Dr. Sharon Moalem, a modern marvel among the science community, has long sought after the fundamental truths of human disease and biological evolution. He is a Canadian physician, scientist and best-selling author who specializes in the fields of rare diseases, neurogenetics, and biotechnology. His three books Survival of the Sickest, How Sex Works: Why We Look, Smell, Taste, Feel, and Act the Way We Do and "Inheritance: How Our Genes Change Our Lives—And Our Lives Change Our Genes" offer an engaging and revolutionary way of thinking as to why humans are the way they are, and why life is the way it is. Survival of the Sickest in particular is an incredibly intriguing book that explores the reasons why mankind needs diseases. Although disease
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From the importance of diabetes, to the function of iron in the body, Moalem doesn’t fail to touch on and dig deeper into some of the most-asked questions about human evolutionary history. In fact, each chapter in this book focuses on a different aspect of Moalem's overall conclusion that modern diseases were beneficial in the past. He focuses on the fact that many diseases remain present in today’s society as a byproduct of symbiotic relationships with our ancestors; which, inevitably leads into Darwin’s theory of natural selection and the focal point of this book -Hence the title, Survival of the Sickest. Moalem leads into his book by talking about hemochromatosis, which is an incredibly rare genetic disease that causes one’s body to overproduce iron. Although hemochromatosis may literally cause one to “rust” if not treated, Moalem explains that in the past, individuals with hemochromatosis actually had a greater resistance to plagues. In fact, during the middle ages, people who had hemochromatosis tended to live through the bubonic plague epidemic. As a result, these individuals were able to pass on this disease to their children; which, is why hemochromatosis is still present …show more content…
On that note, one of the most things I would like to quote from the book is that, “white-skinned people are actually black-skinned mutants who lost the ability to produce significant amounts of melanin” (Moalem 55). I chose this quote simply because I find the topic to be fascinating. I love dermatology, and I find that the way Moalem phrased this sentence is perfect. It shows that there is no real reason for why racism should exist, because though history has seen African Americans as odd, genetics say otherwise. Furthermore, I find that the skin is absolutely amazing in both its capabilities and differences. Not to mention the fact that it functions as the ultimate bodyguard, and helps our bodies maintain homeostasis. Melanin is incredibly interesting on its own, but that's not entirely why I chose the quote. I personally believe that this book helped change the way I see disease. Despite all of the bad publicity diseases have gotten over the years, they are also beneficial to human life; which, in my opinion, is absolutely fascinating. I, like many other people, naively came to the conclusion that all diseases are bad, and I believe that this book is something that everyone should read, because it is eye-opening on many levels. Therefore, I absolutely would recommend this book to other
From the importance of diabetes, to the function of iron in the body, Moalem doesn’t fail to touch on and dig deeper into some of the most-asked questions about human evolutionary history. In fact, each chapter in this book focuses on a different aspect of Moalem's overall conclusion that modern diseases were beneficial in the past. He focuses on the fact that many diseases remain present in today’s society as a byproduct of symbiotic relationships with our ancestors; which, inevitably leads into Darwin’s theory of natural selection and the focal point of this book -Hence the title, Survival of the Sickest. Moalem leads into his book by talking about hemochromatosis, which is an incredibly rare genetic disease that causes one’s body to overproduce iron. Although hemochromatosis may literally cause one to “rust” if not treated, Moalem explains that in the past, individuals with hemochromatosis actually had a greater resistance to plagues. In fact, during the middle ages, people who had hemochromatosis tended to live through the bubonic plague epidemic. As a result, these individuals were able to pass on this disease to their children; which, is why hemochromatosis is still present …show more content…
On that note, one of the most things I would like to quote from the book is that, “white-skinned people are actually black-skinned mutants who lost the ability to produce significant amounts of melanin” (Moalem 55). I chose this quote simply because I find the topic to be fascinating. I love dermatology, and I find that the way Moalem phrased this sentence is perfect. It shows that there is no real reason for why racism should exist, because though history has seen African Americans as odd, genetics say otherwise. Furthermore, I find that the skin is absolutely amazing in both its capabilities and differences. Not to mention the fact that it functions as the ultimate bodyguard, and helps our bodies maintain homeostasis. Melanin is incredibly interesting on its own, but that's not entirely why I chose the quote. I personally believe that this book helped change the way I see disease. Despite all of the bad publicity diseases have gotten over the years, they are also beneficial to human life; which, in my opinion, is absolutely fascinating. I, like many other people, naively came to the conclusion that all diseases are bad, and I believe that this book is something that everyone should read, because it is eye-opening on many levels. Therefore, I absolutely would recommend this book to other