History of malaria millennium BCE in Greece and China. For thousands of years, traditional herbal remedies have been used to treat malaria. The first effective treatment for malaria came from the bark of cinchona tree, which contains quinine. After the link to mosquitos and their parasites were identified in the early twentieth century, mosquito control measures such as widespread use of the insecticide DDT, swamp drainage, covering or oiling the surface of open water sources, indoor residual spraying and use of insecticide treated nets was initiated. Prophylactic quinine was prescribed in malaria endemic areas, and new therapeutic drugs, including chloroquine and artemisinins, were
History of malaria confirmed the high prevalence of "P. falciparum" malaria in ancient Egypt. The Ancient Greek historian Herodotus wrote that the builders of the Egyptian pyramids (circa 2700–1700 BCE) were given large amounts of garlic, probably to protect them against malaria. The Pharaoh Sneferu, the founder of the Fourth dynasty of Egypt, who reigned from around 2613–2589 BCE, used bed-nets as protection against mosquitoes. Cleopatra VII, the last Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, similarly slept under a mosquito net. However, whether the mosquito nets were used for the purpose of malaria prevention, or for more mundane purpose of avoiding the discomfort of mosquito