Why Am I? The Science of Us 4 - Dirt is Good, Dirt Poor is Bad (Episode Four)

In this fourth and final episode of series Why Am I? the message is clear — events we endure in our childhoods have long-lasting effects on the rest of our lives, both physically and mentally. The Dunedin Study explores nature versus nurture, deciphering the differences in people's biology, physiology, and mental states through the lens of differing experiences and socio-economic backgrounds. New discoveries show how abnormal inflammation as an adult may be due to a lonely childhood, potential ways to minimise the effects of schizophrenia, and how having a pet may help keep you allergy-free. 

In a city with so many resources, where it's a very wealthy city, Bayview-Hunters Point is almost like a little slice of the third world in the middle of this amazing world-class city ... the rates of hospitalisation for diabetes are 12 times higher; the hospitilsation for heart disease, five or six times higher...

– Bayview Child Health Center Doctor Nadine Burke Harris on the split between rich and poor in San Francisco

Key Cast & Crew

Paul Casserly

Co-Director

Keiran McGee

Production Manager

Susie Ferguson

Narrator

Irena Dol

Co-Director, Editor

Doni Karatau

Production Manager

Mark McNeill

Co-Director, Producer