They may have been wiped out 40,000 years ago, but cavemen left a lasting mark on us – ill health.
When Neanderthals bashed early human women over the head and dragged them off for sex, they also passed on bad genes linked to addictions, obesity and depressed, scientists have claimed.
So, if you’re overweight, a smoker, suffered a heart attack or stroke, chances are cavemen could be to blame.
Until now, experts had never fully understood the impact of the interbreeding. But it appears to have had a “significant” impact on our current biology.
It comes after US researchers became the first in the world to directly compare the DNA of people with Neanderthals.
Lead researcher Dr John Capra, of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, said: “Our main finding is that Neanderthal DNA does influence clinical traits in modern humans. We discovered associations with a range of traits, including immunological, dermatological, neurological, psychiatric and reproductive diseases.”
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One of those traits boosts your chances of being addicted to nicotine, it is claimed. Others influence the risk of depression, cardiac problems, blood clots on the lungs, and complications in pregnancy, according to the study of 28,000 people.
Vanderbilt student Corinne Simonte said: “The brain is incredibly complex, so it’s reasonable to expect that introducing changes from a different evolutionary path might have negative consequences.”
The experts presented their findings at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington DC. They were published in journal Science
Early modern humans are believed to have interbred with Neanderthals 60,000 years ago. Around 20,000 years later, the ancient cavemen were extinct.