Along with these new crops and animals, Christopher Columbus brought diseases with him that the natives were not immune to. This resulted in many dying from these illnesses. The Natives, which had been an isolated population for centuries lacked immunity to the sicknesses and subsequently suffered the consequences of Columbus’ visit. Fevers, smallpox, and measles were proved to be deadly and wiped out tribes at a time. In return, the Europeans fell to the New World disease of syphilis.
Soon the government invested money just for the research of the influenza epidemic, it wasn’t much and the studies for it didn’t begin until the pandemic was over and a lot of Americans began to loose interest in what caused it. (http://www.pandemicflu.gov/general/greatpandemic2.html) The short term effect of this pandemic was that it killed millions of our people not just in the U S but all around the world, which is never a good thing. The long term effect was that it gave scientists and physicians cause to research and learn more about what caused this pandemic and rectify it or at least ensure that this won’t happen to the extent that it did. It also opened up the doors for research into other fields of medicine. Another problem that I reflected on was the way African Americans were still being treated in the 1900’s.
During these arrival of European explorers, they began a new era of disease within the villages and caused the death of hundreds and hundreds of Natives. Although, they were not the only one to introduce disease and death, the Natives passed on death as
Hunter Harper Paper 1 Indians and disease Collin G. Calloway says it is true that disease was a key factor in the depopulation of native Americans in America. Calloway reveals that the European invasion was a great factor of epidemics. The disease they fought were smallpox, diphtheria, measles, bubonic, and pneumonic plaque, cholera, influenza, typhus, dysentery, and yellow fever. The native Americans had a tough time fighting theses diseases due to lack of knowledge of cures. These cures were mostly attempted by plant or herb remedies and often failed to provide protection for the Indian population.
The people of the Old World brought their diseases with them, which took advantage of the Native Americans inexistent antibodies toward illnesses like smallpox- which brought about massive and catastrophic population decreases for the Native Americans, about 80-90%. The transfer of diseases, although more noticeable on the Native American populations, also went both ways. The people of the New World exposed the Old World to diseases like syphilis. This transfer shows
Lastly, the Natives were exposed to many European diseases they had never encounters before. The diseases devastated the populations like nothing
Although health was always a concern including in ancient times, during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, also known as the Renaissance period, public health became a major issue due to the bubonic plaque. It killed one-fourth to one-third of the European population between 1347 and 1351. In the sixteenth century, syphilis and a form of influenza became widespread in Europe. Smallpox reached America killing the native population. Due to these catastrophic events, the three most important contributions to public health came about for the Renaissance period.
In the mid-fourteenth century, Europeans suffered a catastrophic epidemic of bubonic plague. It was known as the “Black Death.” This plague killed about a third of the European population. With the resulting abundance of food for the survivors and the gain of property from the plague victims, survivors were prompted by the turmoil caused by the plague to move away and seek opportunities elsewhere. Most Europeans as a result perceived the world as a place of alarming risks where the balance of health, harvests and peace could easily be tilted by epidemics, famine and violence. This gave encouragement to a few to take greater risks, one of which entailed embarking on dangerous sea voyages through uncharted waters to points unknown.
Joshua Martin Western Civilization Essay #3 11/2/2013 The Black Death The Black Death or the Bubonic Plague or the Black pague are all names given to the worst epidemic of all times. From 1347 – 1351 a disease was spread throughout Europe, it brought with it pain, fever, lesions, coughing, shivers, vomiting and and falling to the illest of ill which includes swollen lymph-nodes. Most of whom succumb to this disease died within 3-4 days, the rest lived up to two weeks. The Black Death was caused by a Yersinia pestis a disease spread by fleas on the backs of mice and through the blood of fleas. There were so many deaths many could not be burried properly and were put in shallow graves which also helped the spread of the disease.
According to Kraut, “The elderly who carried in their heads ancient histories, cures and crafts were often wiped out quickly, taking with them generations of a tribe’s collective understanding of the world and itself” (Kraut 17). It made them lose their expertise: hunting and gathering. Few Native Americans who survived the genocidal disaster had to naturally assimilate into the European culture to survive or fight to the death against the white invaders. Besides, their society fell into ruin. Shamans, conjurers, medicine men, or anyone who had claimed special power lost respect and authority because their traditional therapies were not effective in curing the infectious diseases.