26th Annual Student Research Conference
Ancient Medical Texts: Insightful Ignorance of the Human Body
Allene L. Gremaud
Dr. Bridget Thomas, Faculty Mentor
No one today would expect the Ancient Greek and Roman gynecological theories from about two thousand years ago to be medically accurate. After all, they theorized about the human body before medical advances such as pills or specialized doctors like gynecologists were even dreamed of. Looking back at their practices, however, we can say that these cultures were not ignorant about the workings of the human body all of the time--and in fact they were quite insightful at times. The Ancient Greeks and Romans used herbals as medications for many purposes like uterine flow stimulation, lactation inducers, contraceptives, and even labor inducers or abortifacients. Using modern medicinal knowledge, I look at how these rudimentary medicines were utilized by the Ancient Greeks and Romans to manipulate the human body with surprising accuracy.
Keywords: herbals, Ancient Greeks, Ancient Romans
Topic(s):Classics
Women's and Gender Studies
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 307-3
Location: MG 1098
Time: 1:30