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Dental Health and the Transition to Agriculture in Prehistoric Ukraine: A Study of Dental Caries

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 January 2017

Jordan K. Karsten ,
Sarah E. Heins ,
Gwyn D. Madden  and
Mykhailo P. Sokhatskyi
Jordan K. Karsten*
Affiliation:
Department of Religious Studies and Anthropology, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, USA
Sarah E. Heins*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University at Albany, State University of New York, USA
Gwyn D. Madden*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, USA
Mykhailo P. Sokhatskyi*
Affiliation:
Borschiv Regional Museum, Ministry of Culture and Arts of Ukraine, Ukraine
*
Correspondence to: Jordan K. Karsten, Department of Anthropology, University at Albany, 1400 Washingto Ave, Albany, NY 12222. Email: karstenj@uwosh.edu [email: karstenj@uwosh.edu]
[email: sheins@albany.com]
[email: maddeng@gvsu.edu]
[email: sokhatskyi.m@gmail.com]
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Abstract

Bioarchaeological studies have found that, in general, the adoption of agriculture is associated with deteriorating oral health, most frequently manifested as an increase in the prevalence of dental caries. However, compared to other regions of the world, bioarchaeological studies focusing on prehistoric Europe have produced more variable results, with different populations experiencing deteriorations, improvements, and stasis in oral health. This study assesses the oral health of individuals of the Tripolye culture buried in Verteba Cave, Ukraine, within the context of the transition to agriculture in Eastern Europe. We compare the rates of dental caries between Tripolye farmers with earlier hunter-fisher-gatherers from Ukraine. The Tripolye were found to have carious lesions on 9.5 per cent of teeth, while the hunter-fisher-gatherers were found to be universally free of carious lesions. A Fisher's exact test demonstrates that this difference is statistically significant, supporting the model that the transition to agriculture was detrimental to oral health in prehistoric Ukraine. This could be related to the manner in which grain was processed by the Tripolye and the needs of their relatively population-dense society.

Des examens bioarchéologiques ont démontré qu'en général, l'adoption de l'agriculture va de pair avec une détérioration de la santé bucco-dentaire, qui se manifeste le plus souvent par une augmentation de la prévalence des caries dentaires. Toutefois, comparé à d'autres régions du monde, les études bioarchéologiques portant sur l'Europe préhistorique ont donné des résultats plus variables, avec différentes populations connaissant des détériorations, des améliorations et un status quo de la santé bucco-dentaire. Cette étude vise à évaluer la santé bucco-dentaire d'individus de la culture de Tripolye enterrés dans la grotte de Verteba en Ukraine, dans le contexte de la transition vers l'agriculture en Europe de l'est. Nous comparons les taux de caries dentaires des agriculteurs de Tripolye avec ceux de chasseurs-cueilleurs-pêcheurs ukrainiens plus anciens. Les gens de Tripolye présentaient des lésions carieuses sur 9,5% de leurs dents, tandis que les chasseurs-cueilleurs-pêcheurs n'avaient pas de lésions carieuses du tout. Un test exact de Fisher montre que cette différence est statistiquement relevante, supportant le modèle proclamant que la transition vers l'agriculture était défavorable pour la santé bucco-dentaire en Ukraine préhistorique. Ceci pourrait être lié à la manière selon laquelle les grains était traités par les gens de Tripolye ainsi qu'aux besoins de leur société à population relativement dense. Translation by Isabelle Gerges

Bioarchäologische Studien haben gezeigt, dass die Einführung der Landwirtschaft grundsätzlich mit einer Verschlechterung der Mundgesundheit, besonders deutlich erkennbar durch die Zunahme der Häufigkeit von Karieserkrankungen, einhergeht. Allerdings haben bioarchäologische Studien mit einem Fokus auf dem vorgeschichtlichen im Vergleich mit anderen Regionen der Welt variablere Resultate erzielt, die sich bei verschiedenen Populationen durch Verschlechterungen, Verbesserungen oder ein Gleichbleiben der Mundgesundheit widerspiegeln. Diese Untersuchung widmet sich der Mundhygiene von Individuen der Tripol'e-Kultur, die in der Verteba-Höhle (Ukraine) bestattet wurden, vor dem Hintergrund des Übergangs zur Landwirtschaft in Osteuropa. Die Zahnkaries-Frequenz von Tripol'e-Bauern wird mit der früherer Jäger und Sammler aus der Ukraine verglichen. Es zeigt sich, dass die Träger der Tripol'e-Kultur bei durchschnittlich 9,5% der Zähne Karies aufweisen, während die Jäger, Fischer und Sammler keinerlei Kariesläsionen besitzen. Ein Exakter Test nach Fisher (Fisher-Yates-Test) belegt, dass dieser Unterschied statistisch signifikant ist und unterstützt das Erklärungsmodell, dass der Übergang zur Landwirtschaft der Mundgesundheit der vorgeschichtlichen Ukraine diametral entgegenstand. Dies könnte an der Art und Weise, mit der das Getreide in der Tripol'e-Kultur verarbeitet wurde, sowie den Notwendigkeiten ihrer relativ bevölkerungsdichten Gesellschaft gelegen haben. Translation by Heiner Schwarzberg

Keywords

dental cariesUkraineTripolyeagriculturebioarchaeologycaries dentairesUkraineTripolyeagriculturebioarchéologieZahnkariesUkraineTripol'e-KulturLandwirtschaftBioarchäologie
Type
Articles
Information
European Journal of Archaeology , Volume 18 , Issue 4 , 2015 , pp. 562 - 579
Copyright
Copyright © 2015 the European Association of Archaeologists 

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