The Medical Field During The Elizabethan Era

Did you know there was a time where infectious diseases like the common cold could kill you and your family? This was the elizabethan era probably the last time where sickness became the “grimm reaper” before modern medical advancements. With infectious diseases spreading and killing so many people doctors became desperate. Because these doctors knew very little about medicine, they were completely willing to try experimental treatments on their patients (Alchin). Sadly just about anybody with an infectious disease died. All the knowledge these doctors knew were based on: Humours, what brain function each internal organ controls, and how to protect themselves from it.

The medicinal practices and problems of the Elizabethan Era were very important to the people, although they are very different from those of today. There were many different beliefs and diseases, like the Plague. Medicine was not an exact science and was related to Alchemy (Chemistry). Here, some of the many practices and beliefs of the Elizabethan Era will be discussed.

“The power of community to create health is far greater than any physician, clinic, or hospital.” (Mark Hyman). In the Elizabethan Era, most of society was poverty-stricken, which drove communities to improvise to help the sick as real doctors and physicians were too expensive. Barbers and wise women rose to the occasion of helping the sick, although they did not have much medical knowledge. Medical knowledge was also lacked in professional doctors and physicians as their knowledge revolved around their religion, leaving the sick in the mercy of misconceptions. During the 16th century, society suffered from lack of medical knowledge and ignorance to the benefit of sanitation, resulting in misconceptions of faulty doctors that brought expansion of diseases and death.

The Elizabethan era was a very important time in english history.Queen Elizabeth the first was the royal majesty back at that time, which explains why the era is called that way. The Elizabethan era was in the 16 century and it was also thought to be the golden era of english history. That was because music and art were promoted, spread, sold and England was becoming more of a highly developed Empire. The golden age represented the apogee of the English Renaissance and saw the beginning of poetry, music and literature. This time is exceptionally acclaimed for the play author William Shakespeare. It was a short period with peace between the English transformation and the fight between the protestants and the Catholics. Also at the same time the English had an effective and combative guard (army) at the time for security or for war and dominance (which was great in those days). They additionally developed loads of crops which implied that they had a ton of food to eat. England were monetarily solid yet more

     The Elizabethan era was not only a period of rations medical science, but also a time of great superstition. Medicine remained attached to astrology and other beliefs such as the supernatural. Elizabethan times was the era in which Queen Elizabeth I and Shakespeare lived. However the times were very unsanitary. People threw their trash out the window and if their dog or cat died, they would throw that out the window also. When it rained, cats and dogs would flow down the street. This is where the quote “Raining cats and dogs” derived. Because of all of these things, health was a major concern in Elizabethan England. Poor sanitation and a

In this day and age, there are millions of pharmaceuticals out there for all kinds of diseases and conditions, but where did all of this start? The creation of medicines most likely started when people discovered the healing properties plants contained. Today, mankind has the knowledge and technology to extract elements from plants to produce more chemically engineered medicines. The real question is how did medicines develop from mashing up leaves in order to lessen an infuriating rash to just popping a pill to nurse or illness? Medicines evolved by the scientific method: series of research and experiments. During the Elizabethan era, research and experimentation attained a renewed interest.

In Elizabethan times many deadly diseases had spread such as the plague, smallpox and typhoid, but the causes and cures had yet to be discovered. Due to bad hygiene because of open sewers and rubbish dumped in the river, this caused disease to easily spread as it was a natural habitat for rats, fleas and lice. The plague was carried by the fleas living in the fur of rats. As a result of this one third of the population died. Elizabethan physicians believed that medicine was basic, they had no idea why and how people were getting so sick, treatments were based from superstitions and guesses so they used a mixture of herbs for cures and also believed leeches would ‘suck

In the Elizabethan era, medicine was incredibly simple and led to the death of millions.

In Elizabethan England, as many as one or two hundred people died in one city due to illness over the course of a month (Davis and McBride 57). Death was common during the Elizabethan Era because people were not educated about proper health. Unhealthy diets, limited medical practices, and unsanitary public places contributed to making a diseased population of England. During the Elizabethan Era, public knowledge of health was low resulting in poor diets, medical practices, and public sanitation.

nurses? Back then there was about five of every medical assistants. During the Middle Ages, there was a limited amount of medicine, but the majority of time they would use herbs. People would get sick, had minor pain, or had been contaminated.

Medicine in the Medieval Period In the 14th Century, trade around Europe was increasing ships regularly and travelled from the Mediterranean to other parts of Europe. In 1348 one ship brought a devastating plague to England. Source 1-Written by a monk from

Medication as we see it today is much more subdued with precautions put in place. Much of the technology innovation during the medieval era pale in comparison to modern times, however there always had to be instruments that came before. People had little choice in the matter when it came to the pain with their treatments, whiskey could only do so much. During Medieval Times medical practices would have almost been borderline torture methods, as brutish as they were they did the trick. Healing these illness required a bit of ingenuity on the part of the doctor. One of many items used during this time would be a clysters; a rather large cylindrical tube filled with boar bile that is used for Enemas.

Throughout history, there has been many scientific advances in many fields. Healthcare is of course an important topic otherwise not many people would be here today. Anyways, obviously health and medicine has gone through numerous changes and advances as civilization has evolved during mankind’s time on earth. There is almost an uncountable amount of changes that healthcare went through so listing them would be unfeasible. However, it can be pinpointed to three major eras in history which had groundbreaking discoveries. These time periods would be the ancient times, the medieval times, and the modern times.

Many ancient civilizations, such as the Romans, Greeks, and Egyptians, pushed medical knowledge forward until the Middle Ages, when medical knowledge was believed to have slowed down. However, that is not the case. The Middle Ages were a time of change and improvement, they shaped the modern world. The Middle Ages revolutionized medical practices, physicians linked filth to the spread of disease, many practical diagnoses and treatments for common illnesses were discovered, and medical training programs in universities became well established.

The Middle Ages were tough times when it came to disease and medicine. There were numerous types of sickness and disease that flooded Europe during the Middle Ages. Not helping the situation, the medicinal knowledge of the people of Europe of the time was not up to par. Some of the diseases and illness that were running rampant during these times were pneumonia, leprosy, and the plague. The middle ages were a time of great suffering and death because of the abundant disease and lack of knowledge of the spread and treatments.