Wrecked Ancient Ship Holds World's Oldest Pills Used To Treat Sore Eyes

Researchers say, physicians treated sore eyes with the same active ingredients as today in ancient Rome.

The researchers found this by analysing pills found on the Relitto del Pozzino, a cargo ship wrecked off the Italian coast in around 140 BC.

Extracts from Tamarind Cures Dry, Itchy Eyes
Eye drop derived from seeds of tamarind tree has proven to be effective in treating dry, sore, itchy eyes.

Erika Ribechini from the University of Pisa in Italy said that these are the oldest medical tablets ever analysed to their knowledge, New Scientist reported.

According to her, the disc-shaped tablets, 4 centimetres across and a centimetre thick, were likely dipped in water and dabbed directly on the eyes.

The tablets were mainly made of the zinc carbonates hydrozincite and smithsonite, echoing the widespread use of zinc-based minerals in today's eye and skin medications.

Experts Warn Kids Against Using New 3D Games Console
Experts have raised health concerns over the new 3D games console that creates 3D images without the need for glasses and goes on sale in Japan this week.

Ribechini said that there is evidence that Pliny the Elder, the Roman physician, prescribed zinc compounds for these uses almost 250 years after the shipwreck in his seminal medical encyclopaedia, Naturalis Historia.

The tablets were also rich in plant and animal oils. Pollen grains from an olive tree suggests that olive oil was a key ingredient, just like it is today in many medical and beauty creams, says Ribechini.

Young Woman's Eyes Gouged Out By Her Partner
In a primal attack on a young woman, an Australian man gouged out both her eyes with an electric cattle prod.

The tablets were discovered in a sealed tin cylinder called a pyxis.

She added that since the findings of such ancient medicines are extremely rare, so preservation of the Pozzino tablets is a very lucky case.

Decline in Human Donor Eyes Affects Vision Research
A decline in the number of human donor eyes provided for ophthalmology research by U.S. eye banks may have a negative impact on clinical ophthalmology

Source-ANI