The introduction provides an overview of the research problems and how
they will be approached, focusing particularly on how understanding
women, food, medicine, and diet in the Middle Ages by using anthropological
and folkloristic approaches can add to the understanding of these
issues for non-elite populations. Research questions include: What do
we know about women as food producers, feeders, and nurturers? What
can be said about women as practitioners of folk or traditional medicine?
How does this contrast with the written record of theoretical medicine?
Finally, what were the cultural aspects surrounding women, food, and
health, and how did it determine proper eating, fasting, and body shape?