3. Why do we have grandmas?
Ella Al Shamahi with fellow anthropologist Emily Emmott and midwife and grandma Sheena Byrom discover why we have grandmothers and is it all down to the menopause?
Grandmothers are a bit of a mystery, biologically speaking. If the biological purpose of life is to survive and have children, why are they so important even once they've stopped being able to reproduce?
Of course, as we all know, grandma's are the rock of most families, and it turns out, biologically also incredibly useful. Grandmothers are a logical necessity, your mother and father also had mothers so that equals two grandmas for you.
But the evolutionary role they play in many of our lives has been less easily explained until now. Why are they so helpful? Why do they stop having children of their own? Why do we have grandmothers?!
Ella speaks to anthropologist Dr Emily Emmott, and midwife, educator and grandmother Sheena Byrom OBE
麻豆官网首页入口 Studios Audio Production
Producer Emily Bird
Additional production Olivia Jani
Series Producer Geraldine Fitzgerald
Executive Producer Alexandra Feachem
Last on
Broadcasts
- Fri 7 Feb 2025 14:45麻豆官网首页入口 Radio 4
- Sat 8 Feb 2025 05:45麻豆官网首页入口 Radio 4
Podcast
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Why Do We Do That?
Ella Al-Shamahi investigates the origins of everyday human habits and behaviour.