Public health courses are emerging as popular undergraduate offerings, especially at universities with schools of public health. It is important to note that evolution has shaped the burden of disease in the modern world in which we practice and educate for public health. Human cultures and technologies have modified life on Planet Earth and have co-evolved with myriad other species, including microorganisms, plant and animal sources of food, invertebrate vectors of disease, and intermediate bird, mammal, and primate hosts. Molecular mechanisms of evolution have produced differential resistance or susceptibility to infectious agents, including malaria, plague, smallpox, TB, measles, and diarrheal and respiratory diseases. The domestication of sheep and cattle led to natural selection in favor of human populations able to digest milk throughout life through persistence into adulthood of lactase enzyme expression in the intestine, a major story of anthropology. The emergence of a "Western diet" of dairy, refined cereal grains, refined sugars, vegetable oils, alcoholic beverages, salt, and omega-6-rich meats has dramatically altered glycemic load, fatty acid composition, macro-nutrients, acid-base balance, sodium/potassium ratio, and fiber content. This is a major story of nutrition and disease. The results include epidemics of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, certain cancers, and bowel, inflammatory, and autoimmune disorders. Another interesting phenomenon is the selection of excessive hemostatic activity from platelets and the plasma clotting proteins; what was protective against death from bleeding after injuries among hunter-gatherers or from pregnancy-related hemorrhage now contributes to thrombosis underlying heart attacks and strokes. Conversely, there is little pressure against hemostasis and thrombosis since deaths from these causes occur mostly after the reproductive years of life. Learning about evolution over millennia for humans and over hours or days for microbes enlivens the experience of understanding evolutionary biology in public health context.

中文翻译：

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加强公共卫生进化论的教学。

公共卫生课程正在成为受欢迎的本科课程，尤其是在设有公共卫生学院的大学。重要的是要注意，在我们为公共卫生而实践和教育的现代世界中，进化已经塑造了疾病的负担。人类文化和技术改变了地球上的生命，并与无数其他物种共同进化，包括微生物、植物和动物食物来源、疾病的无脊椎动物载体以及鸟类、哺乳动物和灵长类动物的中间宿主。进化的分子机制产生了对传染病的不同抵抗力或易感性，包括疟疾、瘟疫、天花、结核病、麻疹、腹泻和呼吸道疾病。羊和牛的驯化导致了自然选择，有利于能够通过肠道中乳糖酶表达持续到成年期来终生消化牛奶的人类群体，这是人类学的一个重要故事。乳制品、精制谷物、精制糖、植物油、酒精饮料、盐和富含 omega-6 肉类的“西方饮食”的出现极大地改变了血糖负荷、脂肪酸组成、常量营养素、酸碱度平衡、钠/钾比例和纤维含量。这是一个关于营养和疾病的重要故事。结果包括动脉粥样硬化性心血管疾病、肥胖症、糖尿病、高血压、骨质疏松症、某些癌症以及肠道、炎症和自身免疫性疾病的流行。另一个有趣的现象是从血小板和血浆凝固蛋白中选择了过度的止血活性；狩猎采集者受伤后出血或妊娠相关出血导致死亡的保护措施现在会导致心脏病发作和中风的血栓形成。相反，止血和血栓形成的压力很小，因为这些原因导致的死亡大多发生在生育年龄之后。了解人类数千年来的进化以及微生物的数小时或数天的进化，可以丰富在公共卫生环境中理解进化生物学的经验。狩猎采集者受伤后出血或妊娠相关出血导致死亡的保护措施现在会导致心脏病发作和中风的血栓形成。相反，止血和血栓形成的压力很小，因为这些原因导致的死亡大多发生在生育年龄之后。了解人类数千年来的进化以及微生物的数小时或数天的进化，可以丰富在公共卫生环境中理解进化生物学的经验。狩猎采集者受伤后出血或妊娠相关出血导致死亡的保护措施现在会导致心脏病发作和中风的血栓形成。相反，止血和血栓形成的压力很小，因为这些原因导致的死亡大多发生在生育年龄之后。了解人类数千年来的进化以及微生物的数小时或数天的进化，可以丰富在公共卫生环境中理解进化生物学的经验。