Surgery in the 19th century: From barbershop phlebotomies to the ‘fashionable, ephemeral craze’ of antisepticismIn its first 50 years, stories of ‘remarkable’ and ‘extraordinary’ operations became regular features in The Irish TimesThu Aug 22 2019 - 06:01
The way we were – how medical advertisements promised a cure for all illsEvery conceivable ailment from acne to drunkenness targeted by wily manufacturersFri Aug 16 2019 - 06:01
A mustard foot bath, a ban on kissing – and other cures for the common coldFrom the archives: Every decade had a cure though bed and hot drinks most popularFri Aug 09 2019 - 06:01
‘Many disorders of middle-class women are due to the monotony of their lives’In times gone by, strong tonic wines, coca and golf were seen as cures for cases of ‘nerves’Fri Aug 02 2019 - 06:01
‘Danger in dirt’: The war on Ireland’s unhygienic householdsThe forgotten philanthropic work of the Women’s National Health AssociationFri Jul 26 2019 - 06:01
Seaside advice: Never swim under the influence of emotional excitementHealth advice for those opting for a staycation has long featured in The Irish TimesFri Jul 19 2019 - 06:01
Alopecia: ‘I couldn’t bear the thought of her losing her hair’Mother and daughter Yvonne and Shannon Kinsella both suffer from a severe form of alopecia, which means they have no hair anywhere on their bodiesTue Jul 02 2019 - 06:01
‘The Doctor Says’ . . . don’t eat fruit skins, pinch yourself, and show off your unattractive knobbly limbsIn 1957, the venerable medic pulled no punches in his advice to Irish Times readersFri Jun 21 2019 - 07:01
Foot in the past: Advice for top toe healthTips included arsenic corn washes, cayenne to warm feet and warnings on cold anklesFri Jun 14 2019 - 06:01
Household Hints: Take a bucket of water into your bedroom at nightPoints of advice from The Irish Times’ health and household tips column of the 1800sFri Jun 07 2019 - 06:01
When flu, TB and returning veterans were centre stageFrom the archives: Irish toll from flu epidemic was waning by May 1919Fri May 31 2019 - 06:01
Past advice for expectant mothers: ‘They become whining, neurotic and unattractive’Free access to antenatal and maternity care was only finally introduced in 1954Fri May 10 2019 - 06:01
Physician’s advice came with little bedside mannerHealth column gave similar prescriptions for a huge range of very different ailmentsFri May 03 2019 - 06:01
How Irish teenagers were viewed in the past: ‘give the kids a chance’Articles on how to understand and manage adolescents have long proved popularFri Apr 19 2019 - 06:01
‘Give a girl too much to do, she breaks down; give a boy too much, he doesn’t do it’From the Archives: a girl who chooses university ‘finds her mind is a tangle of mathematical formulae, forces and pulleys’Fri Apr 05 2019 - 06:01
Circumcision, less tea and other ways to handle naughty childrenNot all of Irish Times’s parenting advice from previous centuries remains applicable todayFri Mar 29 2019 - 07:01
Laudanum or cocaine? Parsing ‘painless dentistry’Toothache patients had a menu of other options – chloroform, ether, electric shocks – or the bulletFri Mar 15 2019 - 06:01
Poultices: the moist cure-all that came to a sticky endMade from linseed, flour or mustard, they were prescribed for all types of ailmentsFri Mar 08 2019 - 06:01
Chronic fatigue syndrome: ‘It was like a switch had been flipped. I couldn’t stand up’Rosa Devine was a ‘strong and fit’ teen when chronic fatigue syndrome took over her lifeTue Feb 26 2019 - 06:00
‘Love just hit me on the head’: a romance rekindled after 42 yearsTwo teenagers fell in love in 1974. In 2016 a Facebook message reunited themSun Feb 10 2019 - 06:00
Dublin in 1886: The most unhealthy of any great towns in IrelandNewspaper notices and accounts of lectures at the time shed some insight into social conditions and the state of the nation’s healthFri Dec 21 2018 - 06:01
Milk delivery: the bikers bringing breast milk to vulnerable infantsFor Blood Bike volunteers, one of the most rewarding parts of their job is transporting breast milk to sick and premature babiesWed Dec 19 2018 - 17:01
When doctors prescribed clothes for women’s healthFrom the Archives: Tight clothing came under medical scrutiny in the late 1800sFri Dec 14 2018 - 06:01
A history of Irish lunacy: inter-marriage, tea-drinking and eating potatoesOld Irish Times article reveals surprising views about mental health at start of 20th centuryFri Dec 07 2018 - 06:01
Bear grease, onion pomade and other historical men’s hair productsThe restoration of hair loss has long been an obsession – as old articles and adverts in ‘The Irish Times’ showFri Nov 30 2018 - 07:01
Coverage of ‘sun-ray’ therapy sheds light on medical faith in UVUltraviolet light used in cases of TB, rickets, malnutrition and diseases of bones and skinFri Nov 23 2018 - 07:01
Cocaine Tooth Powder – useful for toothache and spongy gumsFrom the archives: The turn of the century craze for the narcotic as a painkillerThu Nov 15 2018 - 07:01
The institution that Dubliners hoped they would never enterWestmoreland Lock Hospital: A glimpse into life at the hospital for treating venereal diseaseFri Nov 09 2018 - 06:01
Weight-loss remedies: Obesity soap, laxative water and fat massage‘Gentle kneading’ with rotating rubber cups was one of history’s rivals for dietingFri Nov 02 2018 - 06:01
Curing psoriasis: Arsenic, radium and nude sunbathingThe cures sufferers had to put up with in the past could be worse than the skin condition itselfFri Oct 26 2018 - 06:01
Dear reader, your ‘acidity and flatulence’ explain your ‘noises’An ‘Irish Times’ health column from early 1900s throws up some interesting ‘advice’Fri Oct 19 2018 - 06:01
Bright sparks and electrical cures to revive the sluggish functionsEarly medical devices promised curative therapies to ‘reanimate torpid limbs’Fri Oct 05 2018 - 08:50
‘I could go nine months without having a period’Teenage girls' acne, facial hair and painful periods could indicate a debilitating conditionMon Sept 24 2018 - 09:01
Looking for bloody cures for women’s periodsThink today’s women have it bad – in the 19th century, cures for menstrual complaints included ‘chain bands’ and ‘electropathic belts’Fri Sept 07 2018 - 06:00
Eat fat, no milk, open bedroom windows: 19 rules of long livingFrom the Archives: In 1897, physician James Sawyer confided his recipe for reaching 100Mon Aug 27 2018 - 11:01
Cooking for invalids: wine, brandy, porter and champagne for allHow did our sick ancestors get better on these diets?Fri Aug 24 2018 - 06:01
First year in secondary school: a survival guideTeachers and students share their tips for making the transition to a new school a positive experience for pupils . . . and how parents can helpMon Aug 20 2018 - 08:01
Sleeping secrets: undress in the dark, walk around the room and lie east-to-westHot drinks and raw onions: Some of the tips for a good night’s sleep from our archiveFri Aug 17 2018 - 07:01
‘I knew other kids had stutters too, but I always felt very alone’A drama camp for children who stammer is giving its young actors a new voice and a sense of belongingFri Aug 10 2018 - 06:01
The health professionals embracing complementary medicineOnce rejected by the medical establishment, alternative treatments such as herbal medicines and acupuncture are sometimes being used in tandem with established medical proceduresTue Jun 26 2018 - 07:01
Rate of Caesarean sections and inductions increasing for first-time mothers‘No woman should have to leave a room during labour to use a public toilet block’Mon Jun 11 2018 - 07:01
Obstetricians and midwives on what they learned from giving birthDo medical mothers-to-be put themselves under additional pressure to be ‘uncomplicated, low-key patients’?Wed Feb 07 2018 - 03:01
100 Irish teenagers tell us how they view popularity and likabilityA survey of 100 secondary school students threw up varying definitions of what it is to be popularTue Feb 06 2018 - 16:01
‘One girl might be popular because she’s pretty, or one boy because he’s sound’Good looks, sporting prowess, likes on social media – students explain how a teenager gets to be popularTue Feb 06 2018 - 16:01
Hopes for vaccination for Group B StreptococcusIn the meantime, screening at the onset of labour ‘would be very positive and help reduce damage until vaccination is available’Mon Jan 01 2018 - 08:01
Pornified normative: our children and the constant hum of social media anxiety‘We have never had more mentally unwell or unhealthy children'Tue Dec 12 2017 - 08:01
‘You are not going out in that!’While some parents feel their daughters should dress as they wish, others disagree, arguing some outfits are too skimpy, too short or not age appropriateTue Oct 31 2017 - 07:01
Babababa-eautiful: a theatrical experience for babies in Dublin‘I Am Baba’ is an International Early Childhood Arts Commission funded by Arts Council IrelandMon Oct 23 2017 - 10:00
‘Anybody doing the school run knows it’s harder to get kids up when it’s dark’Beat Winter series: the shorter, colder days can have a big impact on us allMon Oct 02 2017 - 08:00
They’ll find you anywhere: hard-learned facts about raising toddlersEverything you needed to know about toddlers but never dared askTue Sept 05 2017 - 06:00