chapter 3- public health in medieval times

• what was public health like for monks ?

  • simple routines they stuck to to keep clean
  • could read and write so had more knowledge
  • had an idea of what was clean and what was not
  • were wealthier so have cleaner facilities
• how did rivers effect public health ?

  • were often used to dispose of sewage but some towns took water from local springs
  • cesspits would often overflow into the rivers
  • were used for many things
  • river skells were used to dispose of waste water from toilets to the river
• what was public health like in towns ?

  • streets were often littered but laws were passed encouraging people to keep streets clean
  • leather tanning used dangerous chemicals
  • butchers dumped waste blood and guts into rivers
  • towns were overpopulated & overcrowding became common
  • quarantine wasn't effective & ignornice tk germs
• what was public health like in churches ?

  • churches were wealthier so had cleaner facilities
  • churches were fairly isolated so disease was harder to contract
  • had small infirmaries to help the Ill
  • monks washed clothes and themselves regulary
  • privies in churches that collected urine for other purposes
  • had lavatoriums which had pipes that delivered water to wash basins which had been filtered
• what did people believe the black death is ?

  • spread by rats & fleas
  • had symptoms of bumps, fever and nausea
  • it was caused by astrology, bad air, poisoned wells
  • was a ounishment from God
• where did the black death stem from ?

  • began in asia
  • travelled along trade routes to Europe
• what was the black death actually ?

  • a mix of 2 plagues
  • actually caused by bacteria
  • fleas moved from rats to humans and passed disease
  • poorer parts were more vulnerable
• what were the consequences of the black death ?

  • villages wiped out
  • demand for higher wages weakened the feudal system
  • damage to the Catholic church as priests died
  • food shortages
• how did they treat the black death ?

  • prayer
  • unusual remedies such as shaving a chicken & attaching it to lumps
  • moving away
  • avoid contact with those who are infected
• did the black death end ?

  • never really ended
  • further outbreaks occured in intervals