When women work: Endocrine reactivity in women during everyday physical activity at high altitude

Sarma, Mallika S.; Gettler, Lee T.; Childs, Geoff; Quinn, Elizabeth A.

doi:10.1002/ajhb.23154

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Furthermore, research recently reported that females from the same valley had decreased levels of cortisol and testosterone. These two hormones increase somatic costs and utilization of stored energy; reducing their levels could be an adaptive response to the high energy demands of living in a high-altitude environment (Sarma et al 2018).…”

Section: High-altitude Acclimatizationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Bodies in Extreme Environments

Ocobock

2023

Annu. Rev. Anthropol.

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Human habitation and adaptation to extreme environments have a deep history in anthropological research. Anthropologists’ understanding of these ecological pressures and how humans respond to them has grown substantially over the last 100+ years. This review covers long-standing knowledge on adaptation to classic extreme conditions of heat, cold, and high altitude, while also updating the areas in which recent research has broadened our understanding of human adaptation, acclimatization, and resilience. Unfortunately, the intersecting stresses of structural inequality and climate change have made these extremes more extreme, with drastic negative impacts on health and well-being. Future research will need to explore how extreme environments, structural inequality, and climate change are embodied as well as mitigated so that humans are better prepared to face a rapidly changing world.

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Section: High-altitude Acclimatizationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Bodies in Extreme Environments

Ocobock

2023

Annu. Rev. Anthropol.

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“…Elsewhere, research on adaptive responses in geographic extremes presented novel evidence that hormonal responses to physical activity may vary at high altitude (Sarma et al. ), and that supraclavicular brown adipose tissue in Yakut adults (Siberia) may play a role in nonshivering thermogenesis and, therefore, cold adaptation in this population (Levy et al. ).…”

Section: Contextual Variation In Biology and Behaviormentioning

confidence: 99%

Biological Anthropology in 2018: Grounded in Theory, Questioning Contexts, Embracing Innovation

Martin

2019

American Anthropologist

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Biological anthropology in 2018 encapsulated what past scholars envisioned for its future: a multidisciplinary approach to understanding human and nonhuman primate evolution and diversity using the most innovative techniques and rigorous standards available. This year also built on a tradition of introspection about what biological anthropology encompasses and by whom and how it is conducted. This review highlights research and movements in the field that reflect both of these pursuits. Studies drew on evolutionary theory to generate novel insights into human and nonhuman primate biology, behavior, and organization. Studies on hominin evolution and human biology have upended previous understandings by revealing more dynamic and context-dependent processes in our ancestry and phenotypic expressions. Across subdisciplines, biological anthropologists have advanced the use of new technologies and analytical techniques and begun to promote open, transparent, and reproducible science among a more diverse community of researchers. [year in review, evolutionary anthropology, context and variation, emerging technologies, transparent methods, researcher diversity] RESUMEN La biología antropológica en 2018 encapsuló lo que investigadores anteriores imaginaron para su futuro:una aproximación multidisciplinaria para entender la evolución de primates humanos y no humanos y diversidad utilizando las técnicas más innovadoras y los estándares rigurosos disponibles. Este año también desarrolló sobre una tradición de introspección acerca de lo que la antropología biológica abarca y por quién y cómo es llevada a cabo. Esta revisión resalta la investigación y los movimientos en el campo que reflejan estas búsquedas. Los estudios se basaron en la teoría evolucionaria para generar nuevos conocimientos en la biología de primates humanos y no humanos, comportamiento y organización. Los estudios sobre la evolución de los homíninos y la biología humana han cambiado drásticamente entendimientos previos al revelar procesos más dinámicos y dependientes del contexto en nuestra ascendencia y expresiones fenotípicas. A través de las subdisciplinas, los antropólogos biológicos han avanzado el uso de nuevas tecnologías y técnicas analíticas y empezado a promover una ciencia abierta, transparente y reproducible entre una comunidad más diversa de investigadores. [año en revisión, antropología evolucionaria, contexto y variación, tecnologías emergentes, métodos transparentes, diversidad de investigadores] T he history of biological anthropology has been underscored by attempts to properly situate the field in relation to other natural sciences and the discipline of anthropology as a whole (e.g., Calcagno

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Sex differences in daily activity intensity and energy expenditure and their relationship to cortisol among BaYaka foragers from the Congo Basin

Sarma

Boyette

Lew‐Levy

et al. 2020

American J Phys Anthropol

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ObjectivesThe pooling of energetic resources and food sharing have been widely documented among hunter‐gatherer societies. Much less is known about how the energetic costs of daily activities are distributed across individuals in such groups, including between women and men. Moreover, the metabolic physiological correlates of those activities and costs are relatively understudied.Materials and methodsHere, we tracked physical activity, energy expenditure (EE), and cortisol production among Congo Basin BaYaka foragers engaged in a variety of daily subsistence activities (n = 37). Given its role in energy mobilization, we measured overall daily cortisol production and short‐term cortisol reactivity through saliva sampling; we measured physical activity levels and total EE via the wGT3X‐bt actigraph and heart rate monitor.ResultsWe found that there were no sex differences in likelihood of working in common activity locations (forest, garden, house). Across the day, women spent greater percentage time in moderate‐to‐vigorous physical activity (%MVPA) and had lower total EE than men. Females with higher EE (kCal/hr) produced greater cortisol throughout the day. Though not statistically significant, we also found that individuals with greater %MVPA had larger decreases in cortisol reactivity.DiscussionBaYaka women sustained higher levels of physical activity but incurred lower energetic costs than men, even after factoring in sex differences in body composition. Our findings suggest that the distribution of physical activity demands and costs are relevant to discussions regarding how labor is divided and community energy budgets take shape in such settings.

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When women work: Endocrine reactivity in women during everyday physical activity at high altitude

Abstract: Testosterone and cortisol increase allocation of energy to costly somatic tissues and the utilization of stored energy. Lower production of these hormones may be beneficial for heightened energetic demands at high altitude.

Cited by 3 publications

References 33 publications

Human Bodies in Extreme Environments

Human Bodies in Extreme Environments

Biological Anthropology in 2018: Grounded in Theory, Questioning Contexts, Embracing Innovation

Sex differences in daily activity intensity and energy expenditure and their relationship to cortisol among BaYaka foragers from the Congo Basin

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