What Uncontacted Tribes Know About Genetics That Modern Science Is Just Catching Up To

They survive without doctors or data, but their genetic wisdom could redefine what progress means.

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We are accustomed to looking at progress with the aid of gadgets, tall buildings, and an understanding of gene sequencing. We assess development by how proximity a society is to Silicon Valley (or any high-tech capital) or a hospital.

It is no surprise then that when we observe uncontacted tribes, those living without medicine, electricity, or rudimentary contact with the outside world, we presume them to be on the brink of extinction. Especially genetically speaking. How can a tribe of a couple hundred people somehow exist without degeneration from inbreeding?

This question loomed over me for a long time, and the more I began to explore, the more my perception unravelled. What I presumed was an altogether backward isolation was in reality something incredibly sophisticated.

Not only are these tribes surviving, but they are also thriving with favoured genetic health and cultural resilience that much of the ‘developed’ world has lost.

And observing the same patterns in people’s lives around me, including the lives of people in tribal…