Dr. Samantha Yaussy of James Madison University joins the show to discuss her research on the how sex, socioeconomic status, and developmental stress and the intersectionality therein might interact to affect health outcomes in the past via the lens of frailty in skeletal remains primarily from medieval London.
In this episode, we talked about the skeletal markers of frailty in human remains, understanding bias in research and samples, and intersectionality. As part of this, Dr. Yaussy highlighted the morbidity-mortality paradox -- women in modern contexts typically have worse health but longer lifespans than men. However, this doesn't seem to hold true in the populations she studies, which means the past may hold clues for improving health today.
------
Note: I feel pretty bad about dunking on The Pumpkin Spice Cafe. It was fine for what it was. I normally love "junk food" books, but this one just didn't do it for me, and that's ok. If you liked it, more power to you!
Books, articles, and media mentioned in this episode + helpful sites and articles:
- Dr. Yaussy's personal website
- Dr. Yaussy's staff page at James Madison University
- Yaussy SL, DeWitte SN. Patterns of frailty in non-adults from medieval London. Int J Paleopathol. 2018 Sep;22:1-7. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpp.2018.03.008. Epub 2018 Apr 4. PMID: 29626661.
- Yaussy SL, Marklein KE, DeWitte SN, Crews DE. Frailty or resilience? Hazard-based and cumulative phenotype approaches to discerning signals of health inequality in medieval London. Sci Adv. 2024 Nov 15;10(46):eadq5703. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adq5703. Epub 2024 Nov 13. PMID: 39536101; PMCID: PMC11559611.
- Kulminski AM, Culminskaya IV, Ukraintseva SV, Arbeev KG, Land KC, Yashin AI. Sex-specific health deterioration and mortality: the morbidity-mortality paradox over age and time. Exp Gerontol. 2008 Dec;43(12):1052-7. doi: 10.1016/j.exger.2008.09.007. Epub 2008 Sep 20. PMID: 18835429; PMCID: PMC2703431.
- Yaussy SL. The intersections of industrialization: Variation in skeletal indicators of frailty by age, sex, and socioeconomic status in 18th- and 19th-century England. Am J Phys Anthropol. 2019; 170: 116-130. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.23881
- Yaussy SL. The intersectional effects of sex and socioeconomic status on risk of mortality in industrializing England. Am J Biol Anthropol. 2024 Nov;185(3):e25022. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.25022. Epub 2024 Sep 8. PMID: 39245867.
- DeWitte SN, Yaussy SL. Sex differences in adult famine mortality in medieval London. Am J Phys Anthropol. 2020 Jan;171(1):164-169. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.23930. Epub 2019 Oct 6. PMID: 31587269.
- Biehler-Gomez L, Yaussy S, Moro C, Morandini P, Mondellini M, Petrosino D, Mattia M, Del Bo B, Cattaneo C. Unveiling the female experience through adult mortality and survivorship in Milan over the last 2000 years. Sci Re
Popular Podcasts
Spooky Podcasts from iHeartRadio
Whether you’re a scaredy-cat or a brave bat, this collection of episodes from iHeartPodcasts will put you in the Halloween spirit. Binge stories, frights, and more that may keep you up at night!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.