Susanna Way Dodds (November 10, 1830 – January 20, 1911) was an American

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

hydrotherapist Hydrotherapy, formerly called hydropathy and also called water cure, is a branch of alternative medicine (particularly naturopathy), occupational therapy, and Physical therapy, physiotherapy, that involves the use of water for pain relief and tr ...

and

natural hygiene Orthopathy (from the Ancient Greek, Greek ὀρθός ''orthos'' 'right' and πάθος ''pathos'' 'suffering') or natural hygiene (NH) is a set of alternative medicine, alternative medical beliefs and practices originating from the ''Nature Cure ...

proponent.

Biography

Dodds was born in Randolph County, near

Richmond, Indiana Richmond is a city in eastern Wayne County, Indiana. Bordering the state of Ohio, it is the county seat of Wayne County and is part of the Dayton, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 36,812. Situa ...

. She was a

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetarianism m ...

and advocate of

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

.Iacobbo, Karen; Iacobbo, Michael. (2004). ''Vegetarian America: A History''. Praeger Publishing. p. 118. Dodds was the fourth woman in America to become a physician. In 1864, she graduated from

Russell T. Trall Russell Thacher Trall (August 5, 1812 – September 23, 1877) was an American physician and proponent of hydrotherapy, Orthopathy, natural hygiene and vegetarianism. Trall authored the first American Veganism, vegan cookbook in 1874. Biography ...

New York Hygeio-Therapeutic College The New York Hydropathic and Physiological School founded by Russell Thacher Trall on October 1, 1853 at 15 Laight Street, in New York City was a hydropathic and medical school known for its advocacy of natural therapies and vegetarianism. Histo ...

. Dodds practiced medicine in St. Louis from 1886-1909. Dodds' sister-in-law Mary was also a physician. Dodds and her husband Andrew espoused a hygienic method of treating disease.Fisher, Carol. (2008). ''Pot Roast, Politics, and Ants in the Pantry: Missouri's Cookbook Heritage''. University Of Missouri Press. pp. 19-20. In 1878, Dodds and her sister opened a sanitarium, the Dodds' Hygeian Home. In 1887, they established the Hygienic College of Physicians and Surgeons in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

. They did not use any

drug A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...

s except in cases for relieving pain. They focused on "natural methods of treatment: diet, exercise, massage, electricity and hydrotherapy in all of its manifold applications". Dodds proposed a strict hygienic vegetarian diet which forbid the consumption of

baking powder Baking powder is a dry chemical leavening agent, a mixture of a carbonate or bicarbonate and a weak acid. The base and acid are prevented from reacting prematurely by the inclusion of a buffer such as cornstarch. Baking powder is used to increase ...

meat Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. Immune factors and immune ...

soda Soda or SODA may refer to: Chemistry * Some chemical compounds containing sodium ** Sodium carbonate, washing soda or soda ash ** Sodium bicarbonate, baking soda ** Sodium hydroxide, caustic soda ** Sodium oxide, an alkali metal oxide * Sod ...

spice A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spices a ...

s and

sweetener {{Wiktionary, sweetener A sweetener is a substance added to food or drink to impart the flavor of sweetness, either because it contains a type of sugar, or because it contains a sweet-tasting sugar substitute. Many artificial sweeteners have been ...

s. She published the magazine, ''The Sanitarian''. Dodds was Vice-President of the Vegetarian Society of America. Natural hygienist

Herbert M. Shelton Herbert McGolfin Shelton (October 6, 1895 – January 1, 1985)Oswald, Jean A. (1989). ''Yours for Health: The Life and Times of Herbert M. Shelton''. Franklin Books. was an American naturopath, alternative medicine advocate, author, pac ...

was influenced by Dodds.

Death

Dodds died on January 20, 1911, from senile debility at

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

. After Dodds died in 1911, her sister continued to manage the Hygienic College until she sold it in 1912.

Publications

''The Diet Question''
(1884)
''Health in the Household: Or, Hygienic Cookery''
(1891)
''Race Culture: Mother and Child''
(1910) *''Drugless Medicine: Hygeiotherapy'' (1915)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dodds, Susanna Way 1830 births 1911 deaths 19th-century women physicians American health and wellness writers American women nutritionists American nutritionists American temperance activists American vegetarianism activists American women's rights activists Fasting advocates Hydrotherapists Orthopaths People from Randolph County, Indiana Pseudoscientific diet advocates