Introduction: Human Animal Health in Medical Anthropology

Area of Science:

• Medical Anthropology
• One Health
• Ecology

Background:

• Emerging field of human-animal health within medical anthropology.
• Ethnographic studies exploring animal involvement in health, well-being, and disease.
• Revisiting core anthropological concepts like ecology, biopolitics, and care through an animal health lens.

Discussion:

• The Anthropocene necessitates novel frameworks for understanding human-animal entanglement.
• Anthropogenic changes reshape discussions on health and disease.
• Expanding traditional disciplinary boundaries to include zoonotic diseases, veterinary medicine, animal therapeutics, and food systems.

Key Insights:

• Animals are central to human health and disease dynamics.
• Interdisciplinary approaches are crucial for addressing complex health challenges.
• Medical anthropology can be reoriented by incorporating animal health perspectives.

Outlook:

• Potential for a paradigm shift in medical anthropology.
• Development of new theoretical tools for analyzing human-animal interactions.
• Addressing global health issues through a holistic, integrated One Health approach.