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American Indian Medicine (Paperback, 2 Revised Edition)
Loot Price: R1,011
Discovery Miles 10 110
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American Indian Medicine (Paperback, 2 Revised Edition)
Series: The Civilization of the American Indian Series
Expected to ship within 10 - 15 working days
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The purpose of this book, says the author, is to show the effect of
Indian medicinal practices on white civilization. Actually it
achieves far more. It discusses Indian theories of disease and
methods of combating disease and even goes into the question of
which diseases were indigenous and which were brought to the Indian
by the white man. It also lists Indian drugs that have won
acceptance in the Pharmacopeia of the United States and the
National Formulary.The influence of American Indian healing arts on
the medicine and healing and pharmacology of the white man was
considerable. For example, such drugs as insulin and penicillin
were anticipated in rudimentary form by the aborigines. Coca leaves
were used as narcotics by Peruvian Indians hundreds of years before
Carl Koller first used cocaine as a local anesthetic in 1884. All
together, about 170 medicines, mostly botanical, were contributed
to the official compendia by Indians north of the Rio Grande, about
50 more coming from natives of the Latin-American and Caribbean
regions. Impressions and attitudes of early explorers, settlers,
physicians, botanists, and others regarding Indian curative
practices are reported by geographical regions, with British,
French, and Spanish colonies and the young United States separately
treated. Indian theories of disease - sorcery, taboo violation,
spirit intrusion, soul loss, unfulfilled dreams and desires, and so
on -and shamanistic practices used to combat them are described.
Methods of treating all kinds of injuries-from fractures to
snakebite-and even surgery are included. The influence of Indian
healing lore upon folk or domestic medicine, as well as on the
""Indian doctors"" and patent medicines, are discussed. For the
convenience of the reader, an index of botanical names is provided,
together with a wide variety of illustrations. The disproportionate
attention that has been given to the superstitious and unscientific
features of aboriginal medicine has tended to obscure its real
contributions to American civilization.
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