The Body Keeps the Score is bullshit, but this Substack is even more bullshit. The author criticizes Bessel van der Kolk for failing to prove causation, and then writes this gibberish:
"In the textbook Evolutionary Psychology, the authors explain that a particular hunter gatherer population isn’t as susceptible to PTSD despite being exposed to similarly tragic events. They argue that part of the physiological changes that come along with PTSD are increased inflammation in the body. Thus, the inflammatory nature of a standard western diet may make some people more susceptible to PTSD."
"A 2020 study on Turkana warriors in Kenya found them to be much less likely to develop PTSD-related symptoms compared to US combat vets despite also experiencing gruesome acts in a war zone."
He's relaying what the textbook he cited claimed. You'll have to check the textbook for their sources. Getting into the weeds about different theories for why various hunter-gatherer societies have lower rates of PTSD is rather off-topic for this blog post. They're just trying to raise a few counter-examples to trauma causing this dysfunction and suggest that unhealthy people or people with abnormal brain scans may be more susceptible to trauma. This would invalidate many of the arguments in The Body Keeps the Score.
Raising counter-examples shouldn't mean throwing shit at the wall to see what sticks, and the author's point could easily have been made without repeating an extraordinary claim he fails to provide evidence for. If The Body Keeps the Score had arguments as poorly sourced as "this textbook said that PTSD co-occurs with inflammation, so Western diets could cause inflammation which could cause PTSD", the author of the Substack would rightfully criticize it as unsubstantiated bullshit. His own article should be held to the same standards.
There is nothing funnier about HN than the constant insistence that "The mainstream media is bad and lying to you" while voting random Substack and Medium writers with zero experience or training or authority to the front page.
That goes together nicely with everyone on HN insisting that HN commenters are "special" and "different" from people on the rest of the internet. I guess because we are more likely to like the color orange?
Most people insist they are above average drivers.
It's completely sensible for most people to believe they are above average drivers, and all be correct. This is because there isn't a single objective measurement for "good at driving."
Imagine that 50% of people are cautious drivers, and 50% are fast drivers. The cautious drivers think being cautious is more important than being fast, so they all believe they are above average. The fast drivers, vice versa. Everyone thinks they're above average, and they are by their own standards, no delusion required.
"In the textbook Evolutionary Psychology, the authors explain that a particular hunter gatherer population isn’t as susceptible to PTSD despite being exposed to similarly tragic events. They argue that part of the physiological changes that come along with PTSD are increased inflammation in the body. Thus, the inflammatory nature of a standard western diet may make some people more susceptible to PTSD."
"A 2020 study on Turkana warriors in Kenya found them to be much less likely to develop PTSD-related symptoms compared to US combat vets despite also experiencing gruesome acts in a war zone."
Where is the proof that diet causes PTSD?