Apothecaries' system
Okay kiddo, so a long time ago, people didn't use modern medicines like we do now. Instead, they had their own way of measuring and making medicine called the Apothecaries' System.
In this system, they used different sizes of containers to measure out ingredients for medicines. Kind of like when we use measuring cups in the kitchen!
But here's the tricky part - they used really weird names for the different sizes of containers. The smallest size was called a minim (which is about the size of the tip of your pinky finger), then there was the dram, ounce, and pound.
Now, each of those container sizes had a specific amount of liquid or solid medicine that would fit inside them. For example, one ounce of medicine is about two tablespoons.
While this system was used a long time ago, it isn't used much anymore because it can be confusing and lead to mistakes. Instead, we use the metric system, which uses regular numbers to measure and standardize medicine doses.
But don't worry, your doctor and pharmacist know all about how to properly measure and give you the right amount of medicine!
In this system, they used different sizes of containers to measure out ingredients for medicines. Kind of like when we use measuring cups in the kitchen!
But here's the tricky part - they used really weird names for the different sizes of containers. The smallest size was called a minim (which is about the size of the tip of your pinky finger), then there was the dram, ounce, and pound.
Now, each of those container sizes had a specific amount of liquid or solid medicine that would fit inside them. For example, one ounce of medicine is about two tablespoons.
While this system was used a long time ago, it isn't used much anymore because it can be confusing and lead to mistakes. Instead, we use the metric system, which uses regular numbers to measure and standardize medicine doses.
But don't worry, your doctor and pharmacist know all about how to properly measure and give you the right amount of medicine!