Bad news for brawny menJune 08, 2009
Diana ZlomislicStaff Reporter
Being extremely muscular may actually hamper the immune system.Just in time for beach season, a new study points out the evolutionary pitfalls of being too buff.
While muscular men have more sex than their less-lean brethren, all that testosterone is wreaking havoc on their immune systems – reducing white blood cell counts and their odds of beating infections.
"Generally, as muscle mass increases, the measures of immune functions decrease," says William Lassek of the University of Pittsburgh, who analyzed data from more than 5,000 American men, aged 18 to 29.
Brawnier men also consumed upwards of 50 per cent more calories than women.
"If food was in short supply, it would be a very serious constraint," Lassek says.
That may explain why men have to work hard to get ripped. Evolution would rather us not go there.
"Our male ancestors who had a tendency to be very muscular got eliminated from the gene pool as time went on," Lassek explains.
"In hunter-gatherer groups ... sometimes, very dominant men are even killed."
While research shows castrated males have longer lifespans and lower infection rates than intact males in a variety of animals, the evolutionary psychologist is not suggesting we go there either.
The moral of this study? Score one for the skinny guy. You can't have your beefcake and eat it, too.
