Casimir Funk, a Polish biochemist, is renowned for his groundbreaking work in the field of nutrition. In 1912, he coined the term "vitamine" to describe essential substances found in food that prevent deficiency diseases.
Funk's research was inspired by the work of Christiaan Eijkman, who observed that chickens fed polished rice developed beriberi, a debilitating disease. Funk hypothesized that a vital substance, later identified as vitamin B1, was lost during the polishing process.