Dysentery and diarrhea
made death commonplace especially in the summer when flies
transmitted bacteria from filth to food and the water was its most
foul. There was great meaning in the prayer "Now I lay me down to
sleep; I pray the Lord my soul to keep; if I should die before I
wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take." Thyphus spread easily in
hospitals and gaols where vermin could live in the beds made of
wood. Colds and toothache were also common. Venereal disease was
not uncommon among the well-to-do in London. Condoms were used to
deter disease, but were still crude, coarse, uncomfortable, and
unreliable. London had almost double the mortality rate of the
nation. The number of baptisms in London were about 80% of its
burials. About 40% of the deaths in London were among children
under two, due to infantile diseases fostered by malnutrition,
maternal ignorance such as giving babies adult food, ill-health,
bad water, dirty food, poor hygiene, and overcrowding. Many
children died from diptheria, measles, scarlet fever, and
smallpox. Ten or twelve children with three or four surviving was
a common family pattern. Many well-to-do in London kept their
children in the country for their better health. No matter what
the ailment, physicians regularly bled patients and often gave
them enemas with wooden funnels. Sometimes a blister or irritant
was applied to the skin to draw out the evil humors.
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