Theory of Evolution - Page 9

Originally posted by: QuietlyLoud

Cosmetic surgery is just like any other surgery,nothing to do with genetics.Even the gender changing surgeries just alters the appearance .A transgender person after being changed to either of sexes will retain the same set of sex chromosomes.Good features means having a good set of genes.So when you alter you alter your appearance,you are deceiving some one into thinking that you have a nice set of genes.but again,Inheritance of most physical traits like skin colour,facial features,height etc are complex involving multiple genes for a single trait.So contribution of a single such trait is not strong enough to change the course of evolution.

I don't know much about the effect of birth control pills. They just change the hormone levels and their side effects are usually limited to the person using them and not passed on the progeny,I think.

Mutations on the other hand have much greater consequences and are inheritable.Some medicines, chemicals,use of nuclear weapons and continuous exposure to ionizing radiations like x-rays(btw do you know you're exposed to mild ionizing radiations on airplane flights?😉I came to know that recently )can cause mutations.Children with genetic anomalies are still being born even after generations due to use of DDT in kasargod,kerala.

I think gene therapy can have a significant effect on evolution if widely practiced.

Originally posted by: QuietlyLoud

^^ Alrighty I'll try to explain ..I'm not sure whether any of this makes any sense, though 😆

I was talking about evolution on a large scale you know like the ones resulting in the evolution of a new species and also considering the fact that the number of people resorting to such cosmetic surgeries are still a minority comparing to the whole human population.

Considering the matter from that POV ,The effect of deception will be evident only in a few generations because not a single physical trait is pure or homozygous .Each trait undergoes different degrees of genetic combinations and such variations are accumulated over generations. Let's take hair color in humans for example.(Speaking of that dyeing your hair also have the same effect as cosmetic surgeries..Say you have brown hair but you dyed it black.Now everyone is going to think you have dominant genes for black hair not for brown) Now coming to the example..Father has brown hair and mother is blonde and it's possible for them to have a child with red hair.This is because both mother and father have inactive genes they got from their ancestors for other hair colors apart from their own.The same goes for a physical trait masked by a cosmetic surgery.Likewise for all physical traits like facial features,height etc each trait is influenced by a collection of genes passed on to us from our ancestors since the time memorial.So the possibility of accumulation of undesirable genes masked by cosmetic surgeries and their effect to change the course of evolution are quite negligible unless practiced by the whole mankind.

Originally posted by: return_to_hades

I have not seen that to be the case. Most women I know here are on birth control. I haven't seen weight gain. It is a side effect, but in few instances.

Thirteen is still a young age to have sexual relations. Sex itself can have a negative impact on a female's reproductive system.

IUGR is not caused by birth control or hormones.
http://www.webmd.com/baby/iugr-intrauterine-growth-restriction

Majority of IUGR cases in India tends to be malnutrion or undiagnosed preexisting conditions.

IUGR is also not hereditary. To produce a healthy child all you need to do is get a good doctor. Assess your health before pregnancy. Make sure you are taking appropriate medication if you have diabetes, anemia or heart disease. Follow a balanced nutritional diet as recommended by doctors. Take folic acid and supplements as recommended by doctors. Barring rare genetic disorders your husbands weakness or strength does not impact the health of your child.

Birth control pills are almost the norm in the west. They are as common as cough drops. There has been no traceable health impact on the children.



A good doctor should be able to tell you the known side affects of medicines and educate you to minimize negative impact on future children. We actually are privileged to have many facilities to ensure healthy children that our ancestors did not.

Originally posted by: Angel-likeDevil

No, RTH, I wanted to know the impact of medical usage by a woman/man on their unborn children. That was an example of how excessive drug dosage had affected my mum, and how I was affected too.. because she was weak. There's no question of malnutrition on maternal side, papa was maybe a little malnourished.

Plus, I had experienced it in my small life-time - once I was operated for something small as appendicitis, and was hospitalised as it got complicated, my whole health had been seeing a downfall since then... Anyway, nvm, it could be a combination of various factors :)

Originally posted by: Quixotic5

Originally posted by: return_to_hades

Birth control pills are a daily pill taken in 28 day cycles. 5 of those are actual hormones. Rest are actually placebos. There is really no way you can take "excessive" birth control.

That being said I think there may have been some birth control pills of the past that didn't have proper testing and did impact patients and their offspring. Also India is notorious about poor quality control in drug manufacture. So yes it is likely that your grandmother or mother suffered from bad dosage or quality of their birth control pills.

However, modern day birth control is safe with minimal side effects. Literally millions of women around the world use it and don't have any side affects.

Yes, many medicines do have side affects on the patient and/or offspring. Simple cough, cold, flu or fever medicines have very safe and low impact chemical compositions. But you need to be careful when you take any other prescription medicine. Prescription drugs should be a last resort when diet, exercise and lifestyle is insufficient to manage a health problem. Don't trust any doctor blindly. Always take a second opinion to determine necessity of a drug. Strictly follow the prescribed dosage. Monitor and report any unusual changes you experience physically or emotionally.

That being said IUGR is not related to use of pharmaceuticals.
http://www.webmd.com/baby/iugr-intrauterine-growth-restriction