Evolutionary Anthropology Society

Oral Presentation Session

Kinship Predicts Inflammation Among the Mosuo of Southwest China

Presenter(s)

• AR

  Adam Reynolds

  Ph.D. Student
  University of New Mexico, Department of Anthropology

Co-Author(s)

siobhán Mattison (University of New Mexico)
Melissa Emery Thompson (University of New Mexico)
Paul Hooper (University of New Mexico)
Kathrine Starkweather (University of New Mexico)
Chun-Yi Sum (University of Rochester)
Hui Li (Fudan University)
Mingjie Su (Fudan University)
Tami Blumenfield (University of New Mexico)
Mary Shenk (Pennsylvania State University)
Katherine Wander (Binghamton University (SUNY))

Kinship systems are the foundation of human social life. It is well-established that members of the inheriting gender in matrilineal and patrilineal societies enjoy increased autonomy, resource access, and social support. However, it remains unknown whether these gender disparities in kinship are also associated with long-term health and disease risk. Here we use blood-spot C-reactive protein (CRP) data from matrilineal and patrilineal groups of Mosuo, a small-scale agricultural society in Southwest China, to show that (i) while women experience higher rates of elevated CRP than men in patriliny, (ii) this gender disparity is reversed in matriliny, where men face higher rates of elevated CRP than women. Chronic inflammation and disease risk thus depend not only on gender, but also on the kinship system in which one is embedded. This work contributes to a nascent body of biocultural research showing that culture matters to physiological function, long-term health, and disease risk.