(01 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published in 1940 by the US Public Health Service. The poster warns men during the Second World War against unsafe sex.
(02 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published between 1918 - 1920 issued by the US government. The poster is aimed at soldiers returning from the Second World War. (credit:SPL / Barcroft Media)
(03 of22)
Open Image Modal "Defendez-vous contre la Syphilis" ("Defend yourself against syphilis"), after a public notice by the French Ministry of Hygiene in 1930. The notice encourages the public to not expose themselves to the disease, but if infected to contact their local doctor or clinic for venereal diseases. The majority of syphilis cases were spread sexually.
(04 of22)
Open Image ModalTuberculosis poster published in 1919. The poster was part of a 'Christmas seal' anti-tuberculosis fundraising campaign by the American Red Cross. Tuberculosis is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The BCG vaccine and streptomycin antibiotics were only in widespread use after the Second World War.
(05 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published in 1943 by the US government. The poster warns soldiers during the Second World War against unsafe sex.
(06 of22)
Open Image ModalTuberculosis. Historical poster published in 1917 by the American Commission for preservation against tuberculosis in France. The main text reads 'A great scourge, Tuberculosis'.
(07 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published between 1918 - 1920 issued by the US government. The poster is aimed at soldiers returning from the Second World War.
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Open Image Modalh_01481440(09 of22)
Open Image Modal(10 of22)
Open Image Modal Public campiagn poster on polio, dating from 1943, showing a symbolic representation of death holding a girl's lower legs. The caption reads: 'Help Me Win My Victory!! Join The March Of Dimes!'. This poster was produced by the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, a US charity founded in 1938 by Franklin D. Roosevelt. 'March of Dimes' was the name of the annual fundraising event. Polio, also known as poliomyelitis and infantile paralysis, is a childhood disease caused by a virus. Polio epidemics in the early 20th century left thousands paralysed. Vaccines were developed in the 1950s and 1960s.
(11 of22)
Open Image ModalTuberculosis health campaign poster. This poster is promoting proper diet and adequate sleep and sunshine exposure to help prevent tuberculosis (TB). TB is cased by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which is spread by coughing and sneezing. It infects the lungs creating primary tubercles, nodular lesions of dead tissue and bacteria. The bacteria may enter the blood or lymph system and spread to other organs of the body. This US poster was used between 1936 and 1941.
(12 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster issued by the Canadian government during the Second World War.
(13 of22)
Open Image ModalPenicillin use, second world war poster. This poster was used from 1941 to 1944 as part of the American war effort. Although discovered in 1928 in the UK, penicillin was not mass-produced until 1944, when the USA produced 2.3 million doses in time for the Normandy invasion. Penicillin significantly reduced the number of deaths caused by infected wounds among Allied forces.
(14 of22)
Open Image ModalPoster (1941) about tuberculosis in children and methods of transmission, showing a child wearing a bib. Tuberculosis is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The BCG vaccine and streptomycin antibiotics were only in widespread use after the Second World War.
(15 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published around 1940 by the US government. The poster warns soldiers against unsafe sex. Axis refers to the alliance of nations, Japan, Italy and Germany, that fought against the allied forces during the Second World War.
(16 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published by the US government during the Second World War warning against unsafe sex.
(17 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published in 1942 by the US government. The poster warns soldiers during the Second World War against unsafe sex.
(18 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster issued by the Canadian government during the Second World War.
(19 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published in 1942 by the US government. It depicts leaders of the Axis of powers (Benito Mussolini, Hideki Tojo and Adolf Hitler) carrying hypodermic needles. The poster warns soldiers during the Second World War to practice safe sex.
(20 of22)
Open Image ModalSerbian cholera appeal. Poster which appeared in the USA in 1918 appealing for help for Serbia, where cholera was rife. The country had been devasted by the First World War, leaving ideal conditions for a cholera epidemic. Cholera is spread in food and water infected by the bacterium Vibria cholerae. It causes vomiting and diarrhoea with death resulting from dehydration. Because it is associated with unsafe water supplies it often appears after disasters.
(21 of22)
Open Image ModalVenereal disease poster published around 1918 issued by the Committee on Public Information, a US government agency tasked with creating information and propaganda during the First World War.
(22 of22)
Open Image ModalTrench foot poster, World War II. Trench foot is a condition caused by prolonged exposure to damp, cold and unsanitary conditions. Affected feet (top right) would swell, smell, and develop sores and gangrene. If untreated, amputation might be needed. It was so-named because it affected soldiers in the trenches in World War I, but it was also a problem during World War II. This poster, published between 1943 and 1945, instructs soldiers to keep their feet dry and clean to avoid this condition. Published for US soldiers by the Office for Emergency Management, Office of War Information.