What drove childhood disease during Industrial Revolution?

Teeth from people buried in a Quaker cemetery near North Shields, England—used between 1711 and 1829—have been analyzed to link climate shocks to childhood disease during the Industrial Revolution. Researchers studied defects in tooth dentin and cross-referenced them with a burial register to reassess causes of vitamin D deficiency and related conditions in late 18th-century England. As the country shifted from farm work to industrial labor between about 1760 and 1840, pollution, harsh conditions, inadequate housing and limited sunlight were already known contributors to rickets. The new work says climate variation, including the Little Ice Age’s reduced UV exposure, was largely overlooked. Excavations in 2010 recovered 236 burials, and scientists examined 30 teeth from 21 individuals.