Hippocrates, De prisca medicina, ed. William Henry Samuel Jones, 8

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[8] A consideration of the diet of the sick, as compared with that of men in health, would show that the diet of wild beasts and of animals generally is not more harmful, as compared with that of men in health.¹ Take a man sick of a disease which is neither severe and desperate nor yet altogether mild, but likely to be pronounced under wrong treatment, and suppose that he resolved to eat bread, and meat, or any other food that is beneficial to men in health, not much of it, but far less than he could have taken had he been well; take again a man in health, with a constitution neither altogether weak nor altogether strong, and suppose he were to eat one of the foods that would be beneficial and strength-giving to an ox or a horse, vetches or barley or something similar, not much of it, but far less than he could take. If the man in health did this he would suffer no less pain and danger than that sick man who took bread or barley-cake at a time when he ought not. All this goes to prove that this art of medicine, if research be continued on the same method, can all be discovered.

De prisca medicina. Hippocrates. ed. William Henry Samuel Jones. London. 1923.

Funding provided by National Library of Medicine History of Medicine Division.

Current edition Perseus

Ancient Medicine (English) (Hippocrates, Vol. 1. Jones, William Henry Samuel, translator. London: William Heinemann Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1923 (printing).)

Editions (2)

De prisca medicina First1KGreek (Hippocrates. Oeuvres complètes d'Hippocrate, Vol. 1. Littré, Émile, editor. Paris: Baillière, 1839.) — 8 focus

8. Εἰ δέ τις σκέπτοιτο τὴν τῶν καμνόντων δίαιταν πρὸς τὴν τῶν
ὑγιαινόντων, εὕροι ἂν οὐ βλαβερωτέρην ἤ περ τὴν τῶν ὑγιαινόντων
πρὸς τὴν τῶν θηρίων τε καὶ πρὸς τὴν τῶν ἄλλων ζώων.
Ἀνὴρ γὰρ κάμνων νουσήματι μήτε τῶν χαλεπῶν τε καὶ ἀφόρων, μήτ᾿
αὖ τῶν παντάπασιν εὐηθέων, ἀλλ᾿ ἢ αὐτέῳ ἐξαμαρτάνοντι μέλλει
ἐπίδηλον ἔσεσθαι, εἰ ἐθέλει καταφαγεῖν ἄρτον, καὶ κρέας, ἢ ἄλλο
τι ὧν οἱ ὑγιαίνοντες ἐσθίοντες ὠφελέονται, μὴ πολλὸν, ἀλλὰ
πολλῷ ἔλασσον, ἢ ὑγιαίνων ἂν ἠδύνατο· ἄλλος τε τῶν ὑγιαινόντων
φύσιν ἔχων μήτε παντάπασιν ἀσθενέα, μήτ᾿ αὖ ἰσχυρὴν, φαγών
τι ὧν βοῦς ἢ ἵππος φαγὼν ὠφελέοιτό τε καὶ ἰσχύοι, ὀρόβους,
ἢ κριθὰς, ἢ ἄλλο τι τῶν τοιουτέων μὴ πολὺ, ἀλλὰ πολλῷ μεῖβον ἢ
δύναιτο· οὐκ ἂν ἧσσον ὁ ὑγιαίνων τοῦτο ποιήσας πονήσειέ τε κα κινδυνεύσειε κείνου τοῦ νοσέοντος, ὃς τὸν ἄρτον ἢ τὴν μᾶζαν
ἀκαίρως προσηνέγκατο. Ταῦτα δὴ πάντα τεκμήρια, ὅτι αὕτη ἡ
τέχνη πᾶσα ἡ ἰητρικὴ τῇ αὐτέῃ ὁδῷ ζετεομένη εὑρίσκοιτο ἄν.

Περὶ ἀρχαίας ἰατρικῆς Perseus (Hippocrates, Vol. 1. Jones, William Henry Samuel, editor. London: William Heinemann Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1923 (printing).) — 8 focus

[8] εἰ δέ τις σκέπτοιτο τὴν τῶν καμνόντων δίαιταν πρὸς τὴν τῶν ὑγιαινόντων, εὕροι ἂν τὴν τῶν θηρίων τε καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ζῴων οὐ βλαβερωτέρην πρὸς τὴν τῶν ὑγιαινόντων. ἀνὴρ γὰρ κάμνων νοσήματι μήτε τῶν χαλεπῶν τε καὶ ἀπόρων μήτε αὖ τῶν παντάπασιν εὐηθέων, ἀλλʼ ὅ τι αὐτῷ ἐξαμαρτάνοντι μέλλει ἐπίδηλον ἔσεσθαι, εἰ ἐθέλοι καταφαγεῖν ἄρτον καὶ κρέας ἢ ἄλλο τι ὧν οἱ ὑγιαίνοντες ἐσθίοντες ὠφελέονται, μὴ πολλόν, 10 ἀλλὰ πολλῷ ἔλασσον ἢ ὑγιαίνων ἂν ἐδύνατο, ἄλλος τε τῶν ὑγιαινόντων φύσιν ἔχων μήτε παντάπασιν ἀσθενέα μήτε αὖ ἰσχυρὴν φάγοι τι ὧν βοῦς ἢ ἵππος φαγὼν ἂν ὠφελοῖτό τε καὶ ἰσχύοι, ὀρόβους ἢ κριθὰς ἢ ἄλλο τι τῶν τοιούτων, μὴ πολύ, ἀλλὰ πολλῷ μεῖον ἢ δύναιτο, οὐκ ἂν ἧσσον ὁ ὑγιαίνων τοῦτο ποιήσας πονήσειέ τε καὶ κινδυνεύσειε κείνου τοῦ νοσέοντος, ὃς τὸν ἄρτον ἢ τὴν μᾶζαν ἀκαίρως προσηνέγκατο. ταῦτα δὴ πάντα τεκμήρια, ὅτι αὕτη ἡ τέχνη πᾶσα ἡ ἰητρικὴ 20 τῇ αὐτῇ ὁδῷ ζητεομένη εὑρίσκοιτο ἄν.

Translations (1)

On Ancient Medicine Perseus (Hippocrates, The Genuine Works of Hippocrates, Vol. 1. Adams, Francis, translator. New York: William Wood and Company, 1886.) — 8 focus

[8] And if one would compare the diet of sick persons with that of persons in health, he will find it not more injurious than that of healthy persons in comparison with that of wild beasts and of other animals. For, suppose a man laboring under one of those diseases which are neither serious and unsupportable, nor yet altogether mild, but such as that, upon making any mistake in diet, it will become apparent, as if he should eat bread and flesh, or any other of those articles which prove beneficial to healthy persons, and that, too, not in great quantity, but much less than he could have taken when in good health; and that another man in good health, having a constitution neither very feeble, nor yet strong, eats of those things which are wholesome and strengthening to an ox or a horse, such as vetches, barley, and the like, and that, too, not in great quantity, but much less than he could take; the healthy person who did so would be subjected to no less disturbance and danger than the sick person who took bread or cake unseasonably. All these things are proofs that Medicine is to be prosecuted and discovered by the same method as the other.

Notes on the current edition

Ancient Medicine

1. The text here is very uncertain; I have combined that of Littré with that of Kéhlewein so as to give a good sense: The diet of men in health is as injurious to the sick as the diet of wild beasts is to men in health.

Hippocrates De prisca medicina 8

ed. William Henry Samuel Jones

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