidence for including them as being even partially bit-induced is flimsy. They are added in the belief that a causative connection may nevertheless be present and, therefore, these suggestions are put forward as possible candidates. This approach is considered to be justified as most of the ‘blue’ diseases are currently recognized as being of unknown cause anyway and proposals for plausible causative factors are needed.
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