medicalize

American  

[med-i-kuh-lahyz] / ˈmɛd ɪ kəˌlaɪz /

especially British, medicalise

verb (used with object)

medicalized, medicalizing

1. to handle or accept as deserving of or appropriate for medical treatment.

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Other Word Forms

• medicalization noun

Etymology

Origin of medicalize

medical + -ize

Example Sentences

But she also sees a temptation among public officials to villainize or medicalize loneliness— and to tout simplistic “solutions” to a complex and natural part of the human experience.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 24, 2024

I'd really love to see us cutting down on our need to medicalize and biologize every human experience.

From Salon • Sep. 19, 2021

But even if we were to accept the association’s assertion that it is necessary to medicalize athletes to ensure fair competitions, the practice would still run afoul of ethical guidelines.

From Nature • May 16, 2019

These problems, less pressing when the subject is a dead fish, take on outsize importance when potentially flawed research is used to validate, medicalize or deny human identities.

From Washington Post • Jun. 27, 2018

Many hackers have noticed that mainstream culture has shown a tendency to pathologize and medicalize normal variations in personality, especially those variations that make life more complicated for authority figures and conformists.

From The Jargon File, Version 4.2.2, 20 Aug 2000 by Steele, Guy L.