Customer Reviews

Evolutionary Medicine

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book applies Darwin's theory of evolution to medicine and that's very exciting. It's exciting because the theory of evolution turns out to be a framework with impressive explanatory power in the area of health and disease. Why do babies in modern Western societies show more excessive crying than infants of !Kung San hunter-gatherers? What makes many women that give birth in modern high-tech hospitals still unsatisfied with the process? Why do so many modern women get breast cancer? Evolutionary medicine proposes answers, sometimes controversial, but definitely almost always worth considering. Why only four stars then? Perhaps it's because the field is still maturing but I thought only six of the eighteen chapters of the book showed clear arguments, high-quality writing, and didn't require a Ph.D. in biochemistry to follow the details. (I liked the chapters about evolutionary perspectives on infant crying, sudden infant death syndrome, obstetrics, nutrition, psychiatry, and breast cancer). And finally, readers should keep in mind that "Evolutionary Medicine" is a university textbook. For a more accessible introduction into this exciting new field they should read Nesse and Williams' "Why We Get Sick".

While a bit dry, this book provides a great overview of evolutionary medicine and how it applies to clinical medical problems such as asthma, giving birth, colic. Evolutionary Medicine explains the "why" behind why diseases occur. It's rarely purely genetic, with epigenetic and environmental factors playing a key role in most modern chronic medical conditions!

The chapters on colic and giving birth were particularly interesting in my opinion and offer some great practical tips.

Some of the evidence is a bit on the theoretical side (ex: the benefits of elevated IgE levels), but overall very clinically relevant.

Paul 3rd year medical student
paultheo2004@yahoo.ca