renaissance causes and treatments of disease

• Supernatural


  Theories that are often spiritual or religious and rely on an element of faith
• Natural


  Ideas based upon what could be observed in the real world, often more scientific
• The Renaissance saw a move away from some Supernatural ideas, with a greater emphasis on natural or scientific medical theories
• Prayer


  • Still very important in the Renaissance, but people were less likely to rely on it alone and would combine it with other treatments
• There was less confessing of sins, particularly in Protestant areas where Catholics were persecuted
• The religious reforms of Henry VII and Edward VI destroyed monasteries and shrines, ending the custom of pilgrimage in England
• Humanism


  The idea of a return to ancient Greek and Roman thinking and extending people's knowledge of the natural world
• The theory of the four humours could not easily explain epidemics and diseases that affected everyone in the same way
• Physicians continued to use traditional humoral treatments like bloodletting and purging, as patients would not pay them to experiment
• Miasma


  The belief that disease was spread by bad smells and evil fumes, the most commonly believed cause of disease
• In 1526, Paracelsus theorized that disease was caused by problems with chemicals inside the body
• In 1526, Girolamo Fracastoro theorized that disease was caused by seeds spread in the air, an idea closer to germs and viruses
• In 1683, Anthony van Leeuwenhoek made the first recorded observation of bacteria, though they were not yet linked to disease
• Germs were still thought to be the result of spontaneous generation, not the cause of decay
• Continued traditional treatments


  • Bleeding
  • Purging
  • Sweating
• Herbal remedies chosen for color or shape


  • Yellow herbs for jaundice
  • Red cures for smallpox
• New remedies from the Americas


  • Sarsaparilla
  • Ipecacuanha
• Transference


  The belief that an illness could be transferred to another object
• Chemical cures


  • Mercury
  • Antimony
• Syphilis, a new disease at the time, was treated with mercury despite its toxicity
• Some causes and treatments stayed the same

  Religious beliefs, humoral theory
• Some causes and treatments changed a little


  Decline in humoral theory, more humanist approach
• Some causes and treatments were brand new


  Chemical imbalances, links to microorganisms, transference, chemical cures
• Few of the new ideas for causes and treatments had a beneficial impact on people's health