Edition |
1st Vintage books ed. |
Description |
1 online resource (xi, 290 pages : illustrations) |
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text file rda |
Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 251-273) and index. |
Contents |
The mystery of disease -- Evolution by natural selection -- Signs and symptoms of infectious disease -- An arms race without end -- Injury -- Toxins: new, old and everywhere -- Genes and diseases: defects, quirks and compromises -- Aging as the Fountain of Youth -- Legacies of evolutionary history -- Diseases of civilization -- Allergy -- Cancer -- Sex and reproduction -- Are mental disorders diseases? -- The evolution of medicine. |
Summary |
The authors state the case that illness and disorder are part of an evolutionary reaction by the human body, and in some cases, they may be beneficial to the current physical or psychological state of the ill person. Examples include morning sickness as a control over the nutritional needs of the pregnant woman, and fever as a means to regulate body temperature to fight off infection. While the authors do not claim that medical treatment should be withheld, understanding the underlying causes of some medical illness or disorders may be as important as typical medical treatment. |
Note |
Print version record. |
Subject |
Medicine -- Philosophy.
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Human evolution.
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Human biology.
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Adaptation (Physiology)
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Adaptation (Physiology) (OCoLC)fst00796481
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Human biology. (OCoLC)fst00962865
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Human evolution. (OCoLC)fst00963030
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Medicine -- Philosophy.
(OCoLC)fst01015007
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Genre/Form |
Electronic books.
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Added Author |
Williams, George C. (George Christopher), 1926-2010.
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|
Brown, Jared M.
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Added Title |
New science of Darwinian medicine |
Other Form: |
Print version: Nesse, Randolph M. Why we get sick. New York : Vintage Books, 1996 0679746749 (OCoLC)34176260 |
ISBN |
9780307816009 (electronic bk.) |
|
0307816001 (electronic bk.) |
Music No. |
EB00171991 Recorded Books |
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