Foodstuffs in the Carta Filosófica, Médico-Química (1687) by Juan de Cabriada

Abstract

This article concerns the foodstuffs in the Carta Filosófica Médico-Química (1687) by Juan de Cabriada in an epistemological view. The main topic of the article is that references on foodstuff are rare but interesting to modern Medical Science. The Doctor rejets the classical language for diet (like coldness and dampness sensation or hotness and dryness) and he replaces it for physical-chemical properties, like acidity, bitterness, and salinity, fermentation, and effective drugs. In addition, Cabriada proposes chemical remedies in opposition to bleeding. However, he don´t refuses in all the medical tradition: he distinguishes between galenism (dark and vague) and authentic Hippocratical medicine founded in observation and experimentation. I propose a balanced lecture of Cabriada´s book, considering compatible his new perspective, language, and concepts, with Hippocrates´s authority conveniently adapted to the new science.