WHEN IT comes to cleanliness, the Middle Ages were far from consistent. For most medieval townsfolk, whether they made their living as merchants, artisans or agriculturalists, or passed their time at local universities, the sanitation systems consisted solely of filth-filled cesspits, cavities dug out of the ground for the collection of feces and other forms of garbage. Yet the tiniest minority of people - the residents of friaries, monasteries and nunneries - had access to running water and an emphasis on hygiene as part of monastic life. The differences in the lifestyles and living conditions of these individuals translated into differences in their susceptibility to disease. As such, some scientists have speculated that the residents of these religious institutions - who tended to have access to washing stations and latrine blocks - would've been better at staving off sickness related to poor sanitation.
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