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Cesarean Births Could Be Affecting Human Evolution, Study Says (bbc.com)
CanadianRealist writes: Larger babies delivered by cesarean section may be affecting human evolution. Researchers estimate cases where the baby cannot fit down the birth canal have increased from 30 in 1,000 in the 1960s to 36 in 1,000 births today, [according to estimates from researchers at the University of Vienna in Austria.] Science Alert reports: "In the past, larger babies and mothers with narrow pelvis sizes might both have died in labour. Thanks to C-sections, that's now a lot less likely, but it also means that those 'at risk' genes from mothers with narrow pelvises are being carried into future generations. More detailed studies would be required to actually confirm the link between C-sections and evolution, as all we have now is a hypothesis based on the birth data." Agreed, more studies required part. Cesareans may simply be becoming more common with "too large" defined as cesarean seems like a better idea. It's reasonable to pose the question based simply on an understanding of evolution. Like it's reasonable to conjecture that length of human pregnancy is a compromise between further development in utero, and chance of mother and baby surviving the delivery.
Are there alternate explanations that also fit the trend? Many mothers are more careful about their health habits during pregnancy now than in the past, in large part due to a better understanding of what is helpful and harmful to the unborn child. Access to better prenatal care also certainly has improved the health of unborn children. Unhealthy babies often are smaller than healthy babies, and if there are fewer unhealthy babies now, then it follows that the average weight would increase. Although not healthy, there has also been a trend toward higher obesity rates, especially in some developed countries. Obese mothers sometimes give birth to very overweight babies, which is unhealthy for the child. An upward trend in obesity should lead to an upward trend in heavy babies, all else equal. It seems like these hypotheses could also explain the observed trends.
Cesarean Births, Insulin and condoms may be affecting evolution...news at 11.
Yeah, it's just all the rage to have Caesarians nowadays.
A mother just isn't "in" with the popular moms if she gave birth the outdated way.
Natural birth is just sooooo 2015.
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You seem to suggest that it's not all that scary, not all that painful and not all that stressful. I encourage you to put a grapefruit up your ass and squeeze it out - and it still wouldn't be nowhere near the pain women feels during labor. Have you ever had a cramp? How long did it last? Try to prolong it for 6 hours every 5-10 minutes.
And why it's a bad thing women try to prevent their vaginas from being stretched out? Imagine that each time your partner gets pregnant someone cuts off one or two inches of your dick. Would you try to prevent that?
We have been de-evolving for a long time now. Lots and lots of "defective" people are living to reproduce who would have died without medical science (I am one of them). This ends up making the species genetically more poor each time.
Anything that affects mate selection affects evolution... Mundane things such as wearing makup and shaving body hair are probably affecting evolution.
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
I hope Trump gets rid of vaccinations while he's in office. These diseases are here to help rid our gene pool of bad genes, yet we keep trying to save those less fit. It only hurts our species in the long run!
We need NATURAL selection.
Jenny McCarthy is right -- even if for the wrong reasons.
Good deal. At the next Ebola outbreak, hop on a jet over to that location and help bury the bodies, but you can't wear any protective gear. If you have 'superior' genes, you should be fine, right?
Jerkwad...
You're messin' with my Zen Thing, man.....
Err...I beg to differ.
I mean, most guys grow weary REALLY quickly of loose pussy and saggy tits.
Those two things are a big reason they divorce and 'upgrade' to a newer model after a few years.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
Yes, because the incidence of that happening is almost insignificant, and using it to stigmatise all young mothers is simply wrong.
"I know I will be modded down for this": where's the option '-1, Asking for it'?