All forms of life have evolved Continue reading →

Why do we wash ourselves? The answer is obvious you may say – to get clean. But animals do not wash themselves. Birds preen to keep their feathers functioning properly; other animals groom their coats of hair or fur to remove dirt and parasites. Monkeys, and our primate relatives, groom each other to strengthen relationships. We wash our pet dogs, and rarely cats, to satisfy our needs for cleanliness and distaste for odours, not because they say they need it.

Animals produce secretions in the skin that protect them from infection and help shed dirt. We also produce a complex mixture of secretions from glands in the skin which have the same functions as in animals – to protect the skin from infection and keep it healthy and supple, but then we spend large amounts of money and time in getting rid of them. This activity is encouraged and promoted by the manufacturers of soaps and shampoos, creams and deodorants, and they then offer treatments to replace what has been lost through washing!

Why are more secretions produced by the scalp and face than elsewhere on your body? Probably because we are ‘vertical animals’. If left alone, scalp secretions move down to the forehead and then onto the face – an area of delicate skin constantly exposed to the sun and wind, and most in need of protection. Why have we evolved to grow hair on our heads? Apart from protection, it is, I suspect, a store of skin secretions. Why do we have eyebrows? Perhaps to retain secretions that will move down and protect the especially vulnerable skin of the eyelids.

So why use expensive chemicals to remove the secretions which are there to keep your skin and hair healthy? Dirt is easily removed with warm water in the shower – no need for shampoo or soap,  conditioner or moisturiser. Try it and see how the skin on your face and hands becomes softer when you retain your secretions.

 

 

Next time you are viewing a chart of human anatomy in the doctor’s office, or in a medical textbook, pay special attention to the large intestine. It’s called ‘large’ because it is much bigger than the ‘small intestine’. In fact it is the largest abdominal organ. Its other name is the ‘colon‘. Given its size you might think it receives a lot of attention from those who look after our health, but you would be wrong. Similarly, it receives almost no attention from those who claim to understand human nutrition. This organ becomes important only when it it is the site of disease.

The colon is our secret garden where a multitude of friendly bacteria of many species break down the ‘indigestible’ parts of our food. These bacteria have evolved with us over hundreds of thousands of years and we tolerate them and benefit from what they produce through their digestive activity. The human colon is similar to fermentation organs in other animals in that it works best when we supply the bacteria with enough of the foods they need. Unfortunately, we have learned to produce and eat highly refined foods that are quickly digested in the small intestine, leaving little or nothing for the colon bacteria to deal with. We could talk about ‘fast’ and ‘slow’ foods. Fast foods, such as proteins, sugars, fats and prepared cereals are quickly digested and absorbed in the small intestine; while slow foods – fibres, seeds, nuts, fruit skins, whole cereals, etc. pass through into the colon and are broken down by friendly bacteria over a day or more. We have yet to identify fully all the products of digestion in the colon, and how they benefit us. There is evidence some of these substances affect the immune system and that others prevent diseases including colon cancer.

So to keep our friendly bacteria, and us, healthy, we need to eat ‘colon-friendly’ foods. And eat enough of them to keep the colon functioning properly. How will we know when the colon is working well? There is a reflex that links the stomach with the colon. When we eat a meal, the gastro-colonic reflex causes the colon, after about 20 minutes, to empty some of its contents, and these are passed as faeces through the anus. The regular need to visit the loo after each meal is the sign of a full and healthy colon, and a healthy colon is probably the best preventative of colon disease. Constipation is the sign of a neglected colon.

So the next time you visit a juice bar, ask them to throw away the juice – only water, sugars and flavour, but keep and eat the residue and explain you are looking after your colon. And, of course, keep well away from the ‘poo fairy’ and colonic irrigation!

We claim we are different from all other animals, and we are, but only with respect to the development of the brain. In all other aspects we are, like all life, the product of evolution. The history of Homo sapiens has been mostly a fight for survival in competition with other large mammals, and at the mercy of a wide variety of organisms competing with us for resources, and often capable of injuring us or causing death. Only in the last, perhaps, 20,000 years, have our superior thinking skills enabled us to prevent and mostly overcome the dangers in our environment. Otherwise we are, physically, still the result of human evolution. We have evolved to stand upright, to walk and run long distances, grasp large and small objects with our hands, see colours, hear, touch, taste, smell and to make complex sounds. These features are not new, but evolved over hundreds of thousands of years to enable humans to survive in hostile environments. Most of these features can be refined through use and practice, and these improvements, together with the gradual improvements in our thinking, have become the basis of modern civilisation.

However, our bodies remain, largely, the product of our evolution, and our basic animal nature needs to be taken into account when advising us on health, fitness, hygiene, nutrition, growth, reproduction and ageing. In this blog I will comment on a variety of human topics from the viewpoint of someone trained in dealing scientifically, not with a single unique species, but a wide variety of animals. Watch this space!

Veterinarians contribute to the health and wealth of countries in many ways: through improvement of agricultural production, research on animal and human diseases, the production of disease-free food, animal welfare, maintaining the health of companion animals and so on. We have a unique understanding of animals, as individuals and in groups. And as the message on the T-shirt of a veterinary student claims: Doctors treat only one species, Real doctors treat them all!

How could vets, given their unique view of animals, contribute to human health? This blog aims to comment on aspects of the human animal and human health from a veterinary point of view.