September
18
/ 2019
Farming caused the human heart to evolve less “ape-like” and be better for endurance and stamina. New research suggests human hearts significantly changed when we dropped hunting and began leading more consistent lives as farmers, and now they are longer, thinner, and more flexible-walled hearts than chimpanzees. The research, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was led by Dr. Aaron Baggish, director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Cardiovascular Performance Program. Analyzing the differences between our hearts, and those of apes, they found the human heart has evolved over thousands of years to better suit modern life. The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly Dr. Baggish and his team investigated, measured, and compared the functionality of
