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Sex differences in Hadza dental wear patterns : a preliminary report
J Colette Berbesque1, Frank W Marlowe, Ian Pawn
1The Centre for Research in Evolutionary Anthropology, Roehampton University, London, UK. Colette.Berbesque@roehampton.ac.uk
Human Nature (Hawthorne, N.Y.)
|July 4, 2012
Summary
Despite food sharing among Hadza hunter-gatherers, women consume more tubers than men. This dietary difference is reflected in distinct dental wear patterns between sexes, indicating varied tool use.
Area of Science:
- Human evolution
- Paleoanthropology
- Hunter-gatherer studies
Background:
- Food sharing is common in hunter-gatherer societies, often assumed to equalize diets between sexes.
- Previous observations among the Hadza of Tanzania suggest sex-based dietary discrepancies, particularly in tuber consumption.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between dental wear patterns, diet, and extramasticatory tooth use in Hadza adults.
- To determine if observed dietary differences between Hadza males and females correlate with distinct patterns of dental attrition.
Main Methods:
- Dental casts of upper dentitions were collected from 126 adult Hadza individuals.
- Dental wear was quantified using the Murphy dental attrition scoring system.
- Statistical analyses controlled for age to compare wear patterns between sexes.
Main Results:
- Females exhibited significantly greater anterior occlusal wear compared to males, even after accounting for age.
- Males displayed greater asymmetry in dental wear, with more pronounced wear on the left side of canines and molars.
- These sex-specific wear patterns suggest differential dietary intake and non-masticatory tooth usage.
Conclusions:
- Sex-based differences in dental wear among the Hadza are linked to variations in diet and the use of teeth as tools.
- The findings challenge the assumption of uniform diets in food-sharing hunter-gatherer groups.
- Dental wear analysis provides insights into the behavioral and dietary ecology of past and present human populations.
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