2022-11-09 BB: Austin - Social Determinants of Health - Egypt
Channel: Archaeological Research Facility, UC Berkeley
Date: 09/11/2022

* Please note that this recording contains images of human remains. *
Understanding Hidden Heterogeneity in Frailty through the Social Determinants of Health: A case study from Ancient Egypt
Lecture: ARF Brownbag | November 9 | 12:10-1 p.m. | Virtual talk
Speaker:  Dr. Anne Austin, University of Missouri–St. Louis
Sponsor:  Archaeological Research Facility
Abstract: A key issue in studies of past health is the hidden differences in our individual susceptibility to illness. Research over the past 30 years in public health was similarly challenged to explain health disparities on a global scale resulting in the concept of the Social Determinants of Health: factors in one’s social structure, environment, and behaviors that can explain health inequalities. Applying the Social Determinants of Health to bioarchaeological contexts can help reveal hidden heterogeneity by identifying how social structures in the past could have directly impacted health outcomes. As an example, I present my research on skeletal indicators of stress in three tombs – TT217, TT290, and TT298 – at the site of Deir el-Medina. The rates of these lesions in comparison to published data from other sites in ancient Egypt and Nubia suggest the people of Deir el-Medina had overall lower rates of childhood stress indicators. To explain this, I model how social cohesion – one factor within the Social Determinants of Health – is evidenced in texts from the site. Aligning this with results from public health research, I demonstrate processes through which social cohesion could lower physiological stress during childhood at Deir el-Medina.