While catching up on Radiolab podcasts, I came across an episode on parasites with an EcoHealth twist. Host Jad Abumarad visited Columbia University to interview Dickson Despommier about the role of hookworms in the economics of the southern United States.
Circa 1910, philanthropist J.D. Rockefeller funded a commission to study economic depression in the south. The commission identified patterns of anemia corresponding to soil type (image inset), which were attributed to hookworm infections from poor sanitary practices. Hence, improvements in sanitation, specifically outhouses designed to foil the life history of the hookworm, contributed to the rise of the South.
Please follow the link to the podcasts for the whole story:
Radiolab episode (parasites)
Additional links:
Image source
Recent scholarly article
Faculty profile (Dickson Despommier)
Circa 1910, philanthropist J.D. Rockefeller funded a commission to study economic depression in the south. The commission identified patterns of anemia corresponding to soil type (image inset), which were attributed to hookworm infections from poor sanitary practices. Hence, improvements in sanitation, specifically outhouses designed to foil the life history of the hookworm, contributed to the rise of the South.
Please follow the link to the podcasts for the whole story:
Radiolab episode (parasites)
Additional links:
Image source
Recent scholarly article
Faculty profile (Dickson Despommier)