36. Rockefeller’s business success seriously affected his health
As Rockefeller built his fortune, and created the behemoth which was Standard Oil, he was susceptible to illness, both physical and mental. During his middle age he frequently dealt with bouts of what was then known as melancholy, exhibiting symptoms which would today most likely be identified as clinical depression. During the legal battles of the 1890s he lost weight as a result of eating only occasionally, and then suffering from digestive problems which rendered him too weak to exercise. He developed alopecia in the 1890s, losing all of his body hair, including besides the hair on his head his eyebrows and lashes, giving him an eerie appearance. He began wearing a wig in his late forties to compensate for his appearance, but his slender build and lack of facial hair was often commented upon by his contemporaries.
