Untested Medicine In The 19th Century

When the text is examined, in the nineteenth century the medical profession grew in a more progressive manner. First, Morphine was discovered to help alleviate pain and the development of the syringe, which gave doctors the ability to administer medications at a faster rate. Additionally, Cocaine, which was derived from the coca leaves in South America was used liberally and added to many products already used by consumers. A few examples are Coca-Cola and cold medicines (Levinthal, 2012). Furthermore, the people of the nineteenth century embodied the laissez-faire or “do whatever you choose” attitude. Not to mention, drug control and policies during this time were almost non-existent with little regulation. Interestingly, anyone in the United States could be a doctor, by simply saying they were a doctor, not to mention, those who practiced medicine had little to no option when it came to medications (Levinthal, 2012). Another key point is that medications given by doctors were not afforded the opportunity to be tested, therefore, doctors where ignorant to the dangers of untested medicines. Next, it is important to realize that during the early periods of man, many cultures had individuals who experimented with plants and identified exactly which plants caused hallucinations. For

Consequently, religious officials became the persons who had the knowledge to heal, however, they relied more on spiritual and religious rituals than drugs. Additionally, the Ebers Papyrus, is a 65-foot-long scroll from 1500 B.C. that is scribed with over eight hundred prescriptions for almost every ailment suffered by man. Importantly, the prescriptions are remedies that we would imagine a Shaman would use. An example is the use of animal feces to scare off evil spirits to something very common today or the use of castor oil as a laxative (Levinthal,