Why did arsenic used to be a common remedy for most illnesses?

460 views

It seems like back before modern medicine was a thing, prescribing arsenic for almost all ailments was all the rage. I’m going to assume that people weren’t just idiots in the past and that there was a reason for that.

Do small amounts of arsenic make you feel temporarily good or something like that? Is it a case of arsenic being useful for one specific illness and doctors then prescribing it for everything? Basically, why would they prescribe poison to people???

In: 71

12 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Can anyone eli5 why arsenic is still so popular for restless legs? It’s touted as being super effective but I don’t believe in homeopathy fundamentally- thoughts?

You are viewing 1 out of 12 answers, click here to view all answers.