Popular Cures in the 1850s

According to Aesthetic Medicine Today, most doctors in the mid-19 century acquired only a minimal amount of training in colleges or apprenticeship programs and their knowledge of medicine was limited at best. Plagues and epidemics were rampant because of the lack of sanitation and home care was often safer than a hospital stay. Although many medical treatments were available, the cures were often more dangerous than the diseases they intended to treat.

Women and Mental Health

• A movement to reform conditions in mental institutions in 1850 led many doctors to reexamine their beliefs about mental illness. Rather than applying all mental imbalances to spiritual forces, doctors of that time period began to realize that these sicknesses were caused by diseases of the brain, according to the University of Texas at Austin. However, most doctors had no formal training in recognizing the symptoms of mental illness. Women were at high risk of being labeled mentally ill because doctors associated insanity with the rhythms of female life such as pregnancy, menstruation and menopause. Women who were "hysteric" or who experienced mood-altering hormone issues were sometimes institutionalized. They were kept in seclusion or in other sensory-deprived conditions, forbidden to read because it was too mentally stimulating, and fed bland foods. Many women went insane from the treatment.

Opiates

• Opium was a major commodity in the pharmaceuticals market during the 1850s. According to Alfred W. McCoy, author of "Opium History up To 1858 A.D.," opium, morphine and heroin were as widely used as caffeine. He writes that caffeine was used in the daytime to keep people energized, but narcotics were valuable for providing rest and relaxation in the evening. Opium was found in a wide variety of patent medications. In addition, the introduction of the hypodermic syringe in 1856 made opiate injections possible.

  The Marquette General Health System website indicates that local herbs and plants were often used in combination with opiates.

Water Cures

• According to Case Western Preserve University, water cures were popular in Ohio during the 1840s and 1850s. Water cure programs advertised the healing benefits of mineral-free water prescribed to patients in a variety of different forms such as baths, swimming pools and wet bandages. The programs promised relief from a wide range of sicknesses such as circulatory issues, gout, mental illness, substance abuse issues and colds. Water-cure sanitariums advised living clean lives that were free of alcohol and tobacco usage, and program directors recommended simple therapies such as fresh air, exercise and a healthy diet. The website indicates that water cures were a popular alternative to other 1850s medical treatment methods such as laxatives and bloodletting.