Any classification of biological races within our species is arbitrary because there are no major discontinuities in our diversity across the globe.

Genetic analysis strongly suggests that early humans first arose in Africa and emerged out of Africa only ~100,000 years ago, a fairly recent development, evolutionarily speaking, which explains why we are all closely related. Any classification of biological races within our species is arbitrary because there are no major discontinuities in our diversity across the globe. Importantly, genetic data show that currently populous groups are not necessarily reflected by their past abundance, and human history is one of repeated admixture, not maintenance of purity. It is this genetic admixture that has left an imprint on every human disease with a genetic component, including common chronic ones. Thus, it is quite unlikely that the genetic variations underlying our diseases, which represent only a small fraction of our genetic diversity, will vary markedly across humanity.

Aravinda Chakravarti, “Racial profiling in medicine,” Nature Medicine, Volume 19, Number 7 (July 2013), 808. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nm.3254

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