People have always believed all kinds of very strange things about the world. In the absence of modern science and medicine, ideas which now seem entirely bizarre could at one time have been regarded as common knowledge.
Certain of these beliefs pertained to ordinary activities, while others affected the way in which doctors dealt with serious illnesses. The following five odd beliefs show how greatly ideas regarding health, food, and everyday life have changed.
5. Evil Spirits Live in Brussels Sprouts
In medieval Britain there was a belief held by certain people that evil spirits could take up residence in Brussels sprouts, and as a result the vegetable was regarded with suspicion because of these odd supernatural beliefs.
In order to ward off the spirits, people used to cut a cross into the sprouts before cooking them, the idea being that the small mark would help protect anyone who ate them from the evil that might be lurking inside.
4. Mercury Cures All
Mercury was used for almost every kind of disease or injury for a period of about 1,000 years. The fact that it was toxic did not deter people from believing that the odd liquid metal could be of help in curing a wide variety of medical problems.
In fact, a great many people had their illnesses made worse after being exposed to mercury, and some of them died as a result of mercury poisoning, thus turning what was intended as a treatment into a different and serious hazard.
3. Female Hysteria
In Western Europe and America in the 1800s women were often given a diagnosis by doctors of a condition known as hysteria, this diagnosis being used to describe a wide variety of physical and psychological symptoms.
For hundreds of years certain doctors held the view that the only remedy was for the woman to have an orgasm. The kind of treatment that was accepted at that time is now a clear example of how little was known about women’s health.
2. Lobotomy
In the 1900s neurologists developed the lobotomy, a procedure consisting of drilling into the patient’s skull and changing the connections in the brain; it was believed that by cutting certain connections mental patients who suffered from severe mental illness could be cured.
It was widely adopted in a number of countries before its reputation fell. Even though it had been designed as a medical treatment, lobotomies could permanently alter a person’s personality, behaviour, and ability to function.
1. Riding on the train led to madness
In America rail transport was experiencing rapid growth in the 1850s, but a great many people still had serious doubts regarding the new technology. A few thought that traveling at high speeds could have dangerous effects on the human mind.
There was a strange notion that riding on a train could lead to madness, with the result that passengers might lose control and leap from the train. As the railways grew in extent, such fears showed how strange and terrifying rapid transport appeared to people back then.
Although these beliefs may now seem absurd, they were influenced by the knowledge and fears of their own times, and they illustrate how readily unusual ideas can be accepted when people do not possess the scientific understanding required to question them.
