"Average life expectancy at birth was 43 years between 1950-89 and increased to about 50 during the period 1990-2002. Half the population is under 15 years of age."
It's difficult to get a good sense of 'longevity' with life expectancy stats, especially when in this case they only take an average. I can imagine that this group of people does not have modern tools and techniques for child delivery. Obviously that is concerning and worth keeping in the picture, but any higher than usual child mortality rates will really skew the life expectancy stat, making it appear as though people just drop dead in their 40s and 50s.
Edit: I probably don't need to point that out to the typical HN reader, but its something I personally wouldn't have picked up on a few years ago
The second link I posted has survival curves. Child mortality is high but not the whole story - lots of people dying at all ages due to infectious diseases.
Yes, the intestine parasites don't exactly enthuse one to adopt the lifestyle. A simple clinic with antibiotics could sort a lot of the mortality though.
Child mortality rates are conventionally very high for traditional people, often around 50%. But if you make it to age 5 the odds of living into your 60s or 70s goes up considerably.
Well a healthy heart is a good basis for 'longevity'. "Wild", not-primarily/fulltime-agricultural and fully nourished tribes are also throughout the ages known to have never encountered diabetes alzheimers dementia bone-issues tooth-decay gout etc. How the heck do you account for the relative/potential/likely lack of vaccines/antibiotics/ambulances however? For at least a half million years, the life-span of any human individual that survived birth and somehow avoided/survived all the sorts of infections (that we are not inherently immune to either, absent pharma) and accidents and strife inherent in their lifestyles long enough was entirely within range with what modern homo sapiens can hope for, with medicines/ambulances/care-homes etc. It's just that on the whole, many-probably-most didn't make it that far to begin with. Those who managed to, were of course treasured respected and prompted for their 'wisdom' =)
A large part of "the strides medical progress has achieved" in terms of longevity is entirely about dealing with "the diseases of civilization" that we invented in the first place (out of necessity and lacking better info) with a chronic highish intake non-stone-age food-stuffs, cities, heavy industries etc.
> fully nourished tribes are also throughout the ages known to have never encountered diabetes alzheimers dementia bone-issues tooth-decay gout etc.
Citation? It's pretty bold to claim that tribes essentially have/had no health issues. I assume there must be some really compelling evidence backing that up.
In Rousseau's Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality Among Men[1] (1775) he discusses the Caribs of Venezuela:
"As the savage state also protects them from gout and rheumatism, and old age is, of all ills, that which human aid can least alleviate, they cease to be, without others perceiving that they are no more, and almost without perceiving it themselves.
With respect to sickness, I shall not repeat the vain and false declamations which most healthy people pronounce against medicine; but I shall ask if any solid observations have been made from which it may be justly concluded that, in the countries where the art of medicine is most neglected, the mean duration of man's life is less than in those where it is most cultivated. How indeed can this be the case, if we bring on ourselves more diseases than medicine can furnish remedies? [...]
When we think of the good constitution of the savages, at least of those whom we have not ruined with our spirituous liquors, and reflect that they are troubled with hardly any disorders, save wounds and old age, we are tempted to believe that, in following the history of civil society, we shall be telling also that of human sickness."
Healthy heart is nice and does bring quality of life, but what is their life expectancy?