Today we know that humans belong to primates. For example, if you look at a chimpanzee that has lost its hair for some reason, you will see that it actually looks a lot like a human.
However, there are several physical differences between us and other primates. One of the most important is the fact that we humans do not have fur. Instead, we have fine hair virtually all over our bodies and pubic hair in our pubic and axillary regions. But since nature does nothing by chance, what did we lose our hair for?
The answer has to do with our changing lifestyle. By the time we separated from other primates, forests were lost. Savannahs took their place. So suddenly we had to cope with living in a completely new environment, different from and totally unadapted to our relatives. And that is what made us different from other primates.
We no longer had to climb trees efficiently, but instead had to quickly detect potential dangers through tall grass. The result is today\’s upright posture. We also had to adopt other methods to procure food. This became foraging and later hunting. And this led to other changes.
One of these is the loss of hair as mentioned above. This actually allows the body to cool itself more efficiently by sweating, which is much more efficient in humans than in horses, for example. As a result, we are much stronger runners, capable of taking down almost any prey. We had no trouble following in the footsteps of our prey. And sooner or later, the prey got tired and had to rest. In other words, they often caught up with their prey when it was weak, and as a result, it was much easier to catch it.
When you think about it, this is not just a matter of looking good, but an evolutionary adaptation that allowed our species to achieve true success. And it was so important that we still have it today, even though the majority of us no longer need it at all.
