 |
| MEDICINE. Looking to Nature for Remedies. |
Two
visitors watched a jaguar fall off its tree limb and lie quietly on the ground.
Their guide in this South American forest had brought the cat down with a
blowgun dart tipped with curare. Made from certain trees in the jungle, curare
paralyses the muscles in the body.
When
scientists heard about this remarkable poison, they experimented with it.
Although large doses of curare are deadly, they found that tiny doses can help
people relax during surgery.
Many
years ago, a doctor might have treated stomach-ache with a medicine containing
a pinch of gold dust, a spoonful of ash from a died lizard, 20 powdered
beetles, some burned cat's hair, and two mashed onions!
Not
all the old recipes for medicine were as bad as this one. Usually were made from
tree bark and leaves, berries and seeds, roots, and flowers. The value of some
folk remedies' has not been proved scientifically, but many modem drugs have
been developed from plants, animals, and minerals.
The
photograph, for example, shows a common flower called 'foxglove'. Its leaves
are used to make 'digitalis', which helps people with heart disease. Pods of
the opium poppy are used to make painkillers.
foxglove Flower
Not
so long ago, a very important medicine was discovered in moldy bread. This
medicine, penicillin, and others like it are called 'antibiotics'. They help
fight many diseases by killing bacteria.
Today,
most medicines are synthesized. This means that they are made from combinations
of chemicals rather than from plants or animals. This method is much more
economical and allows scientists to create much larger supplies of important
medicines.
0 Comments