Herman Pontzer
Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology and Global Health
Appointment:
Herman Pontzer
Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology and Global Health
How did the human body evolve, and how does our species’ deep past shape our health and physiology today? Through lab and field research, Dr. Pontzer investigates the physiology of humans and other primates to understand how ecology, lifestyle, diet, and evolutionary history affect metabolism and health. He is particularly interested in cardiometabolic disease and the lifestyle factors that protect against obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and other noncommunicable diseases that are common among industrialized populations but rare or absent in non-industrialized societies.
Dr. Pontzer’s field projects seek to understand how diet, activity and other ecological factors influence the physiology and health of people in small-scale societies, including hunter-gatherers and subsistence farmers in east Africa and South America. Back at Duke, his lab research focuses on energetics and metabolism, including respirometry and doubly labeled water methods.
Publications
-
Baker L, Jacobson H, McGrosky A, Hinz E, Wambua F, Sherwood A, et al. Ambient temperature and wet bulb globe temperature outperform heat index in predicting hydration status and heat perception in a semi-arid environment. Annals of human biology. 2025 Dec;52(1):2456152.Bajunaid R, Niu C, Hambly C, Liu Z, Yamada Y, Aleman-Mateo H, et al. Author Correction: Predictive equation derived from 6,497 doubly labelled water measurements enables the detection of erroneous self-reported energy intake. Nat Food. 2025 May;6(5):523–4.Jesus F, Costello NB, Kondo E, Francisco R, Nunes CL, Matu J, et al. Isotope Dilution for Measuring Total Energy Expenditure, Water Turnover, and Total Body Water in Athletes: A Systematic Review. International journal of sport nutrition and exercise metabolism. 2025 May;1–20.Pontzer H. The energetics of movement, from exercise to ecology and evolution. The Journal of experimental biology. 2025 Feb;228(Suppl_1):JEB247988.
See more publications at Scholars@Duke