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Fever Theories
- Early 19th-century Americans debated fever's nature, influenced by European intellectual circles.
- Theories included humoral imbalances, miasma (bad air), hereditary predisposition (diathesis), contagion, and irritation.
Lincoln and Milk Sickness
- Nancy Hanks Lincoln, Abraham Lincoln's mother, died from milk sickness in 1818.
- This personal tragedy highlighted the devastating impact of this mysterious illness on frontier communities.
Dr. Anna's Discovery
- Dr. Anna observed that horses, sheep, and goats didn't get milk sickness, unlike cows and pigs.
- This led her to identify white snakeroot, a plant eaten by cows but avoided by other animals, as the cause.