Evolutionäre Medizin

Zusammenfassung

Die evolutionäre Medizin erlaubt neue Sichtweisen auf lang bekannte medizinische Phänomene. Die Einbeziehung von evolutionären Aspekten vermittelt neue und originelle Einsichten. Was die klassische Anthropologie nie leisten konnte, wird nun durch Fortschritte der molekulare Medizin möglich. Die evolutionäre Medizin macht damit den Sprung von einem rein theoretischen Fach zu praxisbezogenen Anwendungen in Reproduktions-, Ernährungs- und Präventionsmedizin, genauso wie in Mikrobiologie, Immunologie oder Psychiatrie. Der Anspruch der evolutionären Medizin ist dabei hoch: Sie will nicht nur ein weiteres medizinisches Fach sein, sondern ein umfassendes Verständnis von gesund und krank liefern, erklärt anhand unserer biologischen Herkunft.

Abstract

Evolutionary medicine allows new insights into long standing medical problems. Are we "really stoneagers on the fast lane"? This insight might have enormous consequences and will allow new answers that could never been provided by traditional anthropology. Only now this is made possible using data from molecular medicine and systems biology. Thereby evolutionary medicine takes a leap from a merely theoretical discipline to practical fields – reproductive, nutritional and preventive medicine, as well as microbiology, immunology and psychiatry. Evolutionary medicine is not another "just so story" but a serious candidate for the medical curriculum providing a universal understanding of health and disease based on our biological origin.

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