Heroic medicine

Naturopathy: Heroic medicine, a pioneer

To understand the increasing influence and development of naturopathy at present, it is helpful to make history trips. About 200 years ago, naturopathic treatments have already experienced a high-altitude flight when they were looking for ways out of the rather aggressive treatment with the so-called "Heroic Medicine". However, combined with a non-specific use, the Heroic medicine itself was nothing but an exaggeration of some naturopathic methods, such as bloodletting.

contents

• Naturopathy: Heroic medicine, a pioneer
• Origin of Heroic Medicine
• Heroic medicine and naturopathy
• Heroic medicine today?
• Conclusion for naturopathy

Origin of Heroic Medicine

In the United States, the physician Benjamin Rush, who is considered one of the founding fathers of today's US, was a fervent advocate and propagator of heroic medicine. It was assumed in the Heroic Medicine that the organism to be treated had to be released from tension or contaminating substances. For example, fever should cause tensions in the blood vessels, causing disease.

For this, as an agent, extensive (up to one and a half liter blood) bloodletting was practiced. Many famous personalities, such as George Washington, Mozart's mother, Anna Maria Mozart, or Emperor Leopold the Second, are believed to be suffering from extensive bloodletting (so-called Sanguinis missiones).have died. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, too, is said by his doctors, Dr. Closset and dr. Sallaba, have been treated with bloodletting. Similar things are suspected in Johann Sebastian Bach. And also the personal physician Johann Wolfgang Goethe, Christoph Wilhelm Hufeland, in addition to the strong bloodletting, other methods such as emetics and opium, which may also be counted to Heroic medicine, have favored in the medical treatment.

Calomel (mercuric chloride) was considered another cardinal remedy of Heroic Medicine. Patients should "degrade" and excrete. As part of the treatment, there were the classic symptoms of mercury poisoning: massive mucus secretions, abdominal pain (sometimes with bloody diarrhea), tongue and throat with ash gray discoloration, rashes in the mouth and tooth loss.

Other remedies in Heroic therapy for vomiting and purging were tartar (stone), castor oil, coal oil and other agents such as opium. Also rashes, inflammation or wounds were treated with red hot iron. The goal was to "burn out" the disease.

Heroic medicine and naturopathy

Many methods of heroic medicine, such as bloodletting, have been used in natural medicine since Paracelsus and Hildegard von Bingen - but in much smaller quantities and with a specific indication.

Andrew Taylor Still, the founder of osteopathy, had been treated with calomel at the age of 14. Through this treatment, he should later have needed artificial teeth because of tooth loosening. The experience in-house and critical observations in his environment may have been a reason why A.T. Still rejected drugs so vehemently and justified osteopathy.

Another opponent of Heroic Medicine was the German physician Samuel Frederick Hahnemann. Hahnemann and his gentle homeopathy were well received because of the aggressive treatment with the Heroic medicine in the US much encouragement. In addition to Hahnemann, the doctor and well-known writer Oliver Wendell Holmes made himself public as an opponent, especially the Aderlasses.

A highly popular work at the time was "Wesley's Primitive Physick". Originally from England preacher Wesley was co-founder of the Methodists. Wesley, who was also socially committed, was considered a proponent of naturopathic medicine, which should be applicable even by non-medical practitioners.

Historians often assume that the then rapid, wide spread and acceptance of naturopathic methods, such as osteopathy, homeopathy and concepts of phrenology or mesmerism, with the desire of the people to return to natural and side effects as possible treatment methods, related.

Heroic medicine today?

Some therapies, such as nuclear medicine, radiotherapy or chemotherapy of opponents, are today referred to as the current counterpart of the Heroic Medicine of the time. This comparison is inappropriate because none of the therapeutic approaches has ever been used in naturopathic therapy, as some of the treatments of Heroic Medicine. School physicians also argue that the above therapies are the first real therapeutic approaches today to enable people with malignant tumors to go on living. Books like "A medical insider unpacks" of the pseudonym Prof. dr. Peter Yoda may involuntarily contribute to maintaining comparisons between the above therapies and Heroic medicine.

Serious explanatory models that do not come from the area of ​​conspiracy theories, on the other hand, are more likely to be comparable to the often unrestrained use of antibiotics and the lack of follow-up care compared to the situation at the time. For antibiotics have often been and are being used unnecessarily and too unspecifically, as an agent that strongly interferes with the organism. The resulting problems such as damage to the intestinal flora, possibly the Leaky-Gut syndrome and the development of resistant germs (MRSA) provide naturopathy new impetus.

The currently recurring popularity for natural manual procedures such as osteopathy or the fascial distortion model (FDM) is partly explained by a tendency to premature, sometimes unnecessary and nonspecific operations. On the other hand, the opposite is the case if the treatment is neglected. Because with the long waiting times for orthopedic examinations and often unspecific manual and physical measures, many complaints such as back pain or neck tension do not seem to be treated comprehensively and satisfactorily for the patient.

Conclusion for naturopathy

Parts of the Heroic Medicine came from naturopathy and were perverted. Non-specific therapies and healing promises do not belong in the field of natural medicine. It is fundamentally problematic when, in a complicated biological mechanism, such as the human body, a form of therapy claims to have found the ultimate truth. Medicine, be it natural medicine or conventional medicine, will remain a discipline for seekers and researchers who need to consider their work as a construction site. Personal fame and monetary considerations are always behind the interests of patients. These are the lessons of the history of Heroic medicine, which should not leave the naturopathy untouched. (Tf)