Productivity loss associated with functional disability in a contemporary small-scale subsistence population
- Universite Toulouse 1 Capitole, France
- Chapman University, United States
- Arizona State University, United States
- University of California, Santa Barbara, United States
Abstract
In comparative cross-species perspective, humans experience unique physical impairments with potentially large consequences. Quantifying the burden of impairment in subsistence populations is critical for understanding selection pressures underlying strategies that minimize risk of production deficits. We examine among forager-horticulturalists whether compromised bone strength (indicated by fracture and lower bone mineral density, BMD) is associated with subsistence task cessation; we estimate the magnitude of productivity losses associated with compromised bone strength. Fracture is associated with cessation of hunting, tree chopping and walking long distances, but not tool manufacture. Age-specific productivity losses from hunting cessation associated with fracture and lower BMD are substantial: ~397 lost kcals/day, with expected future losses of up to 1.9 million kcals (22% of expected production). Productivity loss is thus substantial for high strength and endurance tasks. Determining the extent to which impairment obstructs productivity in contemporary subsistence populations improves our ability to infer past consequences of impairment.
Data availability
Data that support the findings of this study are available on Dryad.
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Productivity loss associated with physical impairment in a contemporary small-scale subsistence populationDryad Digital Repository, doi:10.5061/dryad.h44j0zphj.
Article and author information
Author details
Jonathan Stieglitz
Funding
National Institutes of Health (R01AG024119)
- Jonathan Stieglitz
- Benjamin C Trumble
- Hillard Kaplan
- Michael D Gurven
National Science Foundation (1748282)
- Jonathan Stieglitz
Arizona State University
- Benjamin C Trumble
University of California, Santa Barbara
- Michael D Gurven
Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR-17-EURE-0010)
- Jonathan Stieglitz
The funders had no role in study design, data collection and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.
Reviewing Editor
- George H Perry, Pennsylvania State University, United States
Ethics
Human subjects: Institutional IRB approval was granted by UNM (HRRC # 07-157) and UCSB (# 3-16-0766), as was informed consent at three levels: (1) Tsimane government that oversees research projects, (2) village leadership, and (3) study participants.
Version history
- Received: September 10, 2020
- Accepted: November 30, 2020
- Accepted Manuscript published: December 1, 2020 (version 1)
- Version of Record published: December 16, 2020 (version 2)
Copyright
© 2020, Stieglitz et al.
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License permitting unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.
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Productivity loss associated with functional disability in a contemporary small-scale subsistence population
eLife 9:e62883.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.62883
Further reading
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- Epidemiology and Global Health
Background:
Circulating omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have been associated with various chronic diseases and mortality, but results are conflicting. Few studies examined the role of omega-6/omega-3 ratio in mortality.
Methods:
We investigated plasma omega-3 and omega-6 PUFAs and their ratio in relation to all-cause and cause-specific mortality in a large prospective cohort, the UK Biobank. Of 85,425 participants who had complete information on circulating PUFAs, 6461 died during follow-up, including 2794 from cancer and 1668 from cardiovascular disease (CVD). Associations were estimated by multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression with adjustment for relevant risk factors.
Results:
Risk for all three mortality outcomes increased as the ratio of omega-6/omega-3 PUFAs increased (all Ptrend <0.05). Comparing the highest to the lowest quintiles, individuals had 26% (95% CI, 15–38%) higher total mortality, 14% (95% CI, 0–31%) higher cancer mortality, and 31% (95% CI, 10–55%) higher CVD mortality. Moreover, omega-3 and omega-6 PUFAs in plasma were all inversely associated with all-cause, cancer, and CVD mortality, with omega-3 showing stronger effects.
Conclusions:
Using a population-based cohort in UK Biobank, our study revealed a strong association between the ratio of circulating omega-6/omega-3 PUFAs and the risk of all-cause, cancer, and CVD mortality.
Funding:
Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institute of Health under the award number R35GM143060 (KY). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
