The Evolution of Obesity

Introduction: Human Biology, Evolution, and Obesity

1 INTRODUCTION Human Biology, Evolution, and Obesity Daniel Lambert was born in Leicester, England, on March 13, 1770. During his relatively short life (he died at the age of 39), he became moderately famous. He met the king of England and other noblemen . People paid money to see him (Bondeson, 2000). He is still relatively famous today. There are exhibits of his clothes and other personal effects in museums in both Leicester where he was born and Stamford where he died. His portrait hangs in the mayor’s office in Stamford Town Hall and was reproduced on the cover of the Quarterly Journal of Medicine (Figure I.1). What was the source of his fame? At the time of his death on June 21, 1809, Daniel weighed more than 700 pounds (Table I.1). What is rare and unusual can often be perceived as valuable or desired. Consider the word portly. The modern definition in the dictionary is “corpulent ” or “stout.” However, the archaic definition is “stately” or “imposing .” A portly gentleman was a prosperous gentleman, a person who had succeeded in life. “Portly” was a compliment when obesity was not common . It’s not very likely to be taken as a compliment today. Obese people are not a uniquely modern occurrence; it is the prevalence of obesity that has changed, not its existence. The evidence for human obesity goes back over 20,000 years. The Venus of Willendorf, found in an archeological site in Willendorf, Germany, has been dated to 20,000 BCE or earlier (Figure I.2). We do not know if this work of art is a true representation of an individual, but the level of detail and realism in the figurine implies that the artist had seen an extremely obese woman. There are many accounts of extreme obesity in history, some better documented than others. In Europe in the 1700s and 1800s, obese people 2 THE EVOLUTION OF OBESITY exhibited themselves as curiosities. There were also so-called human skeletons —people exhibiting extreme thinness. In U.S. circuses the male “human skeleton” often married the circus fat woman, largely for marketing purposes no doubt. Extremes of body form have long been known among humans. In many of the examples of extreme obesity in history, the facts suggest a strong genetic or pathological component. These individuals often were obese from early life and as young children weighed hundreds of pounds. Why did Daniel Lambert become obese? We do not know. As a young man he was considered large, but in the sense of being tall (5 foot 11 inches, tall for that time in England, but not exceptionally so) and stout, but not necessarily fat. He was a vigorous young man who was quite FIGURE I.1. Daniel Lambert was the fattest man in England in his day. He was popular and well liked. INTRODUCTION 3 strong, reputed to have been able to lift over 500 pounds. He was an excellent swimmer and gave swimming lessons to the youth of Leicester (Bondeson, 2000). At the age of 21 Daniel took over his father’s job as the keeper of the Bridewell (or House of Corrections) of Leicester County. He effectively took a desk job. Although he remained active in hunting pursuits his actual occupation required little exertion. He spent most of TABLE I.1 Daniel Lambert’s physical statistics at time of death Height: 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) Waist: 9 ft 4 in (284 cm) Calf circumference: 3 ft 1 in (94 cm) Weight: 739 lbs (52 stone 11 lbs [335 kg]) FIGURE I.2. The Venus of Willendorf is more than 22,000 years old, implying that human obesity existed at least that long ago. 4 THE EVOLUTION OF OBESITY his workday sitting in front of the building smoking his pipe. It was at that point that his weight began to steadily increase (Bondeson, 2000). During his life Daniel Lambert was known as the fattest man in England . That sobriquet was not pejorative. There was a great deal of curiosity concerning his immense size and amount of body fat, but the general feeling toward him seemed to be quite positive; he was a human wonder. His meeting with the elderly count Josef Boruwlaski was a celebrity event: an encounter between the world’s largest and smallest man. His image was used in political cartoons, usually in a positive manner...