The ancient Egyptians were healthy – perhaps more so than we are. Their diet was great, they didn’t have stress like we do today, and they generally got a  lot more exercise. For them, health, or snb, involved feeling good, looking good and also smelling good. It was a state of wellbeing defined by not missing work because of any indisposition or trauma, not having anything a doctor could not treat, and not being haunted by a deceased relative, an envious spirit or a nasty neighbour. When things went wrong – and they did – they had magical doctors with a veritable treasure trove of treatments.

Any doctor worth their Epsoms would tell you that prevention is better than cure, and the Egyptians certainly did their bit to stay fit. They played games and sports, walked a lot, and usually had professions that required heavy lifting, so they were fit.

The Dolce Vita

They enjoyed what we now call a Mediterranean diet, made up of garlic, beer, bread, vegetables, fruits, and many herbs and spices. During the pyramids’ construction the workmen were given huge quantities of radish (Raphanus sativus), garlic (Allium sativa) and onion (Allium cepa), probably for its anti-inflammatory and diuretic properties. Meat was reserved for high priests and their families, as they got to keep animals that were sacrificed in the temples, and mummies belonging to these priests were found to have high cholesterol.

The ancient Egyptians suffered much from constipation caused by excessive food, and there are recorded cases in both art and text of obesity amongst the sedentary professions, such as musicians, scribes or doormen. However, several texts suggest that there was a social stigma attached to eating and drinking to excess.

The ancient Egyptians shared our modern obsession with beauty and youth, throughout life. The upper classes found time to preen themselves, looking after their hair and skin. They dyed their hair, used unguents to make their bodies firm, and drenched themselves in perfume. Some of these cosmetic procedures supposedly had medical benefits, such as eliminating parasites and evil smells (perfume), or acting as an antiseptic (hair dye), but really they’re all anti-aging products. There are at least three sources describing these concerns - the Ebers Papyrus; the Edwin Smith Papyrus, and the Hearst Papyrus, where it reveals the secret to covering gray hair.

Baldness was also a major concern of Egyptian society as hair was considered both an aphrodisiac and a sign of youth, so there were prescriptions for reversing baldness as well as dying grey hair. Cosmetics were treasured as we can see from the boxes, mirrors, combs and other personal utensils found from that time.

Prosthetic Penis?

Prosthetics in ancient Egypt were also available, and generally cosmetic, so that the person would not lose his/her complete physique. Examples found include a prosthetic toe, arm, tooth and even penis. A radiographic exam on Mummy 2343 in the Archaeological Museum of Naples showed wooden prosthetics in the place of feet.

Hygiene was important to the Egyptians, and their cleansing habits were frequent. However, they washed in the same water they used to clean and cook, the Nile water, which was also the carrier of infestations.

Hair was usually cut short or shaven to avoid lice. Men were generally shaven and, during the Middle Kingdom and the New Kingdom shaving was made with copper and bronze blades, metals known for producing sharp edges, therefore many men trusted professional barbers.

Many Egyptians, even the military, submitted to a painful regime of total epilation, as sign of a social status. For the depilation of the body they used a mixture of crushed bird bones, oil, sycamore juice and gum, heated and applied onto skin. After cooling down, this hardened shell was removed, presumably removing hair. The shaving of the bodies for priests was ritual but I think that ancient Egyptians had that habit among themselves to preserve their bodies from lice infestations.

Many insects tormented ancient Egyptians: flies, mosquitoes and grasshoppers. At best, they were a nuisance, but they could lead to famine, or even plague. The cattle were also threatened, and crops could be invaded by destructive scarabs. Mosquitoes and parasites were devastating for the population, polluting the still waters of channels and Nile lakes. Total fumigation of the house with incense and myrrh was recommended although not accessible to all. The poor would make do with  the fresh oil from the ben plant to get rid of a noisy mozzie whilst trying to sleep.

The Ebers Papyrus mentions methods to prevent rodent plagues – some which seem useful but others are purely magical. Rats carried several diseases and could ruin crops, so it was vital to keep their population down. The best way to keep a clean house from rodents was to clean it constantly and to have a cat. In some homes, holes in walls are filled with rocks, and doorways covered with iron sticks, to prevent rats from entering.

The Egyptians also wore amulets around the neck, the belly and the stomach to protect them from disease. The amulet would have been composed of a group of objects or substances, rather than a single piece. There are references to amulets made of herbs and animal remains all wrapped in linen, although as yet none have been found intact.  

Hazards of Working Life

People in general had hard working professions, carried heavy lifts, and were extensively exposed to the sand dust blown by the wind and the scorching sun.

Many people, especially those working in mines and construction, had eye problems caused by sun exposure and sand in the air. Ophthalmological diseases in ancient Egypt included poor sight, strabismus, cataracts, conjunctivitis and trachoma. In order to reduce the aggressive effect of sunlight ancient Egyptians painted the area around the eyes with malachite, a green copper mineral, extracted from Sinai and oriental desert mines; also mesdemet or galena consisted on a cosmetic powder that protected the eyes from sand and wind aggression and also from insect plagues.

The dangers of childbirth were another source of concern, and infant mortality would have been much higher than it is today. They were prone to bowel troubles too, but the biggest problems they had to treat were caused by infections. The closer to the Nile that they worked, lived and did their daily chores, the bigger the probability of catching bacterial infections from the water and adjacent land.

Call the Dentist!

Teeth were a problem. In ancient Egypt, the most common problems were caries and abrasion. Chewing hard food (there was an absence of refined carbohydrates in the diet) would cause the teeth to become worn down, destroying the enamel and causing painful chronic infection. Periodontal disease (gingivitis) was really a problem, and calculus deposits (tartar) in teeth were frequent.

These problems led to advanced loss of bone tissue, loose teeth, infection, cavities, and posterior loss of teeth. In dental caries the cronic wearing down of the teeth often led to cavities. Several papyri list prescriptions for dental diseases such as periodontal disease, loose teeth, caries and abscesses, and these treatments can be seen on mummies.

The Egyptians also suffered from migraines, although indecision about the cause of the migraine meant that the problem &QUOTEcould be treated in very different ways. In magical papyri migraines are said to be caused by the actions of demons and supernatural forces (a conclusion that many modern migraine sufferers no doubt sympathise with), in medical papyri they are attributed to trauma and other pain felt in the body. Therefore the treatment could be magical, pharmacological or surgical.

At Deir el-Medina the workmen suffered from several diseases. These tough jobs sometimes led to respiratory diseases and skin problems, but blinding dust was the biggest hazard. Blindness was incapacitating, and the Egyptians dedicated a lot of time attempting to prevent or cure it. Medical papyri of the time suggest mixing honey with ochre black eye paint that a father asks from his son. Honey has antiseptic properties, and ochre cools down the eyelids and reduces swellings, so the recipe is based on good research.

Cancer was a cause for concern for the Egyptians, but rates were much lower than they are in the modern world. Although any attempts to diagnose disease in mummies are controversial, findings since 1825 gnenerally conclude that, as life expectancy was around 36 years old, the aat tumours would have affected mainly young people. From the analysis made, excluding bone tumours, it is thought that soft tissue tumours were essentially of the liver, nasopharynx and uterus. More rare tumours could have been breast and colo-rectal.

But the ancient Egyptians didn't just have the dust and disease to contend with - they had each other. The Edwin Smith Papyrus lists 48 cases of trauma, either caused by battle wounds, violent arguments or handling heavy items.

Magical Properties

When the gods are satisfied, they thought, order was re-established, the Maat, secured. There were several worshipped gods according to popular requests for treatment of diseases, problems with pregnancy and childbirth, wounds or simply for protection of crops, or a blessing to ensure fertility.

The cure of all diseases consisted of rest, a proper diet, purges, and the administration of medicine. And when it came to medicine, the ancient Egyptians’ cabinet was bulging with options. Remedies could be oral, rectal, vaginal, and topical or by fumigation and take the form of pills, cakes, suppositories, unguents, drops, mouth washes, and baths. Milk, mucus, beer and wine, were also used - always sweetened with honey or dates.

The pharmacopoeia of ancient Egypt included all that nature offered, from vegetable to mineral ingredients (some toxic when used for undetermined time), excrement and human fluids, animal extracts, water from the Nile and dirt. From animals they took horns, fat, and some organs, according to the prescription, teeth, bones, milk, eggs, and hair.

Other ingredients from animals included bile, liver, brain, urine and excrement. Although not used as medicine per se they were mixed into medical-magical potions designed to exorcize evil spirits from the human body. The Ebers Papyrus contains several mineral ingredients as alabaster, antimony, hematite, lapis lazuli, iron, lead, copper, natron, ‘statues scrapes’ and copper ‘green’.

There were also evil ingredients and substances, the wekhedw, the transmitting agents of pain and disease. With these in mind, ancient Egyptians thought that the anus was the centre of the majority of treatments.

Senstive and Holistic

There were several prescriptions for the same illness, according to the age and sex of the patient, and the required speed of recovery. The time of the year was also taken into account, particularly regarding the influence of sun exposure on the materials (and, presumably, the patient). The Ebers Papyrus 388 refers to  the preparation of a prescription from the third to the fourth month of winter.

An adult could take pills or a drinkable solution, a crushed medicine, but a baby could only have the medicine dissolved in the mother’s milk. The weight and height of the person were also important to the elaboration of the prescription.
Doctors were also priests and magicians most of the time.

The preparation and mixture of prescriptions were part of the magician’s medical bag, and it was the words recited while the concoctions were prepared, rather than the actual ingredients, that ensured their efficacy. They believed in magic as a part of medicine so a doctor, when treating someone, had also to deal with spirits and convince them to abandon the person. Many of their medical treatments would be unthinkable nowadays, but the Egyptians used them because they trusted the forces of nature above all.

To be healthy was to be prosperous, with a good figure, and able to work. We might say that ancient Egyptians cared about how they looked on the outside but also were cautious about what they ingested, and, since religion and magic were present altogether with health concerns this may give us the idea that a ‘good’ Egyptian was also a ‘healthy’ Egyptian.

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About The Author

Paula Veiga

Paula Veiga has a background in tourism, but holds a Master in Pre Classical Studies from the University of Lisboa and a Master in Biomedical Egyptology from the Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester (which covers Histology studies and laboratory practice, DNA studies and practice of extraction, Paleopathology, Osteology, amongst other disciplines). 

She recently published her first book - Oncology and Infectious Diseases in ancient Egypt: The Ebers Papyrus? Treatise on Tumours 857-877 and the cases found in ancient Egyptian human material and has another one upcoming. Paula Veiga is working on several conference papers, whilst 'deciphering' the hieroglyphics in a XXVth Dynasty coffin housed in a Portugese museum.

Her main research interests are Health and Medicine, Religion, Magic and Daily Life, Archaeology of Egypt and the Middle East, Osteology, Paleopathology, Forensic Anthropology and the History of Medicine.

Last three pieces by this author: King Tut's Medical History and Autopsy Report, Could Frankincense Revolutionise Cancer Treatment?, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous... Egyptians

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