Medical Theories/Potions

[circlemidnight]

So in my story, my character gets a cold and their guardian is incapable/fearful of making them a Pepperup Potion, so they buy some from an apothecary. Unfortunately, the ingredients were mixed up, making them more sick. What would make a Pepperup Potion to harm someone?

Also, while we're on the subject of medicine, I'd also like to know what other potions could be used or have been mentioned. And how do wizards think of medicine and the human body, anyway?

[ToBeOrNotToBeAGryffindor]

For information on this, the Harry Potter Lexicon is a great site for reference.

*Cures the common cold.
*Glover Hipworth invented the Pepperup Potion (fw).
*Madam Pomfrey dispensed quite a lot of this when winter arrived. It leaves steam coming out of the drinker's ears for several hours (CS8).

There are no ingredients listed, so I'm assuming that you could use whatever ones you want, from Sopophorous Beans to some sort of ashes or something (being that the potion's effects have to do with heat, I recommend adding an ingredient that has to do with steam, heat, or fire... powdered dragon teeth, maybe?).


Some medical potions from the Lexicon's Encyclopedia of Potions. It's a great resource. These ones are just from 'A' to 'C':

Blood-Replenishing Potion potion - Medical magic: this potion makes up for lost blood.

Arthur had to take a Blood-Replenishing Potion every hour until the Healers could find an antidote for the venom of the snake that bit him. Something in that venom was keeping the wound open and he was bleeding whenever they would remove the bandages (OP22)

boil cure potion potion - Simple potion to cure boils. Taught to first-years in their first Potions class with Snape (PS8)

ingredients: dried nettles, crushed snake fangs, stewed horned slugs, porcupine quills (added after taking the cauldron off the fire)

If the porcupine quills are added before the cauldron is taken off the fire, the mixture produces clouds of acid green smoke and a loud hissing, melts the cauldron, and burns holes in people's shoes. This happened to Neville, who was splashed by it and sprouted angry red boils (PS8)

c.f. BULBADOX POWDER, FURNUNCULUS (used on Malfoy by Harry CH. 37 of GoF - doesn't play nice with the Jelly Legs jinx), WARTCAP POWDER

bruise-healing paste potion - a thick yellow paste used to heal bruises.

The twins gave some to Hermione to treat the bruises caused by their prototype punching telescope (HBP6)

bubotuber potion ingredient - plant - The pus of a bubotuber, properly processed, is useful in treating acne.
The pimple-curing properties of bubotuber pus were discovered by Sacharissa Tugwood (fw/68)

burn-healing paste potion - this is an orange paste is used to heal burns.

Used by Madam Pomfrey to tend to burns during the Triwizard Tournament (GF20)

Calming Draught potion - Calms emotional turmoil.

Madam Pomfrey gave this to Hannah Abbott after she burst out crying in Herbology and said she was too stupid to take exams and should leave the school (OP27)

cough potion potion - Medical magic: unknown, but presumably treats a cough.

Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes' Owl Order Service repackages some of their potions as cough potions to get them past security checks, such as Filch's blanket ban on their products at Hogwarts (HBP15)

[Fainting Fancies]

You could also include some ingredients commonly thought to help with colds in the Muggle world.

Things like garlic, ginger and echinaccea are thought to help relieve the symptoms of a cold, and could be in the potion. With a name like Pepperup Potion, perhaps it contains pepper, or Pepperberries to pep people up.

Just a thought, do the ingredients have to be mixed up? Perhaps the Pepperup Potion could simply be out of date. We know that love potions strengthen over time, and perhaps so do Pepperup Potions so that when taken they do not have the desired effect and can make the person taking them sick.

Just an idea!

Hannah

[wilted_orchid]

We aren't actually told much about medicine or medical facilities throughout the books, but I've had a scout about for any little bits and bobs that might be handy for you scooped of the Harry Potter Wiki.

There are two medical facilities mentioned during the books;

1. Mnemosyne Clinic for Memory Modification is a clinic for memory regeneration. The clinic's ad promises to restore memory to "natural range" using a spell. The Clinic's slogan is "Helping witches and wizards find their marbles since 1426". The Clinic also advertises in the Daily Prophet that they perform charms to help fix up faulty memories. No word on whether they help you forget things you'd rather not remember, or - alas - on their location, though Diagon Alley is probably a fairly safe assumption.

2. St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries is a wizarding hospital in London, England. It was founded by famous Healer Mungo Bonham in the 1600s. The emblem of St Mungo's is a wand crossed with a bone.

To enter the premises, one may step through the window of what appears to be a red-bricked, condemned department store called Purge and Dowse, Ltd. This acts as a magical gateway to the main building, much like the barrier at King's Cross Station to Platform 9¾. The interior, on the other hand, looks exactly as a hospital should.

St Mungo's has multiple floors including; Artifact Accidents (cauldron explosions, wands backfiring, broom crashes, and so forth) ; Creature-Induced Injuries (bites, stings, burns, embedded spines, etc); Magical Bugs and Diseases (contagious maladies such as dragon pox, Vanishing Sickness, and Scrofungulus); Potions and Plant poisioning (rashes, regurgitation, uncontrollable giggling, and more); and Spell Damage (unliftable jinxes, hexes, incorrectly-applied charms, etc).

These titles suggest these to be the main ailments affecting the Wizarding Community.

An important detail we learn about Magical treatment of the body is through an off-hand comment made by Ron Weasley,

Harry Potter: "Are they doctors?"
Ron Weasley: "Those Muggle nutters who cut people up? Nah, they're Healers."

Which suggests to me that Healers are rarely, if ever, invasive in their procedures.

Hope that helps some!

Shan
x

[OliveOil_Med]

If you still find yourself contemplating potions, her are some helpful links.


Reference Thread - Medical Properties of Plants

Reference Thread - Magical Properties of Plants

Reference Thread - Magical Properties of Gemstones


I hope these prove useful in your research!