CSDE Alumni Seminars

Noncommunicable diseases are the leading causes of death and disability in the Unites States. The burden of these conditions is expected to increase in association with population aging worldwide. Many of these chronic diseases have underlying etiologies related to lifestyle factors, such as diet and physical activity. Were noncommunicable diseases like cardiovascular disease common throughout evolutionary history? This seminar explores evidence of two chronic conditions- benign prostatic hyperplasia and cardiovascular disease- within a non-industrial population of forager-horticulturalists, the Tsimane of the Bolivian amazon.

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Benjamin Trumble is an assistant professor in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change and affiliated faculty in the Center for Evolution and Medicine.

His work focuses on field and laboratory analyses of hormone-behavior interactions, specifically the relationship among reproductive hormones, immune function, behavior, environment and the implications this has for human health and life histories.

Formerly a postdoctoral scholar at the University of California, Santa Barbara, he has conducted research in collaboration with the Tsimane Health and Life History Project, the UC Santa Barbara Human Biology and Biodemography Lab, University of Washington Biological Anthropology and Biodemography Lab, the Broom Center for Demography and Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology.