Historical story

Koro. An epidemic that terrifies men

Mysterious-sounding koro is an anxiety disorder that occurs in men. The patient thinks that his penis ... will be pulled deeper into the abdomen until it disappears completely inside him. It happens that thousands of people suffer from the disease at once. This has happened many times in history.

Koro literally means "turtle's head" in Malaysian. Traditional Chinese medicine refers to this condition as sou yang. Hindus even have several names:jinjin, bain marie, suk, yeong. The Chinese believe that the disease is the result of a disturbance of the male yang in the world of yin-yang balance. Doctors from the Middle Kingdom classified Koro as a civilization disease.

However, the phenomenon of koro has been known for centuries among many representatives of various ethnic and religious groups in almost all Asia and Africa . Especially in places where the reproductive ability is the main determinant of the social status of a young man.

Many people in the Far East believe that the loss of masculinity is caused by the ghosts of foxes or various types of poisons. In Africa, black magic and witch curses are believed to be the cause of "penis atrophy". Anyway, looking for the reasons in magic tricks is nothing new - already in medieval Europe, priests used to proclaim that a spell cast by a woman could lead a man to lose his masculinity. The manuscript "Malleus Maleficarum" states that "male genitals were stolen by Satan so that he could satisfy witches."

Despite the obvious absurdity of such claims, in several places around the world the coro turned into an epidemic ...

Chinese syndrome

For the Chinese, this disease is not a primary concern. The first medically diagnosed mass coro disease was recorded at the end of the 19th century.

The most recent "epidemic" was registered in 1984–1985, when about 3,000 people reported to doctors. Most of them reported that their penis was already beginning to deteriorate and started treatment with natural herbal remedies such as a mixture of red and black pepper, ginger and various juices.

For the Chinese, this disease is not a primary concern. The first medically diagnosed mass coro disease was recorded at the end of the 19th century (illustrative illustration).

They maintained that the decline of masculinity began at night. Then most of them shivered. Some people got seizures and their hearts pounded. Such attacks were to last from 20 to 60 minutes. During this time, said organ was also supposed to decline.

Guilty vaccine

Singapore experienced its worst attack of "penis" panic in 1967, when a rumor surfaced that the swine flu vaccine that was stuffed into animals was causing the penis to atrophy. Pork sales dropped drastically overnight.

Representatives of the Ministry of Health explained at press conferences that nothing like that happens and eating pork certainly does not cause disease. Nevertheless, according to a study by the National Institute of Health, the number of reported coro cases increased from two per year to 70 per day ...

The extinction of the Thai people

The Thai people were hit by two great Koro epidemics. The first took place in November 1976. At that time, more than 200 patients reported symptoms of acute psychosis to hospitals. They claimed that atrophy of the penis is manifested by itching of the external genitalia, fever, fainting after which "the penis was noticeably smaller".

The second took place six years later - in 1982. Back then, the tabloid media described it as "an attack on Thai sexual vitality and overall health," which was to lead to the "extinction of the nation." In both cases, no actual disappearance of the penis has been recorded.

The Thai people were hit by two great Koro epidemics. The first one took place in November 1976 (illustrative illustration).

African witches

In 1975, many men began to accuse women of witchcraft because of which "their births were gone." Men reported to police stations claiming that their penises had been stolen. The policemen immediately sent such citizens to a psychiatrist. The epidemic ended in two years.

Unfortunately, it erupted again in 1990 and at the beginning of the 21st century. In both cases, there was even a lynching of a few women who were accused of using dark magic, which was to lead to the loss of an organ. Those involved in the lynching were outraged that the police had released the "penis thieves". In 1990, they were led by a Catholic priest who was also about to lose his penis. As proof that he had been touched by witchcraft, he quoted the Gospel according to St. Luke:"And Jesus said," Someone touched me, for I know that power has gone out from me. "

Not surprisingly, the results of a Gallup study that 55 percent of Sub-Saharan Africans believe in witchcraft, magic and superstition. Such people are much more easily deluded into disease. Significantly, in all these cases, from medieval Europe to modern Nigeria, no penis has been reported to disappear. At least not with magic, drugs, vaccines, or chemtrails.