Disposable soma theory
DEDisposable-Soma-Theorie
The disposable soma theory, proposed by Thomas Kirkwood in 1977, posits that organisms allocate finite metabolic resources between somatic maintenance and reproduction. Because natural selection favors reproductive success, the body invests only enough in repair to survive likely environmental hazards, leaving residual damage that accumulates as aging. The theory remains influential in evolutionary biogerontology and underlies modern thinking on caloric restriction and trade-offs.