As explained in his infamous essay, “The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race,” Jared Diamond argues that the adoption of agriculture led to many negative consequences that have hindered the general livelihood of humans. His argument is based on the comparison of the lifestyles of agriculture-based societies and hunter-gatherers, claiming that the latter lacked many of the challenging aspects that emerged with the beginnings of domestication and civilization. Diamond’s main points of focus are the negative health effects of people’s new diet, the increased spread of diseases, and the development of societal inequalities. In general, I agree with Diamond’s claim that the adoption of agriculture had some negative effects on humans,
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The diet of a hunter-gatherers, a variety of wild plants and animals, provides more protein and a better balance of nutrients, whereas farmers specialize in growing crops that are high in carbohydrates, like potatoes and rice. In many instances throughout the world, this shift to a less nutritious diet has led to many health defects. For example, when archeologists compared the indigenous skeletons of farmers in Illinois with the hunter-gatherers who preceded them, it was found that those who practices intensive maize agriculture had an increase in enamel defects, iron-deficiency anemia, and bone lesions. In addition, these skeletons had an increase in degenerative conditions of the spine, which might reflect an increase in physical labor due to agriculture. Diamond also claims that this dietary shift in human populations has caused an overall decrease in height. For instance, human remains from Greece and Turkey show that after the adoption of agriculture men and women’s heights decreased by an average of 5-6 inches. Thus, these effects of malnutrition from the diet of agriculture are concrete evidence that the shift to agriculture had a negative impact on human …show more content…
Thus, this increase in food led to a major increase in population. Diamond then explains that this increase in population led to two phenomena: the increased spread of disease and sociocultural inequalities. With the establishment of agriculture, people became settled down permanently, and as human populations grew, people clumped together to form cities. All these people living in close quarters with one another, with often ill methods of disposing of human waste, promoted the spread of parasites and infectious disease within the population more easily. In addition, in settling down and forming communities built on agriculture, there came the need for someone to supervise the logistics of the community, such as overseeing irrigation construction, storing surplus crops, and distributing land to people. Yet, this system created a social divide of people, where those in charge of society received better nutrition and wealth, while the common people struggled with poverty at the expense of the rich. These are all developments that Diamond claims were detrimental to humans, and I agree; there is no denying that these occurrences did not harm humans in some way or
The diet of a hunter-gatherers, a variety of wild plants and animals, provides more protein and a better balance of nutrients, whereas farmers specialize in growing crops that are high in carbohydrates, like potatoes and rice. In many instances throughout the world, this shift to a less nutritious diet has led to many health defects. For example, when archeologists compared the indigenous skeletons of farmers in Illinois with the hunter-gatherers who preceded them, it was found that those who practices intensive maize agriculture had an increase in enamel defects, iron-deficiency anemia, and bone lesions. In addition, these skeletons had an increase in degenerative conditions of the spine, which might reflect an increase in physical labor due to agriculture. Diamond also claims that this dietary shift in human populations has caused an overall decrease in height. For instance, human remains from Greece and Turkey show that after the adoption of agriculture men and women’s heights decreased by an average of 5-6 inches. Thus, these effects of malnutrition from the diet of agriculture are concrete evidence that the shift to agriculture had a negative impact on human …show more content…
Thus, this increase in food led to a major increase in population. Diamond then explains that this increase in population led to two phenomena: the increased spread of disease and sociocultural inequalities. With the establishment of agriculture, people became settled down permanently, and as human populations grew, people clumped together to form cities. All these people living in close quarters with one another, with often ill methods of disposing of human waste, promoted the spread of parasites and infectious disease within the population more easily. In addition, in settling down and forming communities built on agriculture, there came the need for someone to supervise the logistics of the community, such as overseeing irrigation construction, storing surplus crops, and distributing land to people. Yet, this system created a social divide of people, where those in charge of society received better nutrition and wealth, while the common people struggled with poverty at the expense of the rich. These are all developments that Diamond claims were detrimental to humans, and I agree; there is no denying that these occurrences did not harm humans in some way or