The castel of helth gathered and made by Syr Thomas Elyot knyghte, out of the chiefe authors of physyke, wherby euery manne may knowe the state of his owne body, the preseruatio[n] of helthe, and how to instructe welle his physytion in syckenes that he be not deceyued

❧ The dominion of sondry com∣plexions. Cap. 13.

IT semeth to me not inconuenient, that I do declare as well the counsayles of ancient & approued authors, as also myne owne opi∣nion gathered by dilygent markynge in dayely experience, concernynge as well the necessarye diet of euery complexion, aege and declinatiō of helthe, as also the meane to resyste discrasies of the body, before syckenesse be therin confyrmed, leauynge the resydue vnto the substancyall ler∣nynge and circumspecte practyse of good phy∣sitions, whiche shall the more easilye cure theyr pacientes, yf theyr pacientes do not dysdayne to beare awaye and folow my counsayle. And first it ought to be consydered, that none of the foure complexions, haue sooly suche dominion in one man or womans body, that no parte of any o∣ther complexion is therwith myxte. For whan we call a man sanguine, choleryke, fleumatyke, or melancoly, we doo not meane, that he hathe bloude onely without any of the other humors, or choler withoute bloudde, or fleume withoute bloudde or melancolye, or melancolye withoute bloudde or coler. And therfore the man, whiche

is sanguine, the more that he draweth into age, wherby naturall moysture decayed, the more is he coleryke, by reason, that heate, surmoun∣tynge moysture, nedes muste remayne heate and drythe. semblably, the colerycke man, the more that he waxeth into age, the more naturall heate in hym is abated, and drythe surmountynge na∣turall moysture, he becommeth melancolyke: but some sanguine man hathe in the proporcion of temperatures, a greatter myxture with choler, than an other hath. Lykewyse the cholerycke or fleumatyke man with the humour of sanguyne or melancolye. And therfore late practysers of physyke are wonte to call men, accordyng to the myxture of theyr complexions, as sanguyne co∣lerike, fleumatike sanguine. &c. Moreouer, be∣syde the naturalle complexions, whiche man re∣ceyueth in his generation, the humours, wherof the same complexions do consyste, beynge aug∣mēted superfluously in the body or members by any of the sayde thynges called not naturall, e∣uery of them do semblably augment the comple¦xion, whiche is proper vnto hym, and bryngeth vnequall temperature vnto the bodye. And for these causes, the sanguine or fleumatike man or woman, felynge and discrasye by choler hapned to them by the sayde thynges, callyd not natu∣rall, they shall vse the diete described hereafter to hym, whiche is naturally coleryke. Sembla∣blye the coleryke or melancolyke manne or wo∣man, hauynge any dyscreasye by fleume, to vse the diete of hym, whiche is naturallye fleuma∣tyke, alwaye remembrynge, that sanguyne and fleumatyke men haue more respecte vnto dryth,

choleryke and melancalyke vnto moysture, and that alway as the accedentall complexion decay eth, to resorte by lyttell and lyttell to the dyete, pertaynynge to his naturall complexion.