Staying Alive

Staying Alive. . Standards of hygiene were horrific by today's standards. It wasn't that people didn't care; they didn't connect hygiene with health. In fact, bathing was considered dangerous to your health. Clean clothes were the mark of a dandy or a rich man. A laborer was proud of the stains of his trade and often wore them for a season without removing them., Diseases that have been completely controlled now would routinely sweep the lands, killing thousands. In 1839 for every person who died of old age or violence, eight died of specific diseases. In Albany and Pittsburgh, water sanitation made it possible to fight epidemics. This was the starting point of campaigns in favor of hygiene in general. The battle against epidemic diseases was won more by sanitation than medication. , Looking back at records and past practices, we can now establish a relationship between infant mortality and the consumption of soap. Are you sure you’d really like to go back in time if you could?, (caption) Work may be more intense or last longer in different seasons., (caption) Cleanliness standards were related to resources and practices of the time , As were medical standards- related to resources and practices of the time, (caption) Workers or travelers may not be near home for weeks of months.