The reception area is located in the former kitchen of the house. It features historical information from the 16th century, as recorded by Fray Bernardino de Sahagún, regarding the preservation of Nahua culture and the use of medicinal plants. Highlights include the Herbal compiled by Martín de la Cruz and Juan Badiano in 1552 (rediscovered in 1929); the 16 handwritten volumes of "De historia plantarum Novae Hispaniae", written by Dr. Francisco Hernández, who was appointed by King Philip II in 1570 as Chief Medical Officer of the Indies; and "Tesoro de medicinas para todas las enfermedades" (Treasure of Medicines for All Ailments), a domestic medical treatise compiled between 1580 and 1589 by Dr. Gregorio López, a physician at the hospital in Oaxtepec. The exhibition also showcases the pre-Hispanic botanical garden located in Oaxtepec, as well as the National Medical Institute, founded in the late 19th century by Carlos Pacheco.

This section explores Mexico's rich biocultural heritage, highlighting the diversity of ethnic groups and the country's exceptional plant biodiversity. It includes a traditional offering to “the winds,” as seen in Tlayacapan, Morelos. Another key theme is the dynamic interplay of diversity and inequality in Mexico—how these factors create differing conditions under which people fall ill and receive treatment. Social challenges affecting rural and Indigenous communities—such as alcoholism, malnutrition, and poverty—are addressed.

At the end of the exhibit, a mirror with a yellow bulb bears the inscription: “Under these conditions, if you had woken up sick today, what would you have done? Who would you have turned to?” The wide range of answers to this question is explored in the next two rooms.

Today, there are many forms of alternative medicine that people turn to for different health issues. The first is self-care or household medicine, which involves using home remedies to treat ailments within the family—often led by the homemaker, who takes on the responsibility of family well-being. Other alternative practices on display include naturism, homeopathy, spiritualism, and biomedicine. Catholic faith plays a central role in many treatments; patients may pray to El Niño de la Salud or the Divine Child Doctor, crossing themselves before the image and asking from the heart to be healed.

Three-sided interactive displays provide information on common folk illnesses such as "mal de ojo" (evil eye), "caída de mollera" (sunken fontanelle), "susto" or "espanto" (fright), and ailments caused by "aires" (harmful winds). The exhibit also presents diagnostic and healing practices used by traditional healers, including "limpias" (spiritual cleansings), medicinal herbs, and divination with corn kernels. Illnesses with pre-Hispanic origins—like "tlazol", "caxan", or "chincual"—are discussed alongside others like "alferecía" (a type of convulsion) and "vergüenza" (shame). The section concludes with a recreation of a ritual altar used in Morelos after a person's death to “raise the shadow,” reflecting Nahua beliefs about death.

This section features significant visual representations of the various social actors involved in herbalism and traditional medicine. These include the "graniceros" (rain specialists) from northern Morelos, wild plant gatherers, midwives, bone setters and massage therapists, herbalists, homemakers, street vendors ("merolicos"), market sellers, and even apothecaries and physicians—all of whom have traditionally relied on medicinal plants to treat patients and produce remedies.

The final gallery returns to the museum’s core aim: not only to describe traditional medicine and its context but also to encourage thoughtful reflection. It presents future scenarios for different social actors: healers, plant gatherers, homemakers, doctors, pharmacists, and researchers. The realm of traditional healers is explored through a photographic collage, prompting questions about their future and the importance of conditions that support the transmission of their knowledge—such as equitable access to services and resources.

For plant gatherers and suppliers, their future depends on the development of a national pharmaceutical industry, which has yet to establish itself with a regulated and self-sufficient production base. Their precarious situation is compounded by the fact that Mexico’s medicinal flora is still not fully understood in agronomic or ecological terms.

Homemakers who practice self-care and household medicine face a scenario marked by social subordination and limited decision-making power regarding their own health. Finally, the exhibit turns to the roles of physicians, pharmacists, and researchers within biomedicine, asking whether medical institutions in Mexico have the openness and capacity to study traditional practices with objectivity and innovation—practices that continue to be part of everyday life for many Mexicans.