History of grooming

The lost instinct

Somewhere between fifty and a hundred million years ago, the first primate had developed flat nails instead of claws.
Since then, primates spend considerable time grooming.
We thought it consisted of parasite removal and the kind of duties we do in front of a mirror. This is only partly true.
I have found out, by doing it myself, that the bulk of their grooming activities is aimed at unfolding their skin.
Now, this task is complicated and they do the best they can.
Grooming is one of life’s necessities for primates, like eating, drinking or sleeping. It’s just that the punishment for not doing it comes at a slower pace.
As far as I know, humans are the only primate species that does not groom and this leads me to conclude that we have stopped grooming at some point in our evolution.
Well, this was one of the worst decisions our race has ever taken.
We probably thought it was too animal-like.
We pay for it through pain and aging.