Herman Pontzer, Associate Professor

How did the human body evolve, and how does our species' deep past shape our health and physiology today? Through lab and field research, I investigate the physiology of humans and apes to understand how ecology, lifestyle, diet, and evolutionary history affect metabolism and health. I'm also interested in how ecology and evolution influence musculoskeletal design and physical activity. Field projects focus on small-scale societies, including hunter-gatherers and subsistence farmers, in Africa and South America. Lab research focuses on energetics and metabolism, including respirometry and doubly labeled water methods.

Contact Info:

Office Location:
Office Phone:	(919) 684-4124
Email Address:

Education:

Ph.D.

Harvard University

2006

Keywords:

Exercise • Human evolution • Locomotion • Metabolism • Obesity • Public Health

Recent Publications   (More Publications)   (search)

1. Swanson, ZS; Nzunza, R; Bethancourt, HJ; Saunders, J; Mutindwa, F; Ndiema, E; Braun, DR; Rosinger, AY; Pontzer, H, Early childhood growth in Daasanach pastoralists of Northern Kenya: Distinct patterns of faltering in linear growth and weight gain., American Journal of Human Biology : the Official Journal of the Human Biology Council (December, 2022), pp. e23842 [doi]  [abs]
2. Pontzer, H, Exercise is essential for health but a poor tool for weight loss: a reply to Allison and colleagues., International Journal of Obesity (2005) (December, 2022) [doi]
3. Yamada, Y; Zhang, X; Henderson, MET; Sagayama, H; Pontzer, H; Watanabe, D; Yoshida, T; Kimura, M; Ainslie, PN; Andersen, LF; Anderson, LJ; Arab, L; Baddou, I; Bedu-Addo, K; Blaak, EE; Blanc, S; Bonomi, AG; Bouten, CVC; Bovet, P; Buchowski, MS; Butte, NF; Camps, SG; Close, GL; Cooper, JA; Cooper, R; Das, SK; Dugas, LR; Eaton, S; Ekelund, U; Entringer, S; Forrester, T; Fudge, BW; Goris, AH; Gurven, M; Halsey, LG; Hambly, C; El Hamdouchi, A; Hoos, MB; Hu, S; Joonas, N; Joosen, AM; Katzmarzyk, P; Kempen, KP; Kraus, WE; Kriengsinyos, W; Kushner, RF; Lambert, EV; Leonard, WR; Lessan, N; Martin, CK; Medin, AC; Meijer, EP; Morehen, JC; Morton, JP; Neuhouser, ML; Nicklas, TA; Ojiambo, RM; Pietiläinen, KH; Pitsiladis, YP; Plange-Rhule, J; Plasqui, G; Prentice, RL; Rabinovich, RA; Racette, SB; Raichlen, DA; Ravussin, E; Redman, LM; Reilly, JJ; Reynolds, RM; Roberts, SB; Schuit, AJ; Sardinha, LB; Silva, AM; Sjödin, AM; Stice, E; Urlacher, SS; Valenti, G; Van Etten, LM; Van Mil, EA; Wells, JCK; Wilson, G; Wood, BM; Yanovski, JA; Murphy-Alford, AJ; Loechl, CU; Luke, AH; Rood, J; Westerterp, KR; Wong, WW; Miyachi, M; Schoeller, DA; Speakman, JR; International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Doubly Labeled Water (DLW) Database Consortium§,, Variation in human water turnover associated with environmental and lifestyle factors., Science, vol. 378 no. 6622 (November, 2022), pp. 909-915 [doi]  [abs]
4. Hora, M; Pontzer, H; Struška, M; Entin, P; Sládek, V, Comparing walking and running in persistence hunting., Journal of Human Evolution, vol. 172 (November, 2022), pp. 103247 [doi]  [abs]
5. Rimbach, R; Butler, G; Gupte, PR; Jäger, J; Parker, C; Pontzer, H, Gray squirrels consume anthropogenic food waste most often during winter., Mammalian Biology (November, 2022), pp. 1-13 [doi]  [abs]