Author: admin

Holistic medicine is often referred to as alternative medicine by many
people and it takes a whole different approach to treating illness and
overall health. There are many different aspects of holistic medicine
and many of the practices and ideas many practitioners of alternative
medicines use are well known forms of exercise such as yoga and Tai
Chi. Practitioners of holistic medicine look at your complete health
including your mental and emotional health, physical health, and even
spiritual health in some cases. With so many dangers involved in modern
day medicine and pharmaceuticals many people are looking to the ancient
practices of natural medicine. Many of the philosophies behind these
medicinal practices come from many different and ancient societies in
Eastern culture, such as China and India. Alternative medicine has been
used for such a long time and many people feel it is much more
effective and much safer for the patient.

Some of the other
practices that are often used with holistic medicine are things such as
massage therapy, acupuncture, aromatherapy, chiropractic care,
herbalism, and medical marijuana. These practices are not generally
accepted by the majority of the public in our society mainly because
many people are uneducated about what natural and holistic medicine are
all about. These medicinal practices must have a great deal of success
to have been around for the thousands of years that they have, and as
more people learn about the natural art of medicine the more people
will turn towards it. There are many insurance companies that are
finally starting to cover alternative medicine since it is finally
starting to be accepted more and more in our society. There are many
Doctors out there that also use some of the alternative medicinal
practices mixed with many of the modern day practices, a good Doctor
will work together with the patient and come up with a healthcare plan
that the patient is comfortable with.

To find the roots of ancient Chinese medicine, one must reach back
through several thousand years of history. As early as the Stone Age,
Chinese practitioners were developing primitive medical skills to treat
disease. Generation after generation of medical practitioners made
steady advancements in the arts and science of medicine from this early
point, gradually forming the comprehensive system of health management
techniques that were used and written about by the prominent
practitioners of ancient Chinese medicine.

Acupuncture
was among the earliest techniques developed by ancient Chinese
medicine, its origins traced back to the primitive efforts of Stone Age
practitioners. These early medical pioneers learned to treat a variety
of illness and disease with stone tools, methods that eventually grew
into the advanced practice of Chinese acupuncture, still in common use
today.

Ancient Chinese medicine developed through the ages
from a basis of both theoretical studies and practical knowledge,
giving it a unique balance of intellectual exploration and basic common
sense. The concept of balance, or as the ancient Chinese practitioners
termed it, Ying and Yang, was central to the fundamental principles of
all medical treatments and traditions.

In one of the
classic writings of early Chinese medicine, Internal Classic of the
Yellow Emperor, compiled in the fifth century BC, the basic principles
of Yin-Yang and the five phases were explained. These principles were
already widely accepted, part of the philosophical thinking of ancient
Chinese civilization. The five principles provided an explanation,
unique to ancient Chinese culture, of physiology, pathology, and
etiology that provided a guide for the treatment and prevention of
disease and the application of drugs.

From these humble
beginnings, ancient Chinese medicine developed into an advanced and
comprehensive medical system. Many of the practices and theories of
ancient Chinese medicine are evident in the modern medical system,
particularly that of china, where the practice of traditional medicine,
steeped in rich history and culture, still continues today, right
alongside the marvels of modern technology.

The practitioners of Ancient Egyptian medicine were very advanced
for their time. One of the few cultures that had an extensive and
reasonably accurate concept of the human anatomy, Egyptians of this era
had a working knowledge of the functions of most major organs. This
basic knowledge of anatomy led to the development of more advanced and
effective treatments for disease and injury. The theories and
techniques of Ancient Egyptian medicine were highly regarded by other
cultures and studied by many of the masters of early Greek medicine,
forming the basis of many of their own medical advancements.

The
mastery of human anatomy evidenced in the writings of Ancient Egyptian
medicine was largely due to the mummification ceremonies that were
practiced by the Egyptians during these times. Mummification involved
the removal of most of the body’s organs, including the intestine,
pancreas, liver, spleen, heart, lungs, and brain. Dissection of the
human body was a forbidden practice in many ancient civilizations,
giving Egyptian practitioners a distinct advantage over their
colleagues in other nations in the study of anatomy. Many scholars from
ancient Greece studied Egyptian writings on human anatomy to supplement
their limited knowledge on the subject.

Ancient Egyptian
medicine encompassed a wide variety of practices that included faith
healing, embalming, surgery, and autopsy. Autopsy was another practice
that evolved from the mummification ceremonies. Embalmers, while
preparing the deceased for mummification, often examined the body to
determine the cause of the fatal illness. The development of autopsy
studies gave Egyptian physicians a greater knowledge of the effects of
disease and injury on the body, enabling great advancements in surgical
procedures and healing practices.

The advanced knowledge of
human anatomy provided to early medical practitioners by the
accomplishments of Ancient Egyptian medicine laid the groundwork for
many historic medical discoveries. While Ancient Greek medical science
is often cited as the basis upon which modern medicine was built, the
knowledge of ancient Egyptians must share the credit for the early
advancement of medical science

Ancient Greek medicine is widely considered the foundation of the
medical knowledge used in today’s modern societies. The first culture
known to have applied scientific thinking to the art of healing,
ancient Greece produced doctors whose methods were comparable to those
of modern physicians. As classical Greek physicians parted with
mystical ideas in favor of logic and reasoning, these ideas spread
throughout the ancient world, gradually taking root in countries as far
east as India and eventually blossoming in nations to the west. The
influence of early Greek physicians is still seen in the medical
profession today. Perhaps the most easily recognizable hallmark of this
influence is the Hippocratic Oath, taken by each physician before
embarking upon a medical career.

Hippocrates
is perhaps the best-known figure in ancient Greek medicine, widely
credited as the father of modern medicine and the author of the
Hippocratic Oath. The theories and practices taught by Hippocrates and
his followers were largely responsible for the change from spiritually
based medicine to a system based on logic and observation. Central to
these theories was the belief in keeping the body in balance with
nutrition and beneficial herbs and drugs. Doctors trained in the
methods of Hippocrates used scientific observation to evaluate their
patients, applied herbs, performed surgery and even specialized in such
fields as gynecology.

As Hippocratic medicine became the
accepted practice in the Mediterranean, the theories and methods of
ancient Greek medicine began to gain ground against religious and
mystical medical treatments in other parts of the world. Through their
interaction with Greek culture, the Romans gradually adopted many of
the ideas of ancient Greek medicine. Eventually, as the Romans
conquered Greece, Hippocratic medicine became accepted throughout the
Roman Empire and supported officially by the Roman Catholic Church.
This official backing helped to establish the theories of ancient Greek
medicine as the basis of further medical advancements throughout the
world.

The theories and principles of ancient Greek medicine
have endured through the ages, influencing the most modern methods of
disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Many of the research
techniques used to produce the incredible advancements that happen
every day in modern medicine have their roots in the scientific methods
first introduced by early Greek medical pioneers.

Life in the colonial United States was one filled with hardship and
trial in which life spans were relatively short and the threat of an
incurable disease or food shortage weighed heavily on many minds.
Colonial medicine was rudimentary in the scarcity of resources and the
very few numbers of trained physicians which had come to the new land.
In fact, a colony’s women usually took over the community caregiver
position and helped with everything from child birth to herbal
treatments and natural remedies in a time of illness. Herbal
supplements and natural substances were the prevailing means of
treating illness in colonial medicine and have evolved into many of the
old wives tales we still hear. However, some of the very products we
use today contain the same active natural ingredient as used then, such
as calamine for burns or bites. Because of this utter lack of access to
medical care and the limited technology of the time, many diseases
which are quite curable today caused many deaths and as a result, life
spans were generally rather short.

Colonial medicine
faced an extra challenge in that the overall health of many of the
colonists tended to suffer from some of the extreme climate conditions,
poor sanitation and regular food shortages. Given the run down state
many colonists often found themselves in, the susceptibility for
contracting a certain disease could threaten the village as a whole.
Because of this, the introduction of a communicable disease such as
smallpox could cause an outbreak amongst the entire colony very
quickly. Such outbreaks were not uncommon and would claim many lives in
a short time due to the fact that antibiotics had not yet been
discovered at the time of colonial medicine.

Likewise,
at the time of the revolutionary war, many of the field medics
responsible for treating wounded soldiers were also untrained and used
non-sterile medical equipment, sometimes causing an infection, blood
poisoning, or death. Colonial medicine retained the same basic
understanding of the human body and disease as in Europe, but had to
utilize the naturally occurring substances around them to compensate
for lack of resources and access to medication.

The history of medicine in America is a patchwork of traditions and
methods ranging from those practiced by the Native Americans to English
medical practices brought over by the early pilgrims. Even barbers
played a role in early American medicine, with surgery often relegated
to them, considered a bit messy and beneath the dignity of the trained
physician.

Early
American doctors were often quite scarce, especially in rural areas,
leaving many average colonists with no choice but to meet the medical
needs of their families on their own, with medical literature and
family healing traditions as their only guide. Many physicians in
colonial America practiced without formal medical training, getting
their knowledge directly from other physicians.

When the
pilgrims came from England, they arrived with two physicians, one the
commander of the Mayflower, Miles Standish. Like many physicians
prominent in the history of medicine in America, Miles Standish had no
formal medical education. He was rather a jack-of-all-trades, a
military man, explorer, engineer, interpreter, and merchant as well as
a physician. His medical knowledge was collected by observing and
studying with other physicians.

Dr. Samuel Fuller, the other
physician who sailed in with the Mayflower pilgrims, was an unusual
doctor for this era, practicing as both a physician and surgeon.
Doctors trained in English medicine used techniques based primarily
upon the ancient Greek concepts of balance in the body, maintained with
diet, herbs, and medicines. Therapies used by these conventional
physicians commonly included bleeding, purging, blistering, and
prescriptions of Calomel, a form of mercury. Few physicians performed
surgery in those days, most leaving this duty to the barbers. Surgeons
did not gain a respectable status in the medical profession until 1745,
officially separating from the barbershop as full-fledged doctors in
their own right.

The history of medicine in America is not
one just of the prominent physicians of the day, but also of the
practices of families and communities. Treatment by physicians was most
often reserved for the wealthiest colonists, or those in the cities.
Few average colonists had access to conventional physicians, their
expense and scarcity making it rare for many to ever be seen by a
doctor. The community met most medical needs, with midwives and
neighbor women attending childbirth, caring for the aged and infirm,
and treating common illnesses. This community involvement in the home
was the beginning of the practice of nursing.

Interwoven
into the fabric of everyday existence, the history of American medicine
is a complex tale, with many of its most effective treatments in those
early days concocted in the kitchens or church halls of the community
rather than in the domain of the conventional physician. From this rich
history of innovation born of necessity, the marvels of modern American
medicine arose.