In ancient Egypt, people started realizing
the influence of environment for the cause of the illness, particularly the
great River Nile. The Nile was the best
source of water for drinking, cooking and washing but it also harbored
parasites and other water borne parasites that was not at all beneficial to
humankind. Egyptians used to wade
through the water, particularly in the agricultural irrigation channels, and
parasites such as Schistosoma worm would enter human host, via the feet or
legs, to lay eggs in the bloodstream.
These worms would cause a lot of damage by their travel through various
internal organs, making sufferers weak and susceptible to many other diseases
for which the Egyptian did not even know what it was, let alone the treatment
for the same, but treated they were, with all sorts of trail and errors and which
was the only option at that time.
Sometimes ancient Egyptians used to unknowingly take in the guinea worms
in their drinking water which went undetected into their body, these female
guinea work would travel to its preferred site, the host’s leg, in order to lay
her eggs and causing ill health.
In spite of having a wide variety and
range of foodstuffs, cereals, fruits, vegetables, milk and meat produced, not
everybody in Egypt had adequate nutrition which is one of the reason for
falling ill. There have been evidence from
bodies of ancient Egyptians that were retrieved from their graves that some
people suffered from nutritional deficiencies.
Flies, dirt and sand particles may also have caused infections of the
eyes and lungs. Many Egyptians wore eye
paint at that time which may have been attempt to ward of eye infections, it
was discovered that the green eye paint containing malachite had medicinal
properties and these were the discoveries made, based on the excavation of the
Egyptian mummies.
In has been proved that some
conditions or illness do leave evidence of their existence on bones, Anaemia,
often a consequence of iron deficiency during childhood as is widely believed,
leaves markers on the roofs of the eye sockets or on the top of the skull in
the form of small holes, and these were frequently seen in the Egyptian
skulls. Iron deficiency can be caused by various
other insufficiency in the body or chemical reaction. In ancient Egypt, one of the reason for iron
deficiency could have been caused by infestation of bloodsucking parasites,
such as hookworms, or people who are eating diet which has very low iron
content.
----------
Ayurveda, an ancient Indian science of
healing, has an interesting theory on disease and believe it or not, it is
correct. It believes that all disease
happens because the elements that make up our body go out of balance. For instance, the common cold strikes when
the body’s “Agni” or “digestive fire” is dampened, and what causes the “Agni”
to be dampened, it is the cold weather itself.
Yes, when the temperature outside dips and with it your immunity also
takes a dip. This is what happens, the
dimmed fires inside the body then fails to burn body toxins or “Ama” completely
and consequent to that the “Ama” or toxin accumulates, clogging the micro channels
of the body and generating “phlegm.”
Phlegm or “Kalpha” combined with toxins or “Ama” makes, mucus and the
final outcome is ‘Common Cold”
