Like all other life forms, humans are the product of evolutionary processes. Exploring the constraints and trade-offs involved in the evolutionary transition to humans is crucial for understanding human health and disease. A combination of human-specific traits allowed our species to colonize every ecosystem and produce cumulative culture. Medicine and healing arts are an important part of human culture and these aim to prevent or cure many distinctly human diseases. Many of these are caused by a mismatch between ancient adaptations and radically changed environments. The profound changes in human life history, including prolonged childhood, delayed neuronal maturation, long post-reproductive survival, and increased longevity, have countless consequences for health and well-being of modern societies. The video of this presentation is available here.