How do environmental mismatches contribute to atherosclerosis?

In the field of Darwinian medicine, environmental mismatches occur when there is a discrepancy between the environments in which humans evolved and the environments they occupy today. These mismatches are a primary evolutionary explanation for why the human body remains vulnerable to certain diseases, including atherosclerosis.1

While humans evolved under specific conditions, modern lifestyle changes—such as the adoption of sedentary behaviors and the consumption of diets high in sugar and processed foods—have created a mismatch with our ancestral biology. This shift contributes to the prevalence of risk factors like obesity and high blood pressure, which are strongly linked to the development of arterial disease. Essentially, the body’s physiological systems, shaped by natural selection for a different set of environmental pressures, struggle to adapt to the rapid changes in modern diet and activity levels, thereby facilitating the progression of atherosclerosis.123