We evolved to live in bands of hunters-gatherers. The main activities were all directed to survival, forming close relationships with people mostly related by kinship, and some competition for status and mates. We can think that the core activities, with obvious differences, may have had some similarities to how bands of apes such as chimpanzees or bonobos live in the wild today. Our environment in modern societies has changed completely. We don’t live in bands of closely related people, we don’t hunt or gather, and the competition for status and mates is no longer what it used to be. But our genetics have not changed much. This tension between our genetics and our environment produces physiological and psychological consequences that may lead into depression.
In Episode 15 of Beautiful Ghosts (listen on your favourite podcast app, YouTube, or website), we discussed depression. Some of the symptoms of depression are a lack of enthusiasm for any activity, no energy, and a negative outlook on life. There may be feelings of low self-worth or a lack of purpose in life. Why is it so prevalent? What causes depression?
Our Physiology
First, we have our physiology or physical wellbeing. Our diet and physical activity have changed dramatically. While the diet in a band of hunters-gatherers would have consisted mostly of natural foods such as meat, vegetables, fruits, and nuts, with periods of abundance and periods of scarcity, today we have diets that are full of processed foods, with large amounts of refined sugars and carbohydrates being consumed every few hours.
While we know that the excesses of the modern diet lead in the long term to increased incidence of metabolic diseases, what is this diet doing to our body chemistry in the short term? Could it be producing changes in our hormones and neurochemistry that in some cases may lead to depression?
Physical activity is another important aspect of physical wellbeing. We can imagine that life as a hunter-gatherer is very active physically. Getting food, moving to a different area, playing, and so on. Sometimes it would involve high intensity and sometimes low intensity.
What is the main activity we do today? Sitting in front of a screen. We know that physical activity is beneficial both to our physical health and mental health, yet it is just easier to sit in front of a screen. Physical activity is not built into our modern life and this lack of physical activity is a factor that can contribute to depression.
Finally, sleep. In a band of hunters-gatherers, people would sleep when they were tired. There were no alarms and there was no reason to try to keep yourself up if you needed to rest. Today we force ourselves to wake up, do not sleep enough, and drink a lot of caffeine to compensate for the lack of sleep. Lack of sleep and a lot of caffeine in the system have effects in the body’s chemistry.
Our Psychology
Then, we have our psychology or mental wellbeing, which is mostly influenced by our relationships and the work we do. Bands of hunters-gatherers seemed to have been organised in families living in communities with other families related by kinship.
One person would have around 100 people they were closely connected to in mutually supportive relationships. Once a group reached a certain size, it would need to divide (apparently, a person can only have close relationships with a maximum of about 150 people). Groups of families were related to other groups of families in what is called clans, and several clans related to a common ancestor would form tribes.
It is likely that connections were maintained by exchange of marital partners within the tribe. A study I read found that marrying someone with an equivalent relatedness to a third cousin leads to the highest rates of reproduction, compared to more distant or closer marital partners. This is obviously not a value judgment.
In modern societies, the close community doesn’t exist anymore. Only the nuclear family remains, often 3 or 4 people that do not really connect to each other. We spend more time with our co-workers in relationships that are mostly formal than building close relationships with people we trust. We tell our children that we don’t have time for them because we need to work.
The sense of belonging and cooperation of a close community, clan, and tribe is completely missing. The author Sebastian Junger in his book “Tribe” writes how returning veterans go into depression because they no longer experience that closeness and sense of belonging that they experienced within their fighting units. Most people, will never experience that sense of belonging throughout their lives, but rather the opposite feeling.
It is likely that the work we do also influences our mental wellbeing. In a group of hunters-gatherers the work would have been mostly hunting and gathering food, cooking, making weapons and tools. Little of this work would have been routine and repetitive. It probably led to a sense of mastery. Work today can get monotonous and repetitive, often with little individual mastery. For the most part, we are cogs in a production machine with little creative input.
What Can We Do?
We do not choose in what type of society we are born. If you are born in a Bedouin family or in the Liechtenstein family, you are likely to experience some of the benefits of living in close communities. But most of us are more likely born as part of an often-dysfunctional nuclear family in a modern society. The contrast to our environment as hunter-gatherer groups is so marked that it makes one wonder, how is it possible that not everyone is depressed?
Part of the answer is that for many of us, our ancestors have been living in civilization for a few thousand years, and this is enough to select for people that can adapt to a more civilised lifestyle. Our genetics are not exactly what they were 15,000 years ago. Adaptation and selection occur constantly. There is no “going back to nature”. Most of us would quickly die if we wanted to go back to live as hunters-gatherers.
However, there are things we can do. We can help our physiology or physical wellbeing by eating a healthy diet, being physically active, and sleeping well. We can help our psychology or mental wellbeing by putting effort in building close relationships with people we trust. We can get involved in activities that gives us satisfaction, a sense of mastery, and a sense of purpose.
In Episode 15 of Beautiful Ghosts, I mentioned that I was depressed twice, but I probably managed to avoid full blown depression. Yes, we all go through difficult times in life. I too was very sad and in pain. But I wasn’t depressed because I had a positive outlook on life. I knew things were going to get better and I was driven to improve my situation. I kept a healthy lifestyle, I built close relationships with people I trusted while getting rid of toxic people, I kept learning and being involved in activities I’m interested in.
Priorities
Having the knowledge of what may cause depression is not the be all and end all solution to depression. Sometimes there are factors, such as genetic factors, that are truly outside our control. But this knowledge gives a guide of what the priorities should be.
While many people today strive for material success, they neglect those things that can help our physical and mental wellbeing. Living a healthy lifestyle, building close mutually supportive relationships with people you trust, getting involved in interesting activities.
It is true that we are not completely constrained by our biology. We are humans after all. We can push ourselves outside the limits. However, our biology needs what it needs. If we push too much, our biology may respond with depression.
This is reminded to us when we see people doing incredible things and accomplishing amazing things, but having problems with depression. Their biology is not asking for those amazing accomplishments, society is. And society rewards them with fame and money. But their biology doesn’t need fame and money, and it may snap if it isn’t fulfilled.
The question is, knowing what you know, will you act on that knowledge and build your priorities accordingly? Will you make sure you prioritise a healthy lifestyle, close relationships, and interesting activities? Or will you get caught up chasing the rewards of modern society? What does your biology need?
Make and impact,
Pablo
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Disclaimer: the information is provided for education purposes. If you are feeling symptoms of depression consult your doctor.
Image Wikimedia Commons.