The Importance of Wearing Shoes: Hookworm Disease in Mississippi

With the identification of hookworm disease in early twentieth century Mississippi, physicians were finally able to identify the characteristic apathy, potbellies, laziness, and general malaise of their numerous patients as indicative of a specific medical condition. Rather than blame the symptoms on socio-economic status, the medical community in the state now could explain the reasons for and the methods of hookworm disease eradication. The impact of this disease and others on Mississippi’s development is an interesting and relevant study which adds to the understanding of Mississippi’s history and culture.

Speakers Expertise:

Deanne Nuwer is the Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Letters at The University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Park campus. Nuwer has previously served as an associate professor of history and history pedagogy at the Gulf Park campus. She has published a number of articles including several about women in history and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. She also edited the “Dictionary of United States History: Mississippi.”