Gilbert Blane

Sir Gilbert Blane (29 August 1749 - 26 June 1834) was a Scottish physician who instituted health reform in the British Navy. Born in Blanefield, Ayrshire, he studied medicine at Edinburgh University before moving to London, where he served as private physician to Lord Rodney. Blane accompanied Rodney to the West Indies in 1779.

Blane did much to improve the health of sailors by heeding their diet and enforcing due sanitary precautions. Largely due to his advocacy, the entire navy in 1795 made the use of lime juice obligatory to prevent scurvy. Enjoying a number of court and hospital appointments, he built up a good practice for himself in London, and the government constantly consulted him on questions of public hygiene. In 1812 he became a baronet in reward for services he rendered in connection with the return of the Walcheren expedition. His works include Observations on the Diseases of Seamen (1795) and Elements of Medical Logic (1819). Blane died in London.