Epidemiology and the People's Health

Epidemiology is often referred to as the science of public health. However unlike other major sciences its theoretical foundations are rarely articulated. While the idea of epidemiologic theory may seem dry and arcane it is at its core about explaining the people''s health. It is about life and death. It is about biology and society. It is about ecology and the economy. It is about how myriad aspects of people''s lives--involving work dignity desire love play conflict discrimination and injustice--become literally incorporated into our bodies and manifest in our health status individually and collectively. And it is about essential knowledge critical for improving the people''s health and minimizing inequitable burdens of disease disability and death.Woven from a vast array of schools of thought including those in the natural social and biomedical sciences epidemiologic theory is a rich tapestry whose time for analysis is long overdue. By tracing its history and contours from ancient societies on through the development of--and debates within--contemporary epidemiology worldwide Dr. Krieger shows how epidemiologic theory has long shaped epidemiologic practice knowledge and the politics of public health. Outlining an ecosocial theory of disease distribution that situates both population health and epidemiologic theory in societal and ecologic context she offers a more holistic picture of how we embody the human experience.