Networks in Auxology – proceedings of the 31st Aschauer Soiree, held at Aschau, Germany, June 17th 2023

Authors

  • Michael Hermanussen Aschauhof 3 24340 Eckernförde - Altenhof https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4037-1597
  • Christiane Scheffler University of Potsdam, Human Biology, Potsdam, Germany https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1954-7578
  • Melanie Dammhahn Behavioural Biology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
  • Detlef Groth University of Potsdam, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, Potsdam, Germany
  • Cédric Moris University of Potsdam, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, Potsdam, Germany
  • Tim Hake University of Potsdam, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, Potsdam, Germany
  • Barry Bogin School of Sport, Exercise & Health Sciences, Loughborough University, UK
  • Piotr Fedurek Department of Anthropology, Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
  • Jesper Boldsen ADBOU, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
  • Takashi Satake Institute of Human Culture Studies, Otsuma Women’s University, Tokyo , Japan
  • Stef van Buuren Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research TNO, Leiden, The Netherlands
  • Jani Söderhäll PC PAL, Bièvres, France
  • Chris Jefferies PC PAL, Bièvres, France
  • Yehuda Limony Clalit Health Services Tel Aviv IL; Pediatric Endocrinology & Diabetes Unit, Soroka University Medical Center, Beer-Sheva, Israel
  • Jovanna Dahlgren Paediatric Endocrinology, University of Gothenburg and Queen Silvia Children´s Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden
  • Julia Quitmann Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW Hamburg), Faculty of Business and Social Sciences, Germany
  • Ingo Scheffler University of Potsdam, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, Adaptive Genomic, Potsdam, Germany
  • Nino Nazirishvili Ilia State University, Tbilisi, Georgia
  • Ekaterine Kvaratskhelia Ilia State University, Tbilisi, Georgia
  • Annamaria Zsakai Sport Sciences and Diagnostic Research Centre, Hungarian Handball Federation, Budapest, Hungary
  • Martin Musalek aculty of Physical Education and Sport. Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
  • Basak Koca Özer Ankara University, Faculty of Languages, History and Geography, Dept. of Anthropology, Ankara, Turkey
  • Cansev Meşe Yavuz Van Yüzüncü Yıl University, Faculty of Letters, Dept. of Anthropology, Van, Turkey
  • Janina Tutkuviene Department of Anatomy, Histology and Anthropology, Institute of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, Vilnius, Lithuania
  • Laura Kasperiunaite Department of Anatomy, Histology and Anthropology, Institute of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, Vilnius, Lithuania
  • Simona Gervickaite Department of Anatomy, Histology and Anthropology, Institute of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, Vilnius, Lithuania
  • Sylvia Kirchengast Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
  • Slawomir Koziel Department of Anthropology, Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
  • Aleksandra Gomula Department of Anthropology, Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
  • Zbyszek Czapla Institute of Human Biology and Evolution. Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
  • Antonia Rösler University of Potsdam, Human Biology, Potsdam, Germany
  • Leslie Lieberman University of Central Florida, USA
  • Stephen Lieberman University of Southern California, USA
  • Martin Brüne LWL-Universitätsklinikum Bochum, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Forschungsabteilung für Soziale Neuropsychiatrie und Evolutionäre Medizin, Bochum, Germany

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.52905/hbph2023.2.75

Keywords:

Social hierarchies, strategic growth adjustment, Monte Carlo analysis, life history strategy, adherence and quality of life

Abstract

Twenty-seven scientists met for the annual Auxological conference held at Aschau, Germany, to particularly discuss the interaction between social factors and human growth, and to highlight several topics of general interest to the regulation of human growth. Humans are social mammals. Humans show and share personal interests and needs, and are able to strategically adjust size according to social position, with love and hope being prime factors in the regulation of growth. In contrast to Western societies, where body size has been shown to be an important predictor of socioeconomic status, egalitarian societies without formalized hierarchy and material wealth-dependent social status do not appear to similarly integrate body size and social network. Social network structures can be modeled by Monte Carlo simulation. Modeling dominance hierarchies suggests that winner-loser effects play a pivotal role in robust self-organization that transcends the specifics of the individual. Further improvements of the St. Nicolas House analysis using re-sampling/bootstrap techniques yielded encouraging results for exploring dense networks of interacting variables. Customized pediatric growth references, and approaches towards a Digital Rare Disease Growth Chart Library were presented. First attempts with a mobile phone application were presented to investigate the associations between maternal pre-pregnancy overweight, gestational weight gain, and the child’s future motor development. Clinical contributions included growth patterns of individuals with Silver-Russell syndrome, and treatment burden in children with growth hormone deficiency. Contributions on sports highlighted the fallacy inherent in disregarding the biological maturation status when interpreting physical performance outcomes. The meeting explored the complex influence of nutrition and lifestyle on menarcheal age of Lithuanian girls and emphasized regional trends in height of Austrian recruits. Examples of the psychosocial stress caused by the forced migration of modern Kyrgyz children and Polish children after World War II were presented, as well as the effects of nutritional stress during and after World War I. The session concluded with a discussion of recent trends in gun violence affecting children and adolescents in the United States, and aspects of life history theory using the example of "Borderline Personality Disorder." The features of this disorder are consistent with the notion that it reflects a "fast" life history strategy, with higher levels of allostatic load, higher levels of aggression, and greater exposure to both childhood adversity and chronic stress. The results were discussed in light of evolutionary guided research. In all contributions presented here, written informed consent was obtained from all participants in accordance with institutional Human investigation committee guidelines in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki amended October 2013, after information about the procedures used.

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Published

2023-12-22

How to Cite

Hermanussen, M., Scheffler, C., Dammhahn, M., Groth, D., Moris, C., Hake, T., … Brüne, M. (2023). Networks in Auxology – proceedings of the 31st Aschauer Soiree, held at Aschau, Germany, June 17th 2023. Human Biology and Public Health, 2. https://doi.org/10.52905/hbph2023.2.75

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Vol. 2 (2023)

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Proceedings and Workshops

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Copyright (c) 2023 Michael Hermanussen, Christiane Scheffler

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