ABSTRACT
The Middlesbrough Locality Study refers to the fluctuations in environmental concern at various turning-points in the post-1945 development of the Tees basin, though public health implications are only touched on indirectly. In relation to health issues, this is the domain of 'lifestyle'. Analysis of the social distribution of health occupies a curious position in sociology - and even more so in social anthropology. But behind it lies a disparity in health - between working class Middlesbrough and working class Sunderland - which is anything but speculative. Analysis over the 12 years 1975-1986 confirms that death rates under the age of 65 have consistently been much greater in the selected areas of Middlesbrough than in Sunderland. Description of Middlesbrough or Sunderland generally starts with the industries which have shaped their landscapes and dominated their economies in the past 50 years and more: iron and steel and petro-chemicals on Teesside; coal-mining and shipbuilding on Wearside.
