you might manage your world without toilet paper toothpaste and regular baths but what if you had to wash your clothes with urine instead of detergent oh hygiene has always been a bit of a dirty business throughout history Roman hygiene speaking of dirty business let's see how the Romans managed their hygiene it's surprising to think that Roman emperors known for their power and influence also struggled with being dirty and smelly bathing was a big deal in Rome public baths or thermy were the places to be they had everything warm pools hot pools cold pools saunas and
gymnasiums Emperors like hadrien love these baths and often mingled with the public day wealthy Romans of course could afford private baths with luxuries like marble tubs and bubbling fountains now when it came to keeping clean Romans didn't use soap they'd rub oil on their skin and then scrape it off with a tool called a stdel moving from personal grooming to laundry practices things get even more interesting the Romans used urine which contains ammonia to clean their clothes Traders collected urine from public toilets and sold it to fillers for laundry this practice was so widespread that
Emperor Vespasian even taxed urine famously telling his son Titus that money doesn't smell even if it comes from urine medieval hygiene just when you thought things couldn't get any stranger let's Leap Forward in time to the Medieval Era hygiene practices were rougher and smilar adding a new layer of grime to everyday life back in the Middle Ages bathing wasn't exactly a daily habit commoners usually started their day by washing their hands and faces but full body baths were rare unlike the rich who enjoyed private tubs everyone else may do with public baths or a quick
dip in the local stream public baths were a bit of a double-edged sword while they provided a place to get clean they were also hotpots for spreading diseases especially during the plague speaking of the plague desperate times called for desperate measures people believe that bathing in vinegar and Rose Water would ward off the Black Death some even bathed in their own urine thinking it had healing properties ah imagine the smell medieval soap was made from ashes and animal fat a labor intensive process it wasn't just about staying clean it was about survival if you didn't
know how to make your own soap you were in for some very dirty times interestingly some communities fared better during these times due to stricter hygiene practices Jewish communities often had lower infection rates during the plague thanks to their stricter hygiene practices instead of learning from their healthier neighbors some Christians blame the Jews for the plague accusing them of poisoning Wells this led to horrific acts of violence and persecution despite the fact that many Jewish hygiene practices were simply better at preventing disease doctors in the Middle Ages also had some un usual ideas about treating
the plague medieval doctors believed in drawing the plague out of the body by cutting open Boos and draining P they applied mixtures of plant roots resin and dried feces yes dried feces to wounds and some even recommended drinking the pus to heal handling human waste was another major issue during this period towns folk often shared one toilet among dozens of households heavy rains could cause cesspits to overflow sending human waste into the streets and contaminating Water Supplies some people couldn't even be bothered to walk to the cesspit so they emptied their chamber pots directly into
the street gross right to protect themselves plague doctors adopted unique costumes it was a beaked mask stuffed with herbs and spices and was designed to protect against these miasmas the outfit was the most medieval equivalent of a hazmat suit keeping the doctors safe from what they thought was bad air but was actually more about contact with the infected Victorian hygiene fast forward to the Victorian era where things got even more peculiar hygiene habits were a curious mix of emerging practices and bizarre beliefs during the Victorian era many people thought taking a hot bath was bad
for your health they believed it weaken the body and open pores allowing diseases to enter so instead of soaking in hot water victorians preferred a quick wash for example King Louis the 14th of France only took two baths in his entire life instead he wiped himself down down with a towel used perfume and alcohol and washed his hands every morning not exactly the cleanest routine perfumes played a significant role in Victorian hygiene with limited access to regular baths people relied heavily on perfumes to mask their body orders at places like Versailles the air was thick
with various scents trying to cover the smell of unwashed bodies public restrooms were another area of concern public restrooms were neither private nor clean at places like Versailles people often relieved themselves in hallways or Gardens and chamber pots were emptied into the streets below Dental Care also posed challenges during this time toothbrushes were a luxury so many used Twigs or rags and homemade toothpaste made from chalk soot or powdered cuttlefish tooth extractions were commonly done by Barbers or blacksmiths laundry practices were the same as medieval and Roman times soaking clothes in ammonia oh I mean
urine disgusting right feminine hygiene saw some progress slowly with the invention of disposable pads and early versions of tampons however these products took time to become widely accepted and women often had to get creative with their hygiene Solutions in 1858 the great sank of the river Tams nearly shut down London highlighting the urgent need for better sanitation tuberculosis was a major health concern and some doctors bizarrely blamed it on women's clothing they thought long skirts dragged along the streets picking up germs and spreading the disease to families tight corsets were also blamed for constricting the
lungs and contributing to tuberculosis these beliefs led to recommendations for looser corsets and shorter skirts scen is more hygienic Victorian hygiene marked the beginning of modern hygiene practices from the use of perfumes to cover up odors to the early versions of tampons and disposable pads the victorians started to understand the importance of cleanliness even if they didn't always get it right hygiene in the Civil War and now let's March into the Civil War where hygiene was a constant battle against dirt disease and poor conditions soldiers faced harsh conditions that made staying clean nearly impossible when
men enlisted they underwent medical exams to check if they were fit for service but these exams were pretty basic focusing on whether they can March carry a rifle and follow orders many men with poor hygiene habits slipped through the cracks surprisingly at least 400 women disguised themselves as men and successfully enlisted highlighting how laxed these medical checks were camps were breeding grounds for diseases soldiers from different parts of the country brought various childhood diseases with them like chickenpox measles and mums those who hadn't been exposed to these diseases before quickly fell ill vaccination programs helped
reduce the spread of small poox but other diseases like typhus malaria and dissenter were rampant sanitary conditions in the camps were Dreadful makeshift latrines known as sinks were little little more than open ditches often these latrines were placed near areas where soldiers slept or ate contaminating their living space sometimes soldiers would dig latrines too close to water sources contaminating their drinking water this led to outbreaks of chalera and other diseases spread through dirty water one major issue was the lack of clean clothes soldiers often shared uniforms which were rarely washed this sharing spread lice and
other paths leading to diseases like typhus lice were so common that soldiers even made a game out of racing them on custom tracks Medical Treatments were crude and dangerous with reused tools and poor hygiene spreading infections for example sponges covered in blood and pus were sometimes rinsed briefly before being reused further spreading infection amputation was a common procedure for wounded soldiers surgeons lacking proper sanitation often perform these operations quickly and with minimal anesthesia usually chloroform or ether over 60,000 amputations were performed during the war piles of severed limbs became a common site near Battlefield hospitals
posing a significant health hazard some limbs were buried in pits but many were left exposed attracting pests and spreading disease malaria and pneumonia claimed many lives with over 10,000 soldiers dying from malaria and 20,000 from pneumonia dissenter and diarrhea were common due to contaminated water and a poor diet the US Sanitary Commission inspected Ed Union camps and hospitals providing guidelines for better hygiene their efforts improved conditions slightly but many soldiers still suffered from poor sanitary practices so there you have it guys if you enjoyed this video YouTube thinks you'll like the next one too click
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