Fleming A F
Department of Haematology, School of Pathology of the South African Institute for Medical Research, Johannesburg.
Br J Biomed Sci. 1994 Dec;51(4):345-57.
Man evolved as a hunter-gatherer, and the invention and spread of agriculture was followed by changes in diet, the environment and population densities which have resulted in globally high prevalences of anaemias due to nutritional deficiencies of iron, folate and (locally) vitamin B12, to infestations by hookworm and schistosomes, to malaria, and to the natural selection for the genes for sickle-cell diseases, beta-thalassaemias, alpha-thalassaemias, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency, ovalocytosis and possibly (locally) elliptocytosis. The present explosion of population is driving an expansion of agriculture, especially the cultivation of rice, and this has led often to disastrous increases of transmission of malaria, schistosomiasis and other diseases, to widespread chemical pollution, and to degradation of the environment. Anaemia, as the commonest manifestation of human disease, is a frequent consequence. The urgent need for increased food production is matched by the urgent need for assessment and control of the health impact of agricultural development.
人类进化为狩猎采集者，随着农业的发明和传播，饮食、环境和人口密度发生了变化，导致全球范围内因铁、叶酸和（局部）维生素B12营养缺乏、钩虫和血吸虫感染、疟疾以及镰状细胞病、β地中海贫血、α地中海贫血、葡萄糖-6-磷酸脱氢酶缺乏症、椭圆形红细胞增多症以及可能（局部）的椭圆细胞增多症基因的自然选择而导致贫血患病率居高不下。目前的人口爆炸正在推动农业扩张，尤其是水稻种植，这常常导致疟疾、血吸虫病和其他疾病传播的灾难性增加、广泛的化学污染以及环境退化。贫血作为人类疾病最常见的表现，是一个常见的后果。对增加粮食产量的迫切需求与评估和控制农业发展对健康影响的迫切需求相匹配。
