Help
The site
- What is Medicine Chest?
- Medicine Chest is an online collection of traditional remedies and folk wisdom to do with health and healing. It aims to gather and record traditional know-how before it gets lost so it can be passed on for the benefit of future generations. Channel 4 are working with The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, on this project.
On this site you can upload your health-related tips, stories and information that come from traditional sources such as your own family. You can watch topics unfold as people discuss their own experiences alongside related scientific evidence and other relevant perspectives. Medicine Chest also gives you access to exclusive behind the scenes material and video clips from Channel 4's dynamic new documentary series 'Medicine Men Go Wild'. - How can I share my story?
- You will need to register on this website to upload your story or information. Once registered, you will be able to create new stories and add comments to existing ones.
- How do I register?
- You can register by entering your details in the registration form. You will then be ready to start uploading stories and adding comments. You will also be sent a reminder email containing your username and password along with a link to the site.
- Why should I share my story?
- Medicine Chest is a unique new website that is designed to provide an important, lasting legacy for years to come. You have the opportunity to play a valuable part in this groundbreaking project by sharing your personal experiences, knowledge and views - these are the heart and soul of this initiative. Medicine Chest is a growing community whose fascinating contributions in the form of engaging stories, natural cures and insightful comments all help create a fascinating and useful online space for all things related to natural and traditional approaches to health and healing.
- What kind of stories does Medicine Chest need?
- The term 'Stories' is a kind of short-hand – it includes, not only narratives, but also snippets of information and other valuable insights. So anything which helps explore health and healing from a traditional perspective. Perhaps your grandmother used to suggest natural cures when you or your family were ill that sounded bizarre and old fashioned at the time? Did you hear about unusual health tips when travelling or on holiday, or experience medical treatment that differed from those you are familiar with? Maybe you have friends or family overseas who approach medicine and health in other interesting ways? Is there an older person in your family whose knowledge you'd like to capture for posterity? Whatever weird and wonderful stories you have, this is your chance to share them with the world and, who knows, you may end up changing someone's life for the better, so please do get typing now!
- How can I comment on other people's stories?
- You will need to register on this website to add your comments. As soon as you are registered, you will be able to comment.
- Once I have made a comment, can I delete it?
- It is not possible to delete comments once they have been posted.
- How do I report offensive content on the site?
- To report offensive comments please select the "report story as offensive" link next to all comments, stories and pictures added by users. We will deal with all reported comments asap.
- I am having problems with the website. What can I do?
- If you are having difficulty with the website please contact support@headshift.com.
- Can I add topics to existing stories?
- It is not possible to add topics to existing stories; however, we plan to introduce a feature in future which will allow you to do this.
- Can I edit a story I have contributed?
- Currently we do not allow users to edit their stories. We have plans to do this in future.
- Can I delete a story I have contributed?
- It is not possible to delete stories you have contributed.
- What is my Watchlist?
- Your Watchlist is a list of the stories, factfiles and images that you want to follow on the Medicine Chest site or save for future reference. It shows when something you are particularly interested in gets updated or commented on. Whenever you find something of particular interest to you on the site, you can click on the "Add to Watchlist" link (marked by the icon of an eye:
). The chosen item will be added to your personal Watchlist for easy reference. - You can keep track of Watchlist items by simply accessing your Profile page. You can also opt to have daily or weekly email digests sent to you summarising recent activity around the items you are watching. The weekly email is sent on Fridays; the daily ones overnight. Items in your Watchlist can be removed at any time if you no longer wish to follow a particular item.
- What is RSS?
- RSS ("Really Simple Syndication") feeds allow you to see when websites have added new content. If you select to subscribe to an RSS feed it means you can see the latest information from Medicine Chest without having to actually go there. For example, if you want to watch what is happening with a particular story, you can select to receive an RSS feed by clicking the icon, this will keep you updated with all the latest comments on the story.
- What RSS feeds are available on the site?
- Feeds are available for: episodes of 'Medicine Men Go Wild' and latest stories added to the site. In addition, you can subscribe to a feed for comments left on each story on the site. There is a link underneath the comments form to the relevant feed.
- What sources are being used to bring in different "Perpectives"?
- We have selected 30 trusted sources and we are pulling in information from them to sit alongside user stories. The 30 sites which we have selected are as follows:
Channel 4 is not responsible for the content of third party sites.
- www.en.wikipedia.org
- www.healthcentral.com
- www.answers.yahoo.com
- www.altmedicine.about.com
- www.badscience.net
- www.nhsblogdoc.blogspot.com
- www.healing.about.com
- www.medicalnewstoday.com
- www.medlineplus.gov
- www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au
- www.thecamreport.com
- www.medicinenet.com
- www.whatreallyworks.co.uk
- www.newscientist.com
- www.nccam.nih.gov
- www.thedoctorweighsin.com
- www.nature.com
- www.eso-garden.com
- www.otherhealth.com
- www.the-mommy-spot.blogspot.com
- www.ayurvedictalk.com
- www.channel4.com
- What is the Ethnomedica project?
- Remembered Remedies
Researching the Herbal Traditions of Britain
The loss of local knowledge - be it about plants or anything else - is one of the side-effects of globalisation and rapidly changing societies. While this issue is recognised in the tropics, and is receiving a lot of attention from those concerned with development and the conservation of cultural and biological diversity, it is not the case here at home. The UK has long been industrialised and ranks among the most developed of regions. Yet studies have shown that fragments of knowledge passed down through a long oral tradition still exist among older people. Its value increases the more it is lost as time passes. - Why did my story not appear on the site?
- If your story does not appear on the site it means that it includes something which we deem offensive. Sometimes we remove stories which other users have reported as offensive even after they have been sucessfully posted.
The Show
- What is 'Medicine Men go Wild'?
- Medicine Men is a major new four-part documentary series that sees two young British doctors, Chris and Xand van Tulleken, who also happen to be identical twins, immerse themselves in radically different cultures in four of the most extreme places on earth. The twins explore the world of tribal medicine, and experiment with body mutilation, hallucinogenic plants, toxic potions and the superstitions of Shamen to discover whether traditional forms of healing have anything to teach us about curing illness.
- When does the show air?
- The show will be broadcast on C4 at 9pm every Tuesday commencing 22nd January for 4 weeks.
