On the occasion of the bicentennial of the arrival of Dom João and the Portuguese Royal Family to Rio de Janeiro, the book A saúde pública no Rio de Dom João reissues two texts that discuss the climate and the most common diseases of the city, proposing alternatives for public health in the first two decades of the 19th century. “Reflections” by Manoel Vieira da Silva was the first medical text published in Brazil. The second work was written by Domingos Ribeiro dos Guimara es Peixoto, a surgeon in the chamber of His Majesty Our Lord.
The authors deal with topics such as the influence of heat and humidity on the soil and the inhabitants of the city, the lack of hygiene in the slaughterhouses of the time, and the lack of food preservation. The topography of Rio de Janeiro is considered disastrous, laying the groundwork for the later urban renewal carried out by Pereira Passos. Suggestions for reclamation of swampy areas are also found, as well as a strong defense of breast-feeding as opposed to wet nursing, a practice characteristic of colonial Brazil.
The enlightening introduction is signed by Moacyr Scliar, doctor, writer and member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters, and the beautiful images are part of the collection of the National Library.
