Human beings have changed quite a bit over the centuries. We’ve gone from caveman to today’s version of human beings but have you ever thought about what changes humans have exhibited over the centuries?
Today we’re diving into this topic to see how humans have changed over the centuries. From diet to body changes, and personality changes, we’ve made some significant changes in humankind during the time that we first arrived on this planet.
Smaller Bodies
Human beings now have a small bone structure than our ancestors had. Gradually over the last 10,000 years, we’ve seen changes in the bone structure being small, human beings being shorter and such. Experts have started to see this changing shift in recent years though, we human beings being taller than typically having been in the past.
Smaller Brains
Unlike other species, our brain size has been slowly shrinking. 100,000 years ago the average human brain measured 1500 cubic centimeters, 12,500 years ago our brains measured 1450 cubic centimeters, and today the average human brain measures at 1350 cubic centimeters. While smaller bodies may be a part of this, there are other factors believed to play a role in our shrinking brain.
Smaller Teeth and Jaws
Most human beings today don’t have room for wisdom teeth or their 3rd molars. This obviously occurs because of our smaller bodies, but as with most of the changes in humans over the centuries, other factors could play a role. One of the key components of our jaw being smaller is that our teeth have grown larger due to the introduction of fluoride.
Genetic Traits
Over the years, as human beings started to move around the world, genetic traits have changed. We’ve seen human beings go from looking similar in appearance about 100,000 years ago to looking different based on where they live in the world. This is due to regional changes, diet, and some genetics that have been altered over the centuries.
A lot of the changes in human beings over the centuries has caused our bodies to go from hunters and gatherings that were built to walk 5-10 miles a day and gather food to people who sit more often and consume less natural food options.
These types of environmental and habit changes with human beings have started to play a key role in having mismatched genetics. The human body was created to be hunters, living off their natural resources, but with current times we see more convenient stores and processed food items that have negatively impacted how we evolve.
Many scientists feel that our mismatched genetics due to moving around to different regions, dealing with varying climate changes, and our diet choices are part of what’s leading us to have more health issues and diabetes. While we featured some of the major changes humans have experienced over the centuries, we can all agree that these changes may not be a positive one for the long term health and survival of our species, but we can make changes today to ensure a healthier future.