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ergot, a hallucogenic mold found on damp wheat. this is the same mold that caused the werewolf craze in France.

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The Ergot theory works because the damp fall preceeding the winter when the affliction began, would have allowed the spread ergot in larger quanitites than is normal. The winter is when the infected wheat would have been eaten at the highest rate. Along with hallucinations, ergot can affect the muscles in the limbs and that can lead to convulsion that could have been described as "fits" back in the day. Unfortunately, where the ergotism manifested was sporadic, which doesn't fit. It is more likely that whole households would have contracted the illness after eating infect wheat from the same storage place.

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Q: What is the leading medical theory about causes of behaviors leading to the Salem witch trials?
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