The Victorians really did have some strange ideas about health and what was good for you. So strange that it’s a wonder any body survived.
It wasn’t unusual for cocaine to be used as pain relief or for women to place weasel testicles in their bosom as a contraceptive! I think it may have worked better for the weasel population than humans.
Cocaine was widely used during routine surgery, and was used for piles and toothache, and marketed for children too. Coca cola also contained an estimated 9 milligrams of cocaine per glass, because it’s inventor wanted to make the world a happier place.
Then there was the tapeworm diet, which worked on the basis that you could eat all you want because the tapeworms inside you would eat all the food. The tapeworms usually arrived dead in the post which was probably just as well as all sorts of other problems could be created by eating them alive. Tapeworms can grow to 30 feet long!
Human fat was believed to have healing properties. Mans grease was used for wound healing, pain relief, gout and an aphrodisiac. It could even be used in cosmetics,particularly good for smallpox scars.
Radioactive water was considered good for you too. A special piece of equipment called a revigator was designed to keep by your bed so you could have a constant supply of radioactive water.
Mercury was used to cure depression, flu and constipation, and for childrens’ teething powders.
Heroin was named as it made users feel mighty or heroic, and could help clear the complexion and regulate the bowels, and could help people who had become addicted to morphine.
Thank goodness for modern medicine!