20th Century Health, Illness & Place: Understanding New Tech Developments - Essay Sample

In what ways do the technologies mentioned in these excerpts reflect new understandings of health, illness, and place in the early twentieth century?

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Ideas associated with clothing in relation to the preservation of the Europeans' health within the tropical climate dates back to the seventeenth century. The physicians tended to believe that the weather had a direct effect on the creation of the disease. During this era, the tropical infections were hugely associated with the tropical heat. Hence, the appropriate dressing was essential to enhance the stability of the physiological functions. In the early periods of the twentieth century, the chemical emissions of the sun, in association with the heat, were introduced as detriments of the common diseases experienced in the areas. As a result, the restricted mode of dressing changed (Brewer 3). Regardless of whether heat or the chemical sunrays was the biggest concern, the fundamental interest of the travelers was to maintain the bodily appearance within the tropical areas. This factor was facilitated through the development of the tropical clothing to mimic African outlook and attain a considerable tropical possession.

Water was considered to be essential to the health and wellbeing of the Europeans in tropical areas. Freshwater supplies, hygienic sanitation, as well as efficient water management, were critical to the health of the Europeans in tropical regions. The white travelers understood that the common disease burden they faced in tropical areas could be prevented by enhancing access to safe water for drinking, improved sanitation as well as improved water management. Hence, they introduced technologies such as boiling the water in clean containers to make it fit for consumption. The boiled water was filtered using an alum precipitation method (Brewer 15). Furthermore, Forbes sterilizer was used to improve the purity and destroy disease-causing germs.

The Europeans residing in the tropics believed that dwellings housing factors were detrimental to their health. They found that that the physical condition of a house and the neighborhoods affected the ability to make health decisions. They travelers believed that good health depended hugely on having homes that are safe from environmental exposures. The Europeans thought that the indoor air quality, ventilation, the hygiene of a house as well as the hygiene of the workers played impacted their health in the topical areas (Brewer 28). Additionally, the settlers believed that the neighborhood conditions around their homes had a considerable effect on their health. Hence, they ensured that their homesteads were well-drained, and waste was well managed to minimize contacts with materials that could pose a risk to their health.

Disposal of excreta was a primary concern for the whites in the tropical areas as they regarded the natives' methods as unhygienic. The Europeans assumed that sufficient disposal of human excreta would aid in enhancing their health. They believed that leakage of However, the Europeans experienced a significant challenge in designing a technology that would suit the prevailing conditions in the tropical areas. Some of the techniques adopted by the Europeans included the development of water carriage, the establishment of privies, pail system, digging latrines as well as the establishment of brush system (Brewer 35). The whites constructed drain systems to ensure that water reservoirs like rivers were not contaminated. Furthermore, the excreta were passed into toilets and pit latrines to prevent spills and access by scavengers.

Malaria infection posed a considerable health risk to the health of the Europeans in tropical countries. The tropical areas are popularly known to be hugely infested with mosquitoes which contract malaria. The disease is associated with a high mortality rate in African countries. However, the European settlers conducted several precaution measures such as the use of the mosquito nets, draining stagnant water as well as installing wire gauzes in buildings ventilations (Brewer 51). The travelers used large nets as well as head nets to prevent mosquito biting while retiring to bed. Additionally, they applied mosquito repellants such as the pennyroyal oil and the oil of lavender to keep away mosquitoes. The whites drained stagnant water and other mosquito breeding areas to prevent reproduction. Finally, the municipal authorities conducted massive drainage of swamps and destruction of all mosquito breeding areas in the city areas.

In what ways do they reflect older understandings?

In the older understanding, the Europeans believed that their health, and that of their slaves, hugely depended on the composition of the humoral system. The latter included the blood, phlegm, the yellow bile as well as the black bile. The Europeans believed that based on this idea, the human body contained various bodily fluids that facilitated processes such as digestion, thinking, and other body activities. The approach provided that blood is wet and hot, yellow bile is warm and dry, the black pile is cold and dry while water is cold and wet ("Lecture Notes on Older Understanding of Health, Illness and Place" 1). The ideology further noted that there existed different individuals who were choleric, melancholic, phlegmatic, and sanguinary. The view provided that to maintain the balance of these humor, an individual had to seek help from a healer.

The theory argued that the humoral balance was hugely influenced by the types of food consumed. The view noted that maintenance of an individual's health depended on avoiding consumption of excess food and drink. Besides, factors like enough sleep, exercise, rest, and temperate emotions played a significant role in enhancing the health of an individual ("Lecture Notes on Older Understanding of Health, Illness and Place" 2). However, the theory noted that external environmental factors affected the humoral balance of an individual. Hence, travelers had to prepare for climatic changes if they planned to relocate to a new environment. The theory noted that a human body is porous and very malleable and is hence easily affected by the surrounding. This ideology still holds up to date.

Good health mostly depended on the humoral balance. However, different individuals had a different composition of this humor. Particular humor predominated in different individuals up to a different level. Nonetheless, every individual had their ideal balance of humor. The ideal led to classification based on the four temperaments, that is, individuals whose blood, choleric, yellow bile, or melancholic persists more than others. The sanguine individuals were associated with optimism and serenity, while choleric individuals were regarded to have anger. Conversely, the melancholic individuals were viewed to be depressed but creative while phlegmatic ones were associated with laziness ("Lecture Notes on Older Understanding of Health, Illness and Place" 2). However, these features depended mainly on the seasons. The humor imbalance led to illnesses that could be treated with diet management or other treatment methods used to remove excess tumors.

Europeans migrated to areas that were much warmer and more humid than their home countries. During their stay in the regions, they noted that they fell sick and died in the new warmer areas. Hence they adopted measures described above, such as change of diet to manage their humoral balance. Additionally, they build their homes in highland areas to enhance a more refreshing environment ("Lecture Notes on Older Understanding of Health, Illness and Place" 4). The Europeans also designated some areas as healthy and built highly ventilated houses to allow the proper flow of air. Besides, they wore a particular type of clothing to maintain body equilibrium. Additionally, the plantation owners helped the slaves to acclimatize through feeding them with specific foods from their region to enable them to get used to a new environment. The settlers allowed the slaves to cultivate their meals in a bid to help them acclimatize to new labor regime.

How can we understand changes in medical ideas and the historical context of global health by analyzing these technologies?

Global health alludes to understanding healthcare within an international context. It includes the study and conduct of medicine with a focus on enhancing health and healthcare equity for all individuals in the world. The global health perspective encompasses medical as well as other non-medical disciplines that are critical to the health of individuals. In a historical context, the Europeans faced a high mortality rate due to tropical diseases. The case was regarded as different, as opposed to the European conditions. Hence, travelers developed new medical techniques to manage bugs. Besides, they developed new technologies such as the drainage system in tropical areas to address the lack of sanitary in the area. The Europeans also focused on improving the urban areas to control waste disposal to prevent contamination of the surrounding. The technologies also included efficient construction of homes and cleanliness of the environment.

Currently, the global health context mainly focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. The medical field recommends addressing fields like health education and eradicating issues that facilitate the spread of diseases. Additionally, there has been an increasing concern for climate conditions. The latter is hugely associated with the state of health of individuals. The global health focuses on improving the sanitation and safety of water sources to minimize contamination. Another concern in the global context is animal health since the latter plays a significant role in the wellbeing of humans. Since the management of waste can affect the health of animals, the global health context aims at enhancing the disposal of garbage to improve the health of individuals. Finally, the global health context aims at administering developing and administering vaccines to minimize the spread of disease that can be prevented through vaccinations.

Works Cited

Brewer, Isaac Williams. Personal Hygiene in Tropical and Semitropical Countries; a Popular Manual, written for the Use of Foreigners Residing in the Philippines, Cuba, and Other Portions of the Tropics. Davis, 1908.

Lecture Notes on Older Understanding of Health, Illness and Place