6 traits you can thank Neanderthals for — from bad habits to bed times

Weird But True

By Tracy Swartz

Part of the club?

Research shows that many humans have Neanderthal DNA. People with European or Asian backgrounds have 1% to 2% and as much as 4% if they are from East Asia — thanks to human-Neanderthal interbreeding.

Because Neanderthals likely evolved outside of Africa, some African populations have almost no Neanderthal DNA.

Now, a genetic engineer is sharing the six physical traits and behaviors that have been linked to Neanderthal DNA — 40,000 years after they went extinct.

“Neanderthal DNA represents only a small percentage of the modern human genome, and these influences are just one piece of the genetic puzzle that makes each person unique,” Sebnem Unluisler, of the London Regenerative Institute, told the Daily Mail this week.

Here’s a look at the characteristics, from smoking to having straight, thick hair, being a morning person, and contracting a severe case of COVID-19.

Smoking

A 2016 study by Vanderbilt University researchers linked one length of Neanderthal DNA to a higher risk of nicotine addiction, which is surprising because tobacco didn’t become popular in Europe until the mid to late 16th century.

“The brain is incredibly complex, so it is reasonable to expect that introducing changes from a different evolutionary path might have negative consequences,” Corinne Simonti, a Vanderbilt doctoral student and the study’s first author, said at the time.

Having straight, thick hair

“Neanderthal DNA has been linked to variations in hair characteristics. Some people with Neanderthal ancestry may have slightly thicker or straighter hair,” Unluisler told the Daily Mail. “Studies have also shown a higher frequency of a genetic variant associated with red hair was present in Neanderthals.”

Being an early bird

A study published just last month found that Neanderthals in Eurasia experienced more seasonal variation than their relatives in Africa, which influenced their internal biological clock and increased their probability of waking earlier in the morning.

“At higher latitudes, it is beneficial to have a body clock that is better able to anticipate and change to match the changing seasonal light levels,” study coauthor Tony Capra, an associate professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco, told CNN in December.

“Having a ‘faster’ running clock facilitates this ability, and it makes individuals more likely to rise early,” he added.

Having a tall nose

A 2023 study from University College London found a gene inherited from Neanderthals leads to a taller nose from top to bottom.

“It has long been speculated that the shape of our noses is determined by natural selection; as our noses can help us to regulate the temperature and humidity of the air we breathe in, different shaped noses may be better suited to different climates that our ancestors lived in,” first study author Dr. Qing Li, of Fudan University, said at the time.

“The gene we have identified here may have been inherited from Neanderthals to help humans adapt to colder climates as our ancestors moved out of Africa,” Li continued.

Developing a severe case of COVID-19

Researchers have found that mutations in a segment on chromosome 3, the third largest of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in humans, may predispose people to developing a more severe case of COVID-19.

The genomic segment is inherited from Neanderthals.

Struggling to tan

Scientists with the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany in 2017 identified Neanderthal alleles — variant forms of genes — that contribute to hair and skin tones.

“Individuals with Neanderthal ancestry might tend towards lighter or darker skin tones, with some having alleles associated with lighter skin tones that may have provided increased resistance to UV light in regions with lower sunlight intensity,” Unluisler explained to the Daily Mail.