Curiosities of common water, or the advantages thereof in preventing and curing many diseases : gathered from the writings of several eminent physicians, and also from more than forty years' experience, to which are added some rules for preserving health by diet / by John Smith.

  • Smith, John, 1647 or 1648-1727?
Date:
1851
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Curiosities of common water, or the advantages thereof in preventing and curing many diseases : gathered from the writings of several eminent physicians, and also from more than forty years' experience, to which are added some rules for preserving health by diet / by John Smith. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    WATER IN GOUT. as that author cloth affirm, by a very spare diet, and dunking water; according to what is said also by Sir Theodore Maybern, who, in his medicinal counsels, adviseth to leave off all strong drinks in this disease, and drink only water : and Van Heydon saith also, in his treatise of Help for the Rich and Poor, that there not any greater remedy for the gout than drinking wa- ter, not only by young, but old men ; many of whom, he saith, have drank cold water for many weeks, which hath succeeded so well, though they were far gone in years, that they found great ease thereby, without that offence to the stomach, or hindrance of digestion which some did seem to fear. And he also commends the large drinking of water in the sciatica, or hip-gout, he having often cured this distemper by this means, in less time than could reasonably be expected ; and the same myself have found to be effectual in a pain in the shoul- der, which had continued very bad for three months. Tor, being taken with a fever, I drank in one day about four quarts of water, which, though it did not make me sweat, because I lay not in my bed, yet it cured me so that I slept well that night; and in the morning when I rose, I did find that the pain in my shoulder was not felt, neither did it ever return. And the same success I have had in the pains of other parts, whereby I judge, that in all pains whatever, the drinking of water is proper, as well as in the gout; and accordingly I find cold water advised to be drank largely for the cure of the headache from hard drinking, that pain proceeding from the same cause the gout does, namely, from heat, as all pains do that are not from bruises. 4