Parasites and Their Impact on Human Behavior and Society

Summary

Parasites have had a significant impact on the course of human history. Parasites have caused the deaths of countless individuals, have resulted in the abandonment of settlements, and have even affected the outcome of wars. Parasitologists, biologists, and even medical anthropologists have conducted extensive research on how parasites affect the human body, including how they lead to malabsorption of nutrients, bowel obstruction, internal bleeding, blindness, physical disability and deformation, as well as many other symptoms of disease. What should be of keen interest to anthropologists and archaeologists is that certain species of parasites can actually effect behavioral changes in their hosts, which can sometimes have society-wide implication. This poster explores the life stories of a variety of parasites that can influence human behavior in the hopes that this discussion will bring a greater awareness of the importance of looking at past populations through an archeoparasitological lens.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)

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