“How Should We Live with an Evolutionary Outlook?” by Hadi Samadi

Steven Pinker, in his book Enlightenment Now, presents compelling empirical evidence showing that the human condition has improved over time in every aspect of life. Human lifespan has lengthened, and violence has decreased at the societal level. But something seems amiss! Because statistics on the rise of anxiety and depression are worsening. For these statistics, one can refer to Jonathan Haidt's book The Anxious Generation.

How can this duality be interpreted? The Stoics, in an era before Christ when the world had not yet entered its modern phase, believed that to achieve life satisfaction, one must live in harmony with nature.

Undoubtedly, human behavioral habits have changed drastically in recent decades, and humans have moved further away from harmony with nature than in that era. Is this the cause of contemporary anxiety?! Can the Stoics' words be measured in some quantitative way? Let us look at a study in this field that was recently published.

Conventionally, scientists active in evolutionary explanations in psychology have individually compared some of our modern behavioral habits with those of hunter-gatherer ancestors or with humans of the agricultural era. Now, researchers have designed a research tool created to measure the difference between the modern lifestyle and that of our ancestors, and the impact of these differences on health. This study introduces a scale called the "Evolutionary Mismatch Lifestyle Scale" (EMLS): a 36-item questionnaire that identifies behaviors and lifestyle factors differing from what our ancestors experienced.

Research Results The results showed that individuals whose lifestyle differed more from our ancestors in various dimensions, and who therefore scored higher on this test, were more likely to experience adverse physical and mental health outcomes. In other words, we now have a macro-level research datum showing that our increasing separation from nature and a natural lifestyle endangers human well-being in various dimensions, and more importantly, this datum is the product of a measure whose errors were reduced over four stages, making the obtained data highly reliable. We can now say with greater confidence that this finding argues against the seemingly accepted notion that "people of each generation live according to the conditions of their day, and it has always been the case that each generation's life differs from its predecessors." We now have empirical, broad-based evidence showing that there are universal, cross-generational criteria for well-being, and that the modern lifestyle has not increased general well-being.

The 36 questions of the questionnaire address various aspects of lifestyle: diet, level of physical activity, type of relationships in the home environment, type of sexual relationships, use of social media, self-centeredness, and social support. What this study showed was previously predictable by theories from cognitive science, such as embodied mind and situated mind. But now, this research provides us with an empirical test for these theories. A simple criterion is now available for measuring the degree of divergence of an individual's life from a natural life, and a high score on this criterion is evidence that significant problems, whether in physical or psychological dimensions, lie in that individual's path, whether they are aware of it today or not.

Individuals with higher mismatch scores reported more physical health problems, such as sleep issues and chronic diseases, as well as poorer psychological well-being, including higher levels of depression and anxiety. Furthermore, these individuals also rated their overall health lower compared to those with lower mismatch scores. This second finding is very important; because it refutes the common claim that "individuals themselves may be satisfied with a lifestyle detached from nature."

What is to be done? One of the article's authors says we must find ways to live a life more aligned with the lifestyle of our hunter-gatherer ancestors. This does not mean we should go out to hunt or sleep outdoors. Rather, it means we should be aware that the modern world contains all sorts of predicaments to which the human body and brain are not well adapted. For example, just as our ancestors had to expend calories to obtain food, we should do the same. So, let us walk, or cycle to the supermarket, and buy only the food we truly need for that day.

Reconciliation with nature (and not a return to the past) is the sole path to human well-being. For instance, restoring collective play in natural environments to children is the most cost-effective route to the well-being and flourishing of the next generation.