Getting some fresh air has long been viewed as an important part of staying in good health.
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Eighteenth-century writers worried about “infectious air,” so they opened windows and built ventilation systems to bring fresh air indoors.
France led the world in medical marijuana research in the 19th century.
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In the mid-1800s, France was at the epicenter of the international movement to medicalize hashish, a potent form of cannabis. Now the country’s medical marijuana research is making a comeback.
Spending more time in nature may be associated with less fear of germs.
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A fear of microbes, like germs, could be harming human health.
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People have denied germ theory since the moment it was born in the late 19th century.
A detail from Abbott Thayer’s 1887 painting ‘Angel,’ in which his eldest daughter appears as a heavenly figure.
Smithsonian American Art Museum, gift of John Gellatly
When Abbott Thayer’s wife succumbed to the disease, his life and art underwent a dramatic shift.
John Tyndall used a beam of light to reveal floating motes of organic matter in the air which he believed carried disease.
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Understanding that germs can cause illness was an important step in learning how to stop the spread of disease
Pasteurisation been instrumental in reducing morbidity and mortality from the consumption of bacteria-ridden food and drink.
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The death of a three-year-old child caused by drinking unpasteurised milk late last year invited much commentary about food safety and regulation. But little has been said about the man who gave his name…