Download or read book David Livingstone and the Myth of African Poverty and Disease written by Sjoerd Rijpma and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2015-06-24 with total page 640 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study about David Livingstone is different from all other publications about him. Here, Livingstone is not the main topic of interest; the focus of the author is on nutrition and health in pre-colonial Africa and Livingstone is his key informant. David Livingstone and the Myth of African Poverty and Disease is an unusual book. After a close examination of Livingstone’s writings and comparative reading of contemporary authors, Sjoerd Rijpma has been able to draw cautious conclusions about the relatively favourable conditions of health and nutrition in southern and central Africa during the pre-colonial period. His findings shed new light on the medical history of Sub-Saharan Africa.