Malpica Diosdado, José Francisco de (fl. circa 1750)
Alexipharmaco de la Salud, Antidoto de la Enfermedad, Favorable Dietetico Instrumento de la Vida.

Mexico: Colegio Real de San Ildefonso, 1751.

Quarto, [pi]2, ¶-¶¶2, ¶¶¶1, *2, ¶¶¶¶4, A-Z2, Aa-Yy2, [26], 180 pages contemporary vellum, worn, front wrapper folded back; minor dampstaining and foxing, minor wear to fore-edge.

Malpica Diosado served as a physician for a Capuchin convent in Ciudad de Los Angeles, Mexico (now Puebla) during the colonial period. In this work, he approaches the theological arguments surrounding the fasting practices of nuns, including medical ramifications based on gender, in particular, whether women can withstand the same level of extreme fasting tolerated by men. As indicated by the title, the doctor recommends fasting for nuns as a cure for infirmities and and instrument of health. (See Antonio Hernandez Morejon's Historia Bibliografica de la Medicina Espanola, Vol. VII, page 196.)

Guerra, Iconografia Mexicana 302; Medina, Mexico 4047; Palau 147943; Wellcome Americana M.85; six copies in Worldcat.