How can knowledge from an evolutionary biology point of view contribute to increasing women’s health in our society? The Uhl lab looks at established research based on paleoarchaeological and modern human morphological evidence (such as sexual dimorphism in the spinal column with women having more curvature and stronger lumbar vertebrae) and studies the biomechanics of female movement with applications to modern human health. A simple example could be load bearing ventral loads (such as a fetus during pregnancy) and sexual dimorphism in women’s physiology. How can we use this knowledge today. Would a heavy backpack be better carried on the back or across the stomach of a non-pregnant woman? When it comes to health science and sports physiology, what training and exercises might not be easily transfered across teammates that are male and female?
We are working on a study of menstrual cycle day and experiences of side effects after vaccinations in hope to empower women through knowledge of which days of the cycle may tend to have more side-effects due to fluctuating hormones in the normal cycle.Check out Victoria on our Student page to learn more!
