Summary - Why are we shrinking? - Summer 2013

One reason that we have shrunk over the last 10,000 years is due to lifestyle changes, such as switching from hunting to agriculture. Another reason is linked to diet; cereals lacked micronutrients and vitamins. A final reason is social inequality as the ruling classes took most of the better food from the poorer classes. Our brains has also diminished in size mainly due to need to be more efficient. Scientists believe that the brain needs to conserve energy to be better able to do the different types of tasks required in modern societies. However, they also believe that smaller brains don’t make us less intelligent.