The main inconvenient truth

Humanity is facing a wide variety of "inconvenient truths." Al Gore, the Copenhagen summit and the concept of an "economy of low-carbon" has become one of them in a very topical issue. Other examples include the global overpopulation, the destruction of the ozone layer, pollution of the marine food chain, the biodiversity crisis, weapons of mass destruction and the dramatic increase in incidences of many diseases. All of these uncomfortable truths may be considered secondary after addressing the question of who is responsible for the current dilemmas. The "Homo predator"-type of Homo currently dominates all living creatures on the planet Earth is endowed with incredible potential of aggressiveness and is undoubtedly responsible for the many threats facing our species during the third millennium: this is the Main Inconvenient Truth.

Genesis of Homo predator

The basic question, therefore, have to do with the genesis of the main features of Homo predator. It is likely that genetic factors are important, since the potential for aggression in our closest relatives, Pan troglodytes (common chimpanzee), is well documented: these cousins our taking part in wars and rape has been observed that humans and chimpanzees are the only species that kill their fellow deliberately, with premeditation. However, from a practical point of view and to devise a hypothetical change to a renewed humanity, able to live peacefully and sustainably, we must consider the possible epigenetic factors reinforce these human traits.

To investigate such epigenetic factors, we must first refer to the moment when our ancestors began to domesticate other living beings. At that time human groups adapted their strategies for survival with the onset of agriculture and livestock. The construction of towns and cities provided a new dimension to the concept of territory. Reasons emerged renovated to territorial and economic conflicts. Since then, the strategy of survival of human groups has been based on domination of nature and the domination-even elimination, of other human groups. It's easy to understand that for thousands of years, successful human groups have been those that have been transmitted from one generation to the beliefs and rituals that amplify the human potential for aggression. The domination of nature and other human groups have implied the ability to destroy life and therefore influences the development of the capacity to love.

In 2012 we have some clues to the time when environmental factors appear to influence the development of the main features of Homo predator. At the same time that concepts such as gene expression, gene silencing and epigenetic modulation most commonly appear in scientific literature, we are learning to ask new questions about the genesis of pathological conditions and personality traits. In the past, this was primarily to compare the components of genetic and environmental factors and to identify the genes involved. Today we must think in terms of timing or the exact moment when something happens.

One of the functions of the Database Primal Health Research is to try to identify the critical moments for gene-environmental interaction in terms of personality traits and states of health. A vision of the entire database suggests that on the genesis of metabolic traits, significant critical periods occur during fetal life, while the period around birth could be crucial to the ability to love and potential aggression . Thus, an exploration of the database, using keywords that indicate metabolic types (such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, or heart disease) are studies that detect risk factors especially during fetal life while keywords that are related to alterations in the ability to love (including self-love) are studies that detect risk factors particularly during the perinatal period. This is what happens with keywords such as criminality, autism, suicide, drug addiction and anorexia nervosa.

So we can assume that in societies where the potential development of aggression is crucial, is through perinatal beliefs and rituals cultural backgrounds can interact effectively, exactly the same way that all cultural backgrounds have interfered for thousands of years. Have amplified the difficulties of human birth, have challenged the aggressive-protective maternal instinct, separating the baby from the mother and have delayed the initiation of breastfeeding. (The aggressive-protective maternal instinct does not need a definition: one need only imagine the assault would be if someone tried to take the newborn to a mother chimpanzee).

It would take several volumes to review all the traditional ways in which it has interfered with the physiological processes during the perinatal period in different cultural settings. A review of all the beliefs and rituals more widespread, reveals, above all, the perineal scars that remain after the ritual genital mutilation, different aspects of the socialization of labor, the changing role of the midwife, beliefs regarding colostrum qualify as "bad" or the danger of eye contact between mother and newborn, rituals associated with the early cord cutting, authorization for which the mother has to wait before being able to touch your baby (approval that can be granted by the shaman, the godfather, the midwife or the father, for example). The cumulative effect of beliefs and rituals of this level of generalization, is a powerful cultural conditioning, resulting in a woman is incapable of giving birth without the help of assistants to the parties to work with their expertise and energy, and that the newborn requires an urgent care provided by a person other than the mother.

Del Homo Homo predator ecologicus

These considerations on the genesis of the main features of Homo predator assume paramount importance in a decisive moment in the history of mankind, when we realize that what is at stake is the health of the planet and the survival of our species. We are learning that the domination of nature has its limits. The need to create more unity in the global village is becoming more accepted. We must ask ourselves, how respect for Mother Earth, as aspect of love can develop. In other words, we understand that humanity has to invent radically new strategies for survival. This implies an evolution of Homo predator to a human being could be called Homo Ecologicus.

First we need to clarify concisely, what is the nature of this moment in the history of mankind. Even if, for thousands of years, has been an advantage for the survival of human groups to develop the potential of aggression, it is now essential to the survival of our species, we develop the capacity to love. Using as a reference to our closest relative, the common chimpanzee, we suggested that genetic factors may explain our potential for aggression. Similarly, using another of our close relatives, the bonobo (the bonobo, or pan paniscus, recently differentiated from the common chimpanzee), we can assume that our apparent ability to love also has a strong genetic basis: altruism and compassion that exists among the bonobos, are well documented and there is no evidence of lethal attacks, or among the wild population or in captivity, nor has any report forcing copulation males, adult females abusing or killing their young.

Is it utopian such a program?

In the current scientific context is theoretically possible to explore the concept of critical periods of development and evolution of Homo schedule a predator compatible with the survival of our species. First, scientific studies would be needed, from a physiological perspective on the basic needs of women in labor. Then we would have to digest this scientific data to get rid of a long history of beliefs and rituals, which are losing their evolutionary advantages and would have to abandon political correctness.

An important finding of the second half of the twentieth century, provides a telling example about the power of modern scientific disciplines can exercise to challenge aspects of deeply ingrained cultural conditioning. It was not until the 70s it was found that a newborn human baby needs her mother! As a student of medicine at a maternity unit in 1953, had never heard of a mother who asked to remain with her newborn baby in her arms, as if, at that time, everybody "knew" that a newborn baby need to routinely "care" provided by a third person. Suddenly, it was randomized controlled trials investigating the effects of skin contact immediately after birth. Such studies were inspired by the concept of a critical period for the mother-infant attachment, presented by ethologists investigating non-human mammals. At the same time there was a new generation of research on the behavioral effects of hormones that fluctuate in the perinatal period. Further studies were also conducted on the composition of early colostrum, the early manifestation of rooting and the ability of a newborn to find the chest during the hour of birth. From an immunological perspective, we learned that IgG (Immunoglobulin G) readily passes the human placenta, so that the microbes that are familiar to the mother also is familiar to the newborn germ-free. This led to the conclusion that, from a germ, germs that are transmitted from the mother, should ideally be the first to colonize the baby's body. Today we can say that during the twentieth century and thanks to the rapid development of various scientific disciplines, were discovered the basic needs of the newborn human.

Since it has been possible to make scientific discoveries of this magnitude on the basic needs of the newborn, we dare say that now would be unrealistic to a discovery on the basic needs of women in labor, despite facing similar difficulties. We expect in-depth studies, inspired by physiological concepts such as catecholamines, oxytocin antagonism neocortical inhibitions, open way for fruitful research. We await further studies on ways in which environmental factors influence the release of oxytocin, the "hormone shy."

It is anticipated that a difficult step will be digesting scientific knowledge and make them culturally acceptable. The obstacles are obvious in terms of the needs of the newborn. Cultural acceptance of the fact that a newborn baby needs his mother, has seen some practical implications: for example, made the concept of rooming-in became a familiar concept followed by the Kangaroo. Scientific data, however, were not readily accepted by the cultural environment. While scientists were focused on mother-infant interaction, the cultural environment interpreted the results saying that the newborn needed, immediately, to their parents. Suddenly he established the doctrine of father involvement in childbirth. It's like a mother-infant interaction without cultural interference is not acceptable. It is in this way that made the leap from one generation of people at birth, they had no idea what could be the mother-infant interaction, to another generation, accustomed to a new aspect of the socialization of labor and lacked knowledge about the way in which childbirth can elapse with no one around the woman in labor, in addition to an experienced midwife, mature, quiet and unobtrusive.

Such barriers probably delay a clear understanding of the basic needs of women in labor. The effect status of thousands of years of socialized delivery has been strengthened over the past two decades due to the accumulation of visual messages. There has been a veritable epidemic of videos of natural childbirth cases. The power of visual messages such enormous in terms of cultural conditioning. In most of these cases shows a woman in labor, surrounded by two or three people (including man), all looking at (besides, of course, the camera). These births are presented as "natural" because the scene takes place at home or because the mother is on all fours or because you are in a pool of labor. But the environment is unnatural. The message transmitted by these powerful images and vocabulary currently used is: "can not give birth without the participation of others who contribute their skills (coaching, management etc.) Or energy (support etc .). Can we overcome a cultural conditioning so strong?

An interaction between knowledge and awareness

In an age when scientific research is expanding at an unprecedented speed, all questions related to the survival of our species inspire questions about the human capacity to digest scientific knowledge. In other words, exploring the interaction between knowledge and consciousness is becoming more crucial than ever.

Scientific knowledge can induce and stimulate a new awareness. The discovery that a baby needs his mother is a typical example of scientific data form the basis of a new consciousness. Moreover, a new awareness can lead to scientific knowledge or to help assess the importance of scientific data. In addition, too much information provided by a highly specialized discipline can become an obstacle to a new consciousness. A good example is the large number of women obstetricians who, according to British and American studies, schedule a caesarean for the birth of their children and accept the operation as a routine way to give birth. Their position is understandable, since they are highly specialized professionals and have in mind only the results of numerous randomized controlled trials suggest, according to the criteria used routinely in medical research to assess the practice of obstetrics, which is an option cesarean easier and safer. Other women, who have not been influenced by the same type of information, have reached a more advanced level of consciousness and consider the abdominal as unacceptable as the first option. Consciousness can be induced by the intuitive knowledge ("knowledge") precedence over the effects that can lead the scientific data.

The importance of being bilingual

Worldwide there are core people that have a cutting-edge special ability to reach a new consciousness before the others. Your responsibility is to help through the initiation and dissemination of new consciousness. While trying to pass on only their intuitive knowledge, while only speak the language of the heart "- his effort is unsuccessful. To have influence should rationalize "gut feeling." They have to train yourself to be "bilingual," meaning they have to learn to combine the language of the heart "or the transmission of their intuitive knowledge with scientific language. Every time it becomes easier to combine these two languages.

To illustrate this need to be "bilingual" let's start with the example of those who accepted the c-section as the preferred way of having a baby. How can we help them achieve another level of consciousness? In the current scientific context it is easy to explain that to give birth to babies and illuminate the placenta, all mammals, including humans, mammals would have to release a "cocktail of love hormones." It is also easy to remember that, until recently, despite cultural interference, a woman could not have a baby without being dependent on the release of a hormone flow of this type. Without presenting sophisticated statistical data, we can easily make it clear that, at the planetary level, the number of women giving birth and illuminate the placenta through the release of a natural flow of hormones are approaching zero, since many of the which still give birth vaginally, pharmacological substitutes need impeding the release of natural hormones without sharing their behavioral effects. This is a simple way to explain that the history of labor is at a decisive moment, it's an easy way suggest that hormones of love are being useless in the critical period around birth, is a simple way to inspire questions in terms of civilization, is a simple way to clarify what must be to our goals. Our goals should not be the elimination of CS, which in fact is a wonderful rescue operation. Our objectives should be to create conditions so that as many women as possible can give birth to their babies and the placentas light thanks to the release of its own natural hormones. This is only realistically be the day that the basic needs of women in childbirth are well understood. All those who, no matter their background, they realize that the highly intelligent Homo predator is able to do useless to the hormones of love, wonder what will happen to our civilization after several generations follow the same path.

In fact, scientific language helps us to realize and rationalize the need for us to reach a collective dimension. For this we can use animals as a model. Among non-human mammals the consequences of interfering in the process are dramatic and immediate delivery from a single perspective: In general the mother shows no interest in your baby. Among humans are needed long-term studies, with huge amounts of subjects to detect a significant effect. This is illustrated by exploring the database Primal Health Research. For example, a study of the whole Swedish female population, born during a period of ten years was necessary to demonstrate that the forceps and vacuum deliveries were statistically significant risk factors for developing anorexia nervosa later in life; just as was necessary to include more than 50,000 male subjects born in Jerusalem, during a period of eight years, to show that the average performance intelligence were significantly higher in those born by forceps or vacuum extraction. Especially need this branch in the development phase, belonging to the epidemiology, called Primal Health Research, to train us to expand our horizons to the necessary transition to Homo ecologicus. Is it possible to modify a deliberate and conscious the dominant features of Homo predator through what would be an epigenetic modulation process? It will be possible to dream of such a fundamental step in the history of mankind!