Changing Lifestyles and Heart Health

Purpose

To examine and evaluate changes in diet and lifestyle from prehistoric to modern times and how these differences have spurred the development (and better treatment) of heart disease.


Context

This lesson is the second of a two-part series that explores different aspects of the human heart and the various changing conditions that have affected the health of billions of people from prehistoric to modern times.

This first lesson, Heart 1: Transplant, focuses on the state of medical care of the human heart today and on modern medical advances—such as heart transplants—that give today's human beings a better chance of staying healthy than their forebears had, as noted in the first part of the benchmark for this lesson. This second lesson, Heart 2: Changing Lifestyles and Health, examines the history of human diet and trends in care of the heart, comparing it with today's eating habits and lifestyles, many of which may not be good for human health.

Few students walk around in the hustle and bustle of modern life being fully aware of themselves as human organisms that are made up of a plethora of body parts and systems that require certain types and amounts of food and exercise to optimize and prolong their performance and life. However, by the end of elementary school, students should know that good health involves a healthy diet, regular exercise, and the avoidance or limitation of certain substances that negatively impact healthy body operation—like tobacco, alcohol, drugs, and pollution.

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