Medical Catastrophes Of 18th Century Essay

The Medical Catastrophes of the 18th Century
Medicinal practices of the 18th century were more likely insufficient than effective in the eradication of ravaging disease. The 18th century was described as an era, “...of unreliable and often painful medical treatment”(Johnson) in the establishment of remedies to diseases such as cholera, smallpox, typhoid and tuberculosis that rid America of much of its population. Although the same ranges of disease affected both whites and slaves, the way that the ailments were cured varied. In the case of slaves, slave women typically, “ using their knowledge of plants and herbs”(Sanu) to concoct remedies that were not only used amongst themselves, but applied without recognition in white's treatment. Slave owners used their mindsets
For slave owning families, physicians were likely enlisted in the birth of their children since the use of midwives caused fear, “of deliberately causing miscarriages” (Sanu) due to their extended use of natural, herb-filled remedies. Since most midwives were thought to have much less medical knowledge than physicians, physicians became more trusted. The physicians that were called upon“...had no clinical experience delivering babies or treating related complications”(Sanu). Since many women and babies had severe complications after birth, physicians were unable to assist the child, nor their mother would often not survive. Physicians were not knowledgeable enough to save the lives of both. In the case of slaves, physicians were likely not called upon in the birth of slave children in an attempt to decrease the cost to the slave owners. More often, there was a slave healer who used her knowledge of natural remedy in order to aid the slave women through birth. Like physicians, healers were at times not successful in the healthy birth of all slave children. Both slaves and slave owners were affected by the same diseases and remedies in the 18th century, but