Evolutionary medicine improves our grasp of human nature for better health.
Highlights:
- Evolutionary medicine helps us understand human biology and its connection to our evolutionary heritage.
- Erasmus Darwin’s 1794 book “Zoonomia” indirectly proposed the idea of using evolutionary biology to understand diseases.
- Evolutionary mechanisms that were once beneficial can be counterproductive today, such as the tendency to accumulate body fat.
- Evolutionary medicine explains how certain genetic mutations, like sickle cell disease and Tay-Sachs disease, can provide protection against specific diseases.
- Studying non-human primates, particularly in the context of infectious diseases, enriches our understanding of human health and evolutionary biology.
Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution and even the early publications of his grandfather Erasmus, which served as a predecessor to modern evolutionary theory, may have more significant implications for our lives than we thought. Have you ever wondered how these discoveries could impact our health? Evolutionary medicine, a science rooted in Darwin’s theory, takes it to new ground.
Lara Durgavich, a biological anthropologist and TED speaker, explained in a recent conversation that by using the rules of natural selection, evolutionary medicine can help us “better understand the human body and better assimilate the dynamics of the different factors that influence human health.” However, it’s important to clarify that, contrary to what we may believe because of its connection to evolution, this science does not aim to perfect human development but rather to help us understand our biology.
The underlying concept has existed for a long time.
Lara Durgavich
The idea of using evolutionary biology in health was indirectly proposed by Erasmus Darwin. In 1794, he wrote “Zoonomia,” a book exploring its relevance in understanding diseases. “Therefore, the underlying concept has existed for a long time,” explains Durgavich.
Although evolutionary mechanisms are vital for survival, some may be counterproductive today. For example, the tendency to accumulate body fat in times of food abundance was believed to have been beneficial in an environment where food scarcity was common. However, this adaptation has become counterproductive in modern contexts, such as developed countries, where calorie-rich food abundance is the norm.
Delving into evolutionary medicine, Durgavich highlights one of the most common applications of this science. In specific populations, the prevalence of sickle cell disease carriers is higher. But how does this red blood cell disorder intersect with a mosquito-borne disease? In these cases, this type of anemia provides protection against malaria because the mutation that causes it alters the shape of red blood cells, preventing malaria parasites from completing their life cycle. The same goes for Tay-Sachs disease, a rare hereditary condition that could protect unaffected carriers from a contagious disease. As a cultural brief, for Tay-Sachs disease to develop, both parents must be carriers. Although being carriers may protect them against tuberculosis infection, if both have it, it could lead to their offspring accumulating a substance in the brain that causes nerve cell destruction, developmental delay, and even early death.
Primatology, in particular, has a lot to say about evolutionary medicine through the lens of infectious diseases, as we know there are many similarities.
Lara Durgavich
Furthermore, studying the evolution and behavior of non-human primates can also enrich evolutionary medicine. As humans, we are part of the primate species. In this regard, primatology helps clarify our evolution and allows us to understand human health in this evolutionary context. “Primatology, in particular, has a lot to say about evolutionary medicine through the lens of infectious diseases, as we know there are many similarities,” explains Durgavich. “A relevant example is HIV, which passed into the human species through zoonotic transmission from two different primates, both chimpanzees and a species of monkey called the Sooty mangabey.”
A relevant example is HIV, which passed into the human species through zoonotic transmission from two different primates, both chimpanzees and a species of monkey called the Sooty mangabey.
Lara Durgavich
Another example is cardiovascular diseases, such as atherosclerosis, characterized by reduced or blocked blood flow, which affects humans differently than great apes. In this context, Durgavich explains that this occurs even when they have blood lipid profiles that would be considered high risk in humans. “From this evolutionary perspective, we can ask, what has changed? Is it something genetic, in the diet, or in digestive physiology?”
From this evolutionary perspective, we can ask, what has changed? Is it something genetic, in the diet, or in digestive physiology?
Lara Durgavich
Evolutionary medicine redefines how we understand our biology and our connection with primates. We hope “that this perspective becomes more widely known (…), to see it incorporated more regularly in medical education. Someone like me, talking about it, can raise awareness, but I’m not treating patients,” concludes Lara Durgavich. By understanding how our biological systems have been shaped over millions of years, promising perspectives for the future emerge, where our understanding of the past becomes our compass.
