{"product_id":"the-fragile-wisdom-9780674047129","title":"The Fragile Wisdom","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWomen’s physiology evolved to aid reproduction, not to reduce disease. Any trait—however detrimental to post-reproductive health—is preserved in the next generation if it increases the chances of having offspring who will survive and reproduce. For this reason, the author argues, many common diseases are especially difficult for women to prevent.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJasienska [is]…uniquely qualified to explore women’s reproductive health from a perspective that is not only cross-cultural but also infused with evolutionary wisdom. Her book is a revelation… Intellectually invigorating. -- David P. Barash * Chronicle of Higher Education *\u003cbr\u003eWomen may aim for perfect health through diet, exercise and close attention to medical advice, but still develop breast cancer or osteoporosis. Reproductive fitness often wars with general physical fitness over a woman’s lifetime, argues public-health specialist Grazyna Jasienska. Drawing on a raft of research in evolutionary biology and beyond, she points to factors such as the disjunction between ‘palaeo’ and current lifestyles, hormonal disparities and longer lifespans as key to informing disease-prevention strategies. * Nature *\u003cbr\u003eThe antithesis of the diet and get-fit-quick books we’re bombarded with at this time of year, \u003ci\u003eThe Fragile Wisdom: An Evolutionary View on Women’s Biology and Health\u003c\/i\u003e by Grazyna Jasienska is an engaging examination of how our hormonal and reproductive systems are attuned to our evolving circumstances. Don’t expect instant solutions—Jasienska suggests our bodies are not so much ‘wise’ but ‘confused’ as they adapt to whatever life has thrown at us over the generations. Fascinating stuff. * Psychologies *\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eThe Fragile Wisdom\u003c\/i\u003e, Jasienska offers new insights into evolutionary trade-offs between reproductive viability and other aspects of a woman’s health. The book includes well-researched (48 pages of references) analyses of Paleolithic dietary patterns as well as hormonal fluctuations that support fertility of younger women and place these same women at risk for postmenopausal cancers of their reproductive organs. One of many strengths of the book is the author’s refusal to settle for easy answers or to offer advice. Rather, she raises questions and argues persuasively that human evolutionary heritage is far more complex, more interesting, and more challenging than most readers may have imagined. Although the emphasis is on women’s health, this thought-provoking, well-reasoned work is relevant for anyone seeking a better understanding of humanity’s collective history and its implications for today. -- M. D. Lagerwey * Choice *\u003cbr\u003eA great read for those interested in women’s health and evolutionary biology. -- Susanne Caro * Library Journal *\u003cbr\u003eJasienska explores the ways in which modern changes in attitude (and medicine) with respect to the evolutionary role of women to reproduce might be contributing to rising female health problems. Jasienska demonstrates that long ago, estrogen levels were kept in check by the frequency with which women, lacking any suitable form of birth control, became pregnant; today, on the other hand, women—abetted by social and technological advances—can choose a life for themselves other than motherhood. However, this means that women are pregnant fewer times during their lifespan, therefore they cycle more frequently and thus produce more estrogen—a hormone which, at high levels, shows a high correlation with the incidence of breast cancer. Despite huge steps made in the last 100 years toward gender equality, Jasienska compellingly shows that the impact of millennia of biological evolution continues to assert itself. * Publishers Weekly *\u003cbr\u003eFar and away the best book I’ve read in the field of evolutionary medicine since Nesse and Williams’s \u003ci\u003eWhy We Get Sick\u003c\/i\u003e. The most sophisticated understanding of evolution combined with the best original empirical science and the most creative theoretical thinking. -- Peter T. Ellison, author of \u003ci\u003eOn Fertile Ground\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJasienska offers readers an engaging discourse on a critical part of the modern human condition, and the evolutionary and biocultural processes responsible for its development. -- Michael P. Muehlenbein, Associate Professor of Anthropology, Indiana University, Bloomington\u003cbr\u003eJasienska refuses to present a model of how modern women should lead their lives; rather she insists that each woman is an individual in her own circumstances and must make decisions about the trade-offs inherent to her personal life history. -- Jane B. Lancaster, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, and editor, \u003ci\u003eHuman Nature\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"Harvard University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49403540701527,"sku":"9780674047129","price":30.56,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-fragile-wisdom-9780674047129","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}