Is this why we outlived Neanderthals? Human children had prolonged support from their parents - while Neanderthal kids w

[Judi Lynn]

Is this why we outlived Neanderthals? Human children had prolonged support from their parents - while Neanderthal kids were left to fend for themselves, study claims

A study of teeth indicates humans provided prolonged childcare to offspring

This could also be one of the reasons why Neanderthals eventually went extinct

By XANTHA LEATHAM DEPUTY SCIENCE EDITOR FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 11:00 EDT, 23 May 2024 | UPDATED: 11:00 EDT, 23 May 2024

We once lived among Neanderthals but around 40,000 years ago, they disappeared.

Reasons for their demise vary, but experts have suggested interbreeding, climate change and violent clashes with humans may be to blame.

Now a new study of teeth indicates that humans provided prolonged childcare to their offspring, while young Neanderthals may have gained earlier independence.

The team, from the University of Tubingen in Germany, suggest that these findings could reflect differences in childcare and other behavioural strategies between the two species.

They analysed the dental enamel of 423 Neanderthal teeth and 444 Upper Palaeolithic human teeth.

Horizontal grooves of thinner enamel in the teeth indicated early-life stress, which previous research has demonstrated can be linked to childhood stressors such as illness, infections, malnutrition, nutritional deficiencies and trauma.

More:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-13451939/Neanderthals-Human-children-prolonged-support.html