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A mural from and ancient Egyptians tomb. Source: Svetlaili/Adobe Stock

Here’s How We Know Life in Ancient Egypt was Ravaged by Disease

Thomas Jeffries /The Conversation The mention of ancient Egypt usually conjures images of colossal pyramids and precious, golden tombs. But as with most civilizations, the invisible world of...
Stone age remnants from Bergsgraven in Linköping.                Source: Östergötland Museum/Stockholm University

Bacterial Diseases Were A Lethal Threat During the Stone Age

Bacterial poisoning via food and water – but also via contact such as kisses – caused a lot of suffering during the Stone Age. Diseases that today can be treated with antibiotics were then fatal, a...
Statue of Socrates    Source: araelf/Adobe Stock

Did the Ancient Greeks and Romans Experience Alzheimer’s?

Leigh Hopper /University of Southern California You might think age-related dementia has been with us all along, stretching back to the ancient world. But a new analysis of classical Greek and Roman...
Artist's illustration symbolically depicting the research results. Source: Sayo Studio/Nature

Ancient DNA Reveals Reason for High Multiple Sclerosis Rates in Europe

Researchers have created the world's largest ancient human gene bank by analyzing the bones and teeth of almost 5,000 humans who lived across Western Europe and Asia up to 34,000 years ago. By...
Illustration based on osteobiography generated through analyses of remains excavated at cemetery of Cambridge hospital which offered what was, in essence, a medieval social benefit system Source: Mark Gridley / After the Plague

Cemetery Reveals Medieval Equivalent of Social Benefits System

Archaeologists from several universities in England teamed up to analyze the skeletal remains of more than 400 individuals who were buried in a medieval cemetery that belonged to St. John the...
The people of Tournai bury victims of the Black Death, circa 1353. Source: Public Domain

Black Women Were Primary Victims of Black Death in Medieval London

When the Black Death or bubonic plague epidemic ravaged London between the autumn of 1348 and the spring of 1350, it may have wiped out as much as half the city’s population. While the victims of...
Medieval queen dabs sweat from her brow. Source: Alliance / Adobe Stock.

The Sweating Plague Was Deadlier Than It Sounds (Video)

In the late 15th and 16th centuries, England was gripped by a deadly disease known as Sudor Anglicu s or English sweat. This malady, unlike the Black Death , did not grant immunity to survivors. In...
The Black Plague. Source: illustrissima / Adobe Stock.

How You Could Have Survived the Black Plague (Video)

Surviving the Black Plague in the 14th-century Europe necessitated avoiding crowded areas, curtailing the spread of the Bubonic plague through airborne transmission. Keeping a safe distance from...
A comparison of great ape and human skeletons in genetic move to bipedalism. Source: Alexander Potapov/ Adobe Stock

New Study Sheds Light on Genetic Human Skeletal Changes that Led to Bipedalism

Researchers have conducted a groundbreaking study using imaging data from over 30,000 participants in the UK Biobank to gain insights into the genetic basis of human skeletal proportions and their...
Dangerous virus emerging from permafrost. Source: lukjonis / Adobe Stock.

The Permafrost is Melting, Releasing Deadly Viruses (Video)

The Arctic's permafrost is thawing due to human-induced climate change , resulting in dire consequences. In Siberia, a mysterious anthrax outbreak claimed lives and led to the burning of thousands of...
The hand of a person with Viking’s disease, a.k.a. Dupuytren’s contracture, a condition of the hand that can cause some of a person’s fingers to become permanently bent at an angle. Source: Artwell / Adobe Stock

‘Viking’s Disease’ Hand Condition Traced Back to Ancestral Neanderthals

Researchers have discovered a link between Neanderthal genetic material and an unusual health disorder that affects modern humans. The disorder in question is Dupuytren’s disease, a.k.a. Viking’s...
Selection of urine flasks and bottles found at the disposal site at the Ospedale dei Fornari. Source: Caesar’s Forum Project/Antiquity Publications Ltd

Renaissance Era Medical Dump Includes Urine Flasks For Tasting Pee!

A team of researchers from Denmark and Italy have stumbled upon a treasure trove of artifacts at an ancient Roman hospital site in Rome brimming with medical supplies. This Renaissance-era trash dump...
Representational image of a child mummy. Child mummies have been scanned to reveal the prevalence of anemia in ancient Egyptian children. Source: Mary Harrsch / CC BY-SA 4.0

Why Did So Many Ancient Egyptian Children Suffer Anemia?

In a “first-of-its-kind” fascinating osteoarchaeological study, scientists have found that anemia was common in ancient Egyptian children who had been mummified . Through the use of CT scans, it was...
Beethoven. Source: flint0010 / Adobe Stock

Beethoven Died of Alcoholism, Promiscuity and a Weak Liver

The answers to decades-long questions about the health issues suffered by famed classical music composer Ludwig van Beethoven have been found in the most unexpected of places. Thanks to in-depth...
Japanese illustration of smallpox, dating back to 1720, from a work entitled Toshin seiyo, or The essentials of Smallpox. Source: Wellcome Collection / Public Domain

The Japanese Smallpox Epidemic of the 8th Century: Cause and Effect

Human history has undergone countless epidemics, some which have been nipped in the bud due to sparse populations, some due to prudent medical interventions. Some, like the recent COVID-19 pandemic...
Some of these ancient medical treatments will make you understand how the ‘mad doctor’ trope got started. Source: vchalup / Adobe Stock

Murderous Medicine: Six Strange and Horrifying Ancient Medical Treatments

The medical field has advanced significantly compared to where it was fifty years ago, let alone over 1,000 years ago. Although modern technology has allowed us to understand more about the human...
The plague of Athens killed between 25-33% of the ancient city’s population, yet what happened is still a mystery. This oil painting by Michael Sweerts, circa 1652, is called “Plague in an Ancient City,” and some scholars interpret it as a depiction of the Athenian plague that broke out in 430 B.C. Source: Public Domain

The Plague of Athens Killed Over a Quarter of the City's Population

Pandemics and plagues seem to be the flavor of this decade, occurring at regular intervals throughout history. Some pandemics have been nipped in the bud due to effective collective action or by...
Mictlantecuhtli, the Aztec god of the dead, was quite busy in 15th century. The cocoliztli epidemic may have killed up to 15 million people! Source: Ivan / Adobe Stock

What was the Deadly Cocoliztli Disease that Decimated Aztec Society?

When the Spanish crossed the Atlantic and started arriving in hordes to begin their conquest and plunder of the Americas, they had a weapon in their arsenal that they had not anticipated: disease...
Syphilis infections surging through the military had an enormous impact in numerous wars. Source: 4k_Heaven / Adobe Stock

Syphilis: The STD that Won and Lost Wars

In 1494, King Charles VIII of France launched an all-out war against the republics of the Italian peninsula, a watershed moment in history. Within months, 50,000 soldiers from his army had fled, not...
People with the Black Death depicted in 15th century manuscript. Source: Public domain

Survivors of Black Death Passed on Genetic Risk to Autoimmune Disease

We may have a lot more to thank (or curse) our ancestors for than we realize. When the Black Death or the bubonic plague swept through Europe 700 years ago, it literally killed 50% of the population...
Depiction of Anubis supervising mummification from a sarcophagus painting dating back to 400 BC. Source: André / CC BY-SA 2.0

The Healing Arts and Spiritual Mumbo-Jumbo in the Ancient World

The history of medicine is an amazing tale. Not only that, but a peek beneath the covers can hopefully help us understand some of the bizarre worldviews confronting us today in the realm of...
The hands of a person with leprosy. Source: paul salmon/EyeEm / Adobe Stock

Leprosy Was Treated with Ass Fat, Bull Gallbladder and Steamed Flies!

It wasn’t until the 1970s that scientists developed an effective cure for leprosy . Up until then this terrible disease was feared not just for its awful symptoms, but also for the stigma that came...
Gout can be caused by large amounts of red meat and alcohol, a common diet of historical kings        Source: diter / Adobe Stock

Why Was Gout The Kingliest of Ailments?

When we think of historically significant diseases we tend to think of diseases like the bubonic plague, cholera, tuberculosis, or more recently, COVID-19. These are all diseases that have had almost...
The burial of the11th-century Portuguese man who was diagnosed with the earliest case of Klinefelter syndrome ever found so far.Source: The Lancet

1,000-Year-Old Case of Syndrome Causing Small Testes Found in Portugal

The oldest clinical case of Klinefelter Syndrome has been detected in a 1,000-year-old Portuguese skeleton. Klinefelter Syndrome is a super rare genetic but non-hereditary condition that gives men an...

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