Medicine Episode 1 - Beginning of Roman Knowledge of Maladies

The Romans had primitive ideas about medicine. They observed their soldiers and wanted them to be healthy. They used drugs like opium for pain relief and performed surgery with boiled equipment. Disease was a major concern, as it spread easily due to crowded places. The Romans blamed their gods for sickness and prayed for help. Some Romans believed in bacteria, while others blamed the stars or swamp vapors. Despite their limited understanding, the Romans made progress in medicine through their travels to Alexandria. Stay tuned for the next episode on the influence of Latin and Roman culture on medicine. Welcome to Little Latin Lessons for Language Lovers, where I give little lessons on Latin and the cultural impact of this fascinating language. Today is the start of a mini-series entitled How the Latin Language and Roman Culture Influenced Medicine. In this episode, Beginnings of Roman Knowledge with Maladies, I'm going to detail the Romans' primitive ideals for how to deal with injuries and sickness, as well as the impact of religion on medicine. The ancient Romans had very minimal knowledge of science, and more specifically, sickness. The Romans saw their need for public health by observing Roman soldiers. They wanted their military in peak condition, and a large group of people like this was a model of the Roman people. On the battlefield, there were crude surgeons who used drugs such as opium to ease the pain while they performed hasty surgery with sterilized equipment that was boiled in water prior to the operation. Along with battle injuries, Romans feared disease. Disease spread silently and invisibly. There was no clear path to trace it back to, and outbreaks would kill many. The Romans were a very social people, and they spent their time in crowded forums and bathhouses, with travelers roaming the bustling city. This led to the easy and quick spread of disease. As the Romans did with anything they couldn't understand, such as changing seasons, eclipses, and death, they blamed their gods. The ancient Romans believed that an unexpected death or bad sickness meant that you did something to displease the gods. Therefore, their solution to most maladies was praying and begging the gods for help. In 431 BC, terrible plagues broke out in Rome. In response to this, the Romans built a temple to the Greek god Apollo in hopes that he would heal them. Some Romans speculated about the cause of disease. Marcus Terentius Varro believed that there were tiny, unseeable creatures that spread sickness. We now refer to this as bacteria. He was pretty spot on with his hypothesis. However, some people did not have ideas that were the least bit correct. Many believed that the stars caused it. Another named Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella thought that disease came from swamp vapors. Despite the slow, feeble, and often incorrect assumptions about sickness and disease, ancient Rome was about to hit a major milestone in their scientific and medicinal journey. Their expansion was key to their success as they traveled to the Greek city in Egypt called Alexandria. And that's where we wrap up this episode. If you want to learn more, make sure to check out the next episode on how the Latin language and Roman culture influenced medicine. Thanks for listening!