Rabid Vampires
According to some researchers, the origin of the vampire myth could be rooted in a very real menace: rabies. Rabies is a deadly virus that is transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected animal. Globally, it kills an estimated 59,000 people each year — that equates to almost one death every 9 minutes. Initial symptoms are only flu-like, but once they appear, rabies is almost always fatal. Creatures that carry the virus include skunks, dogs, coyotes, foxes, and, you’ve guessed it, vampire bats — but that’s not the connection with mythical vampires that we are discussing today. In the 1700s, vampires were not just legends; as far as normal folk were concerned, vampires were a genuine worry. As Voltaire said, “Vampires were the sole matter of conversation between 1730 and 1735.” And, it just so happens that there was a rabies epidemic in Hungary in the 1720s — the very time and place where the vampire legend appears to have taken root. But the similarities run deeper still.
Biting. Individuals with rabies become particularly aggressive and sometimes bite, or attempt to bite, other people. Also, once a vampire bites you, you become one of them, as is the case with rabies — it is by being bitten that the virus is most commonly spread. However, it is very rarely transmitted by a human-to-human bite.
Aversions. Rabies might cause people to become averse to strong or surprising stimuli, including odors (such as garlic), light, and mirrors. In fact, according to Gómez-Alonso’s paper, “A man was not considered rabid if he was able to stand the sight of his own image in a mirror.”
When someone with rabies comes into contact with such stimuli, their face can become contorted as the facial muscles spasm; their lips curl back to display their teeth, and their vocal cords may contract, producing hoarse sounds. They might also froth or bleed from the mouth.
Insomnia and wandering. Rabies sometimes makes it difficult for the afflicted to sleep, and they therefore become prone to night wandering.
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