6 Where There Is No Doctor 2011
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON SOME FOLK BELIEFS
AND HOME REMEDIES
These examples are from the mountains of Mexico, the area that I know best.
Perhaps some of the beliefs of your people are similar. Think about ways to learn which
beliefs in your area lead to better health and which do not.
When people think
someone is bewitched, is
it true that he will get well
if his relatives harm or kill
the witch?
FALSE! No one is ever
helped by harming
someone else.
Is it true that when the ‘soft
spot’ on top of a baby’s
head sinks inward this
means the baby will die
of diarrhea unless he gets
special treatment?
Is it true that if the light
of the eclipsing moon
falls on a pregnant
mother, her child will
be born deformed or
mentally slow?
Is it true that mothers
should give birth in a
darkened room?
This is often true. The ‘soft
spot’ sinks because the
baby has lost too much
liquid (see p. 151). Unless
he gets more liquid soon, he
may die (see p. 152).
This is not true! But children
may be born mentally slow,
deaf, or deformed if the
mother does not use iodized
salt, if she takes certain
medicines, or for other
reasons (see p. 318).
It is true that soft light
is easier on the eyes of
both the mother and the
newborn child. But there
should be enough light for
the midwife to see what
she is doing.