Chromopathy/colour cure

[knittinganddeath]

I found some articles in Australian newspapers from 1919 onwards that describe a "colour cure" -- placing shell-shocked soldiers in a room filled with purple light, which will somehow cure them of all their ills (and cancer too). The effect improves if it is accompanied by appropriate music. According to this theory, all colours have their uses as a treatment for different problems.

This was apparently called chromopathy. Osborne Eaves wrote a book about it around 1900, which was completely panned by a doctor in the British press. While it does not seem to have ever gained widespread use and appears to have been dismissed as quackery even then, I was wondering if anyone here knows whether it was ever actually used as a last resort to treat shell shock?

[FROGSMILE]

30 minutes ago, knittinganddeath said:

I found some articles in Australian newspapers from 1919 onwards that describe a "colour cure" -- placing shell-shocked soldiers in a room filled with purple light, which will somehow cure them of all their ills (and cancer too). The effect improves if it is accompanied by appropriate music. According to this theory, all colours have their uses as a treatment for different problems.

This was apparently called chromopathy. Osborne Eaves wrote a book about it around 1900, which was completely panned by a doctor in the British press. While it does not seem to have ever gained widespread use and appears to have been dismissed as quackery even then, I was wondering if anyone here knows whether it was ever actually used as a last resort to treat shell shock?

There are numerous excellent articles regarding shell shock/neurasthenia/PTSD available online concerning WW1 service, but I haven’t been able to find any relating to either of the world wars referring to any kind of light immersion therapy.  It seems that it was revisited with some degree of success in 2010 though, which I thought was interesting: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/06/100607065552.htm

Edited 5 May , 2022 by FROGSMILE

[TEW]

Dr. Kemp Prosser springs to mind. His method was taken on at Maudsley.

https://blog.maryevans.com/2013/12/ww1-colour-therapy-for-shell-shocked-patients-the-kemp-prossor-colour-cure-ward.html

TEW

[Madmeg]

well there is meant to be a reason why hospitals, mental hospitals (and often) school corridors are painted a pale green.... :-).

Interesting concept- the germans had a uv treatment for sickly children in the 1930's (probably caused MORE cancer one would imagine)

[Pat Atkins]

That purple light thing is interesting, makes me think I may have direct had experience of chromopathy - in the early 80s, I spent a couple of weeks in a small kibbutz hospital and the rooms were painted different colours; patients were moved from one to another as they recovered. I can't really recall the colours, except I woke up in a room which was entirely painted a kind of appalling purple; very claustrophobic. Gave me quite a turn. Fortunately, I recovered quickly enough to be moved a different colour (now I think of it, may well have been green) fairly swiftly. I have always assumed the purple was a kill-or-cure approach - certainly worked for me!

[knittinganddeath]

Thank you to everyone who's replied. I had thought it was all bunk, but apparently not entirely.

I am amused by Kemp-Prossor's insistence on yellow as a healing colour while Osborne Eaves prescribed yellow light as an emetic and laxative.

[seaJane]

I was in hospital aged ?7 and feverish once, spots from measles came out when I wore a red night-dress and my grandmother (trained nurse) swore blind that red would indeed bring the spots out. I don't know whether there's anything in that!

[Kath]

Red was thought to help with small pox.  Queen Elizabeth 1 had this cure and was wrapped in red flannel.

[knittinganddeath]

Thank you @seaJane and @Kath. One of the newspaper articles mentioned red light as a cure for measles and claimed that this treatment had been used in the Middle Ages to cure the sons of a prince. It's also supposed effective in making lazy people active again!

[Madmeg]

Green is supposed to be calming hence school corridors and lunatic asylums. 

Pale green. 

Bright green that the Victorians were so fond of was made with arsenic and could certainly have an effect on health, not to the good.