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Next Previous Long ago, before Islam, people's health In Arabia was generally poor. The quality of drinking water was not good and it was scarce* The supply of food was irregular Diseases spread quickly in the hot ciirnate and in the dusty winds.

Next Previous Some of the most common were malaria, smallpox, leprosy and eye diseases like trachoma and glaucoma Some of them were carried by flies and mosquitoes. Locat remedies were given to those who were ill, but the remedies often did not work.

Next Previous There were no hospitals. In these conditions, a lot of new-born babies did not survive. Many adults did not live long, either As their civilization expanded, the Arabs learned from the old Greek, Persian, Byzantine and Indian cultures.

Next Previous Information and ideas concerning health and medicine were translated into Arabic. For the first time* such knowledge was available in a single language. Arab doctors like Ar-Razi and Ibn Sina worked with these ideas scientifically.

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Next Previous They observed people's illnesses. They experimented with new medicines in order to cure people. They kept records ol the quantities they used and their effects. They recorded their successes and failures.

Next Previous Their methods are still used today. Also, like today, some of their work was done in hospitals. The first hospitals were established in the time of the early Arab caliphs. Like hospitals today, they were institutions

Next Previous that were run privately or by the government. Their aims were to improve health, cure diseases and expand medical knowledge. They attracted students from hundreds of miles away because of their lectures and first-class libraries.

Next Previous They achieved the highest standards, especially in Baghdad, Alexandria and Damascus. Arab medical achievements passed to Europe around the seventeenth century. They were developed further in the West.

Next Previous In the twentieth century, the latest developments have been imported into the Arab world. Once again, Arab medicine and health care are among the best.

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