Dr. Troutman's Unnatural Causes

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Health is not determined solely by people’s genes but is largely shaped by environmental and socioeconomic factors. In Health and in Wealth, the first episode in the documentary series Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick?, addresses the vast differences between US communities not only on a nationwide range but even at a local scale with a total shift across a single block. As Dr. Troutman notes, “There’s a cultural demarcation in the city where on one side of this particular street, Ninth Street, there’s a tremendous amount of new developments going on, condos rising up. And right across the street is where the public housing projects begin. Every city has a Ninth Street” (Unnatural Causes 2008). Many middle to lower class citizens

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