# Viral disease? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 6, 2000, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viral-disease/32201 "2000-09-06T06:34:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Blitzzen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Blitzzen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blitzzen)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2000, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viral-disease/32201/1 "2000-09-06T06:34:18Z")
I was once asked this question and I can’t remember the answer, so here it is: What was the viral disease that started the legend of the werewolf? I use to know the answer but I now forgot. Anyone know by any chance? ---
**Author:** ![jb\_farley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9d8465/32.png) [@jb\_farley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jb_farley)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2000, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viral-disease/32201/2 "2000-09-06T06:51:31Z")
It’s not a virus if you are thinking of what I’m thinking of. I’m totally failing on the name (pyrohrea or porphorya or something). Basically, it caused reddening of the teeth and weird hair growth. but it’s only a theory that such a disease is the source for all werewolf legends. most cultures have some sort of -thropy, be it bear, ion or wolf. ---
**Author:** ![Blitzzen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Blitzzen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blitzzen)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2000, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viral-disease/32201/3 "2000-09-06T06:54:08Z")
Ok, I remembered now! It was rabies. Stupid me. Its all comming back, back in the 1600’s or something villigers and such would aquire rabies which would make them act like a beast or “werewolf.” God, this has buged me for awhile now… ---
**Author:** ![jb\_farley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9d8465/32.png) [@jb\_farley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jb_farley)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2000, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viral-disease/32201/4 "2000-09-06T07:39:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jb\_farley \* > **It’s not a virus if you are thinking of what I’m thinking of** well goodness, is my thumb not on the pulse of this board. ---
**Author:** ![whitetho](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whitetho/32/1059_2.png) [@whitetho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whitetho)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2000, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viral-disease/32201/5 "2000-09-06T09:10:56Z")
There was a theory that porphyria, “a group of rare, largely hereditary diseases” was responsible for the vampire, and possibly the werewolf, legends, but this has been largely discredited. Cecil discussed it briefly on pages 135-136 of _More of the Straight Dope_ – the discussion is at the end of [Did Dracula really exist?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_131). A short time after this message board began operation, **Ed Heil** started a thread in “About Cecil’s Columns”, [Myth: Porphyria=Vampirism](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=80), which discussed Cecil’s original column with respect to the vampire theory, and the later challenges to the original ideas about porphyria. Cecil responded with an updated column on May 7, 1999, [Did vampires suffer from the disease porphyria–or not?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/990507.html), in which he reviewed and dismissed the old porphyia theory for both vampires and werewolfs. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2000, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viral-disease/32201/6 "2000-09-08T05:23:35Z")
You don’t mean “lycanthropy” do you? That’s the mental disease in which you believe you turn into an animal, usually a wolf.