Night air
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Prior to the Nineteenth Century, night air was widely considered dangerous in America and some other western cultures. Based in "zymotic" theory, it was believed that vapors called "miasmas" rose from the soil and spread diseases. Miasmas came from rotting vegetation and foul water--especially swamps and urban ghettos
Many people and especially the weak or infirm avoided breathing night air by going indoors and keeping windows and doors shut.
In addition to zymotic theory, there was also a general fear that cold or cool air spread disease.
The fear of night air gradually disappeared as understanding about disease increased as well as improvements in home heating and ventilation.
Particularly important was the understanding that mosquitoes (active at night) spread malaria rather than miasmas. Wire window screens grew in popularity in the late nineteenth century allowing night air to enter the home without the mosquitoes.
[edit] See also
Book(s):
Miasmas and disease: Public health and environment in the pre-industrial age. By Carlo M. Cipolla. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. 1992. 101 pp. ISBN 0-300-04806-8. $20
[edit] External links
- History of Night Air "How Night Air Became Good Air, 1776-1930 Peter C. Baldwin" (Primary source for this entry)
- Early theories of diseases (includes miasma theory)
