How old is too old to be president?
Photos: U.S. presidents: Ailing in office
John Adams 1797-1801 – A study by Duke psychiatrists found John Adams would have been diagnosed with a bipolar disorder.
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Photos: U.S. presidents: Ailing in office
William Henry Harrison, March-April 1841 – William Henry Harrison battled with dyspepsia and indigestion. Before he had been in office a month, he caught a cold that developed into pneumonia. On April 4, 1841, he became the first president to die while in office.
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Photos: U.S. presidents: Ailing in office
Abraham Lincoln, 1860-1865 – Abraham Lincoln is widely thought to have suffered from depression.
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Photos: U.S. presidents: Ailing in office
Ulysses S. Grant, 1869-1877 – The study by Duke psychiatrists found Ulysses S. Grant would have been diagnosed as an alcoholic with social phobias.
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Photos: U.S. presidents: Ailing in office
Chester Arthur, 1881-1885 – Chester Arthur was diagnosed with Bright's disease, a fatal kidney condition, after a year in office. He did not seek a second term and died less than two years after leaving office.
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Photos: U.S. presidents: Ailing in office
Grover Cleveland, 1885-1889 and 1893-1897 – Grover Cleveland suffered from obesity and gout and was treated for cancer in his jaw while in office.
"President Cleveland was one of the most compelling stories of concealment in the high office," said Jerrold Post, professor emeritus of psychiatry, political psychology and international affairs at George Washington University. "He was brushing his teeth one day and found a lump on roof of the mouth. Instead of telling the public, he smuggled his dentist, head and neck surgeon and surgical team onto a pleasure yacht, where they removed the roof of his mouth to get rid of the carcinoma. He emerged a week later complaining of a toothache."
"President Cleveland was one of the most compelling stories of concealment in the high office," said Jerrold Post, professor emeritus of psychiatry, political psychology and international affairs at George Washington University. "He was brushing his teeth one day and found a lump on roof of the mouth. Instead of telling the public, he smuggled his dentist, head and neck surgeon and surgical team onto a pleasure yacht, where they removed the roof of his mouth to get rid of the carcinoma. He emerged a week later complaining of a toothache."
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