5 medical theories which brought troubles to mankind

Scientists always aimed to offer fundamental explanations for medical problems. Their theories formed the basis of modern methods of treatment of the hardest pathologies and helped to save a set of lives. However stories are known also such theoretical constructions, following to which brought to mankind of a trouble and torture, ruined destinies and health of many people.

We want to acquaint readers with the most known of similar theories.

1. Scientific racism

Racial theories arose in the history of mankind repeatedly. Their creators tried to understand the nature of anthropometrical and external distinctions between representatives of various races and ethnoses. Unfortunately, often they introduced the prejudices in scientific research and tried to prove natural superiority of one people over others.

Most of authors of racial theories were room scientists, pure theorists, and hardly imagined in what terrible results will result attempts of their politized followers to put theoretical constructions into practice.

The scientific racism which became fundamentals of ugly misanthropic racial policy which in the thirties the last century the German national socialists began to realize grew from theories of superiority of one races over others. Death of millions of innocent people turned out to be consequence of their efforts on discrimination of the so-called defective people.

2. Eugenics

The idea of improvement of human nature is not new. In principle, in a dream to make all people beautiful, healthy and smart there is nothing bad. Troubles begin when politicians who begin to remake destinies of people violently undertake implementation of similar plans, being guided is exclusive the ideas of the national benefit.

So it happened in Hitlerite Germany where the Life Source organization (Lebensborn) was created. Under its aegis special houses of mother and child in which carefully selected women - "proizvoditelnitsa" lived were created. Their task was to bear, give birth and bring up the children belonging to the highest, Aryan race. Fathers for these babies were chosen from the employees of CC who proved the faultless origin and purity of blood. Those "Aryans" who, to the misfortune, did not correspond to racial ideals of Nazis were at the same time destroyed: mentally unhealthy, disabled people, etc. The experiment was made in a big way, and was stopped only as a result of defeat of Germany in World War II.

Also the leadership of the USSR at the beginning of existence of the state tried to realize the similar ideas. In the twenties the last century great popularity was gained by a pseudo science the pedology representing a certain symbiosis of pedagogics, psychology and front line for those times of medicine, and setting as the purpose education of new people, peculiar supermen of the communistic future. However, in this case did not reach forced crossing of specially selected producers. Paedologists withdrew from families of the healthiest and developed children and tried to bring up them in nursing homes by special techniques, under supervision of the best specialists in the field of psychology and pedagogics. The experiment did not yield any real results, but brought a lot of grief to people.

3. Telegony

The statement that any sexual contact of a female (especially the first) influences ancestral features of all cubs born by a female during life is the cornerstone of the theory of a telegony. At the same time not only animals, but also women, and their children mean. Whether it is worth saying that from the point of view of modern genetics similar representations do not maintain any criticism.

Nevertheless, some men suffering from an inferiority complex are supporters of a telegony also today, causing many troubles to the women loving them.

4. Theory of focal sepsis

In the middle of the 19th century the theory explaining emergence of the majority of diseases of influence of toxins which are developed in any center of an inflammation in an organism widely extended. According to the theory of focal sepsis, even such pathologies as malignant new growths or mental retardation allegedly develop owing to inflammatory processes.

Conclusion arose by itself: it was necessary to save in urgently surgical way patients from any suspicious centers. Such methods as preventive removal of an appendix to all newborn babies which within several decades practiced in the USA, or treatment of catarrhal diseases at children of the way of removal of tonsils and adenoides, very popular in the USSR became result of this theory.

There was also a statement that inflammatory processes in an oral cavity are the reason of the majority of illnesses. On its basis broad practice included removal of all carious teeth as a result of which at many people quality of life significantly worsened.

Full insolvency of the theory of focal sepsis was proved only in 1940.

5. Phrenology

The science that extent of development of abilities and personal qualities of each person is displayed in a structure of a surface of his skull was very popular in the first half of the 19th century. The founder of the theory, Franz Josef Gall, claimed that on the surface of the head it is possible to determine such qualities of an individual as gaiety, ingenuity, tendency to violence, etc. by a configuration of cambers and hollows. The phrenology made serious impact on development of scientific methods of a research of human behavior. She is considered the predecessor of such sciences as evolutionary psychology, a sotsiobiologiya and some directions of criminalistics.

Followers Galya tried to prove justice of racial theories by means of the theoretical constructions based on phrenology. Hobby for phrenology widely extended also in the USA. It is known that among slaveholders there were her adherents who used the slaves for the proof of justice of the favourite theory and made brutal experiments in public.

Development of scientific neurophysiology led to a dethronement of the majority of provisions of phrenology. In particular, it was proved that the shape of a skull does not correspond to features of a cerebral cortex in any way.

Pseudoscientific representations about which we told are disproved long ago. Strangely enough, echoes of these theories occur and until now. People who divide them and even try to apply in life, are often unsuccessful in the personal plan or have no social and professional implementation. It leads to development of complexes and psychological instability. People around have to treat them with understanding and try to help with the solution of problems, without taking on trust their exotic ideas.