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Why did Linus Pauling found the Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine?
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Linus Pauling
Theoretical physical chemist Linus Pauling, photograph by Yousuf Karsh.
Linus Pauling founded the Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine in 1973 primarily to further his research into orthomolecular medicine and the health benefits of vitamin C.1
Following his work at Stanford University, Pauling became deeply interested in the potential for megadoses of vitamin C to help the body combat colds and various diseases, a concept he popularized in his 1970 book, Vitamin C and the Common Cold. This focus on orthomolecular medicine—the practice of achieving health by manipulating substances naturally present in the body—drove him to establish the institute to conduct further experimental research, including studies on the use of vitamin C in treating cancer.12