--- title: This Was the Unhealthiest U.S. President description: After Trump's doctor claimed he'd be the healthiest if elected canonical: https://time.com/4148600/trump-doctor-unhealthiest-president/ author: Julia Zorthian article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-12-15T00:57:14.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T13:21:59.033Z article:section: Health og:title: This Was the Unhealthiest U.S. President og:description: After Trump's doctor claimed he'd be the healthiest if elected og:url: https://time.com/4148600/trump-doctor-unhealthiest-president/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25f2009da8bef936/69887555428a9e4b9ccd0916/gettyimages-ab30434.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: unhealthiest-president-william-henry-harrison og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: This Was the Unhealthiest U.S. President twitter:description: After Trump's doctor claimed he'd be the healthiest if elected twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25f2009da8bef936/69887555428a9e4b9ccd0916/gettyimages-ab30434.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # This Was the Unhealthiest U.S. President  by [Julia Zorthian](/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Dec 15, 2015 12:57 AM CUT  President William Henry Harrison, inexplicably pictured here with a coat and hat indoors. President William Henry Harrison, inexplicably pictured here with a coat and hat indoors.FPG—Getty Images  by [Julia Zorthian](/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Dec 15, 2015 12:57 AM CUT Donald Trump’s doctor [said in a statement](http://time.com/4148111/donald-trump-health-report/ "undefined") earlier today that the GOP frontrunner would be the “healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency” if he wins the 2016 election. It’s hard to fact-check such a sweeping absolute statement without at least performing a physical on Trump ourselves — and there isn’t exactly a reigning “healthiest president” to pit against Trump. The designation for “unhealthiest president,” however, is easier to bestow: President William Henry Harrison died after only a month in office in 1841. There are no reports of a chronic condition at the time of his election in 1940; Harrison rather fell ill shortly after taking office. He had won the presidential race with his running mate John Tyler, becoming America’s first Whig president-elect. **Read more:** [Twitter Loves Donald Trump’s Doctor](http://time.com/4148175/twitter-donald-trump-doctor/ "undefined") On the morning of March 4, Harrison took his Oath of Office at the Capitol Building’s East Portico. It was a cold, windy day, with a noon temperature estimated at [48 degrees Fahrenheit](http://www.inaugural.senate.gov/swearing-in/event/william-h-harrison-1841 "undefined"). Harrison was woefully underdressed for the cold, opting to not wear a coat or any reasonable outerwear. He proceeded to give the [longest Inaugural address](http://blogs.britannica.com/2009/01/inaugural-adresses-the-longest-shortest-dumbest-and-most-memorable/ "undefined") in U.S. history. In addition to speaking for [two hours in the cold](http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/president-harrison-dies-after-one-month-in-office "undefined"), Harrison attended three different Inauguration balls. The exposure to the weather and frivolity proved too much for the new President and he caught a cold that persisted, soon developing into pneumonia. Harrison spent the bulk of his 31 days as Commander in Chief battling the malady, before he died in Washington D.C. on April 4\. John Tyler became the first person to become President through the death of the predecessor as a result. Harrison was by no means the only president without a perfect doctor’s note during his tenure, but it’s hard to say that any other president was quite as hindered by his own health. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4148600/trump-doctor-unhealthiest-president/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4148600/trump-doctor-unhealthiest-president/"},"headline":"This Was the Unhealthiest U.S. President","datePublished":"2015-12-15T00:57:14.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T13:21:59.033Z","description":"After Trump's doctor claimed he'd be the healthiest if elected","url":"https://time.com/4148600/trump-doctor-unhealthiest-president/","keywords":["2016 Election","2016 Election topic"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25f2009da8bef936/69887555428a9e4b9ccd0916/gettyimages-ab30434.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Julia Zorthian","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/julia-zorthian/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25f2009da8bef936/69887555428a9e4b9ccd0916/gettyimages-ab30434.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"unhealthiest-president-william-henry-harrison","caption":"unhealthiest-president-william-henry-harrison","creditText":"FPG—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/2016-election/","name":"2016 Election"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4148600/trump-doctor-unhealthiest-president/","name":"This Was the Unhealthiest U.S. President"}}]}] ```