A reflection of the unfavorable living conditions caused by the First World War in the diet and health of a 10‐year‐old boy (1907–1917) from Vetlá cemetery, Bohemia

Abstract

AbstractAlthough First World War battles did not directly affect the territory of all participating states, the conflict brought suffering in the form of a decline in their inhabitants' economic situation. This was also true in the Czech Lands. Opportunities for studying the impact of the period's difficult living conditions on the human body are very limited. This study presents pilot research into the possible influence of the wartime environment on children's lives through the example of a 10‐year‐old boy (1907–1917) from a family of landowners. The circumstances of his death and burial, demonstrated in coffin adjustment, confirm that the war influenced conditions at the time. We therefore considered the possible osteological and nutritional manifestations of the stress of that time, such as difference between biological and chronological age, the presence of skeletal developmental anomalies, signs of nonspecific stress in the form of linear enamel hypoplasia and Harris lines, and diet, also in the family context. The results showed no significant difference between the boy's biological and chronological ages nor body height disorder. There were seven developmental anomalies on his skeleton, some also found in other family members, which supports documented family relationships. Co‐occurrence of signs of nonspecific stress and isotopic shifts were also found, indicating the possible presence of nutritional stress before his wartime death.