2023-08-11 16:00:45
Par Shaya Baldassari
Posted 4 hours ago, Updated 16 minutes ago
The temperature reached 40.6°C in Verdun (Ariège) on July 18, 2023. Prot / stock.adobe.com
As heat waves multiply, researchers explain to the “Figaro” the changes that our bodies could experience in response to global warming.
The month of July 2023 largely broke the record for the hottest month ever recorded on Earth, announced Tuesday August 8 the European service Copernicus. And after a period of freshness in France, the second half of August could bring a few scorching days. Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities are warming the climate at an alarming rate. But what about the long-term consequences on our body? Can the lasting rise in mercury cause it to undergo a profound transformation?
For Laure Ségurel, researcher in genetic anthropology at the CNRS, humans are capable of adapting genetically, “but it still takes thousands of years“. And global warming does not wait…
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Tall and slender, the key to survival?
It would indeed take at least 2000 years for natural selection to operate a sorting by favoring the individuals most likely to survive and reproduce. “Bacteria and insects will probably adapt much faster to climate change than humans. In the space of ten years, several generations of bacteria or insects follow one another, which causes their genetic heritage to evolve, when Man has not made a third of a generation.“, continues the researcher.
However, certain morphotypes – the set of physical characteristics that define an individual – make it possible to better resist heat. “In the countries of South America and Africa, there are typical morphologies “tall and slender” like the Incas in Peru», indicates Alain Froment, anthropologist and biologist at the Museum of Natural History. This optimization of the ratio of body mass to body surface area is ideal for very hot and dry climates. Conversely, in the arctic regions, the typical morphology “small and sturdyof the Inuit limits their heat loss.
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We can therefore predict that individuals of African, South Asian and South American origin, who have lived for thousands of years in much warmer climates than in northern Europe, will have a better ability to resist these high temperatures. “Originally, our ancestors had to adapt to a colder climate, after migrating from Africa to Europe. We can imagine that the opposite phenomenon will occur in the futureadds Laure Ségurel. Clearly, if we are brought to experience higher and higher temperatures, “it would be ideal to grow taller and slim down a bit“, according to Alain Froment.
Necessary cultural adaptations
But to witness a genetic evolution, it would still be necessary to be certain that the climate is warming up for millennia, which is not certain. As British climatologist Friederike Otto recently pointed out in Le Figaro if it is urgent to stop the burning of fossil fuels , «these heat waves are not proof of a “runaway warming” or a “climate collapse””. This conclusion is shared by Alain Froment, for whom we cannot be certain that these heat waves will continue for thousands of years.
One thing is certain, relying on genetic evolution to cool our bodies is a gamble given the urgency of global warming. Cultural adaptations therefore seem to be more relevant. If it has to be warmer, for example, it is essential to step up the fight against obesity.
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