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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science pp 1–5Cite as

Duration of Breast Feeding in Ancestral Environments

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Synonyms

Age of weaning in human evolutionary history; Evolved infant feeding behaviors in humans; Nursing duration in human evolution;

Introduction

Contemporary studies reveal widespread global variation in breastfeeding patterns, providing a fascinating example of human behavioral flexibility (Sellen 2009). However, human infant behavior and physiology evolved under environmental conditions that differ notably from those in which most humans live today. Current evidence places the origin of Homo sapiens at ~200,000 years ago (Conroy and Pontzer 2012). Ancestral Homo sapiens were hunter-gatherers for most of the species’ existence until agriculture, urbanization, and industrialization emerged-all within the past ~11,000 years (Ellis et al. 2013). Under ancestral conditions of hunting, gathering, and high infant mortality, infant survival depended on the immunological, hormonal, and nutritional factors in maternal breastmilk (Hinde and Milligan 2011; Volk 2009).

Prolonged breastfeeding...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA

    Amanda Veile & Valerie Miller

Authors
  1. Amanda Veile
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  2. Valerie Miller
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Correspondence to Amanda Veile .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, MI, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  2. Rochester, MI, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Nipissing University, North Bay, ON, Canada

    Steven Arnocky

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Veile, A., Miller, V. (2019). Duration of Breast Feeding in Ancestral Environments. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_818-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_818-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

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