Book: JFK ill during Bay of Pigs invasion

With the 47^th anniversary of the Bay of Pigs invasion coming up this week, a book alleges that President John F. Kennedy was very sick at the time of the event:

In his riveting volume In Sickness and In Power, former Foreign Secretary and medic David Owen reviews the health and medication of leaders over the last century. The chapter on Kennedy is jaw-dropping.

Owen starts by convincingly asserting that Kennedy was much sicker than is commonly appreciated and certainly much sicker than was appreciated at the time. His Addison's disease was very debilitating and needed constant attention.

And there were other health troubles. During the Bay of Pigs fiasco Owen writes that Kennedy had:

“Constant and acute diarrhea and a recurrence of his urinary tract infection.”

The review of the book adds that JFK was “back on an even keel” by the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis.

(Hat tip: Wonkette).

Sources- Wonkette, Times Online, BBC News, National Security Archive

Image- History Channel UK