Course Description:
Due to the fact the people were underneath a mass amount of hallucinations. We can only expect for them not to pay attention to the importance of hygiene. It is similar today when we consider the conditions of the alcoholic, the meth addict, the heroine fiend or the crackhead. This includes many other individuals like the executioner, the landlord or the wet nurses. Circumstances of new comers from a neighboring land, the soldiers coming back from war or travelling prostitutes all contributed to the spread of a contagion. Medical knowledge during these times was not as advanced as it seems it is today. Many superstitions and spiritual mechanisms were created to battle diseases. There has always been a placebo effect with ailments, that stems from a mind over matter method. This was the major reliance during these times. The Sweating sickness which sporadically appeared in different locations throughout Europe as did all diseases was peculiar and never found a solution. This infection caused an individual to sweat to death. We will detail its actions upon the Europeans. Typhus was a disease stated to be spread by the biting of ticks and fleas. Its symptoms were extreme and violent. Scrofula also called the Kings Evil was defined as a person having worms living in its neck. These worms could only be removed by the Holy. First it was the Pope or local priest and then extended to the touch of the King. We will discuss how this occurred.
Dysentery was an ailment that only children suffered from. It infected babies from there being colic in the water. Colic is another word for feces. They suffered from the disease by having diarrehea filled with blood and would produce these excrements until they died. Scholars have stated that there has been a big confusion with detailing the difference between leprosy and syphilis when researching the documents and artifacts coming from these times. We will be going over both in separate fashions. Leprosy was not considered to sexually transmitted and syphilis is. There is a possibility that the evolution of leprosy allowed its identification to be changed by title. Both ailments were extreme relative to deterioration of the physical features, specifically the face and other areas of the skull. Gonorreha also known as the clap was recorded as early as the 16th century. It was treated with Mercury. The amount of death it caused and also the social adjustment that it caused will be reviewed. Gout is unique as it is an affliction that is caused by the consumption of wine, beef, pig and other fatty foods. It was blamed upon the Devil as many cartoons of the time period states. Supposedly, it was only a disease that the rich got because they were the only ones who could consume in a gluttonous fashion.