According to The History Channel, doctors throughout history used concoctions that contained unlikely substances to cure various ailments. Ancient Egyptians, for instance, mixed honey with crocodile dung and injected the concoction into the vagina for birth control.
The medicinal properties of excrement, however, are just the tip of the iceberg. Ancient doctors also used poison to treat an array of maladies. The surprising thing is, modern medical professionals still use poisonous substances in treating various conditions today.
Dual Purpose
Studies report that arsenic, an ingredient commonly found in building products, pesticides, and some industrial applications can cause a host of diseases, including cancer. This doesn’t mean, however, that it can’t also serve as a cure.
The American Cancer Society shares that people from the Victorian era used arsenic as a treatment for syphilis. Moreover, while it is poisonous in high doses, medical professionals today use it to treat acute promyelocytic leukemia, a rare form of blood cancer.
Radiation, meanwhile, is likewise lethal in high doses. Medical professionals, however, use it to destroy cancer cells and shrink tumors. They are the preferred treatment method because they damage the DNA of cancer cells, potentially making them go dormant. It should still be noted, though, that there are various side effects to radiation exposure, including vomiting, fatigue, swelling, skin blisters, and, eventually, skin peeling.
Unlikely Medieval Medicine
Ancient people seem to have an inclination towards using excrement as a remedy — a process that, as strange as it sounds, today’s medical industry has adapted as well. With giant leaps in medicinal technology, however, the cure-all excrement method has transformed to a range of targeted treatments.
The arrival of reliable healthcare providers such as intermountainhealthcare.org eliminated the need to take one’s chances on bizarre health remedies. These days, modern medicine synthesizes safer, more effective treatments based on ancient wisdom.