Neanderthal Baby Growth Parallels Modern Humans, with Early Metabolic Clues

High‑resolution micro-CT analysis of three juvenile Neanderthal remains from Sesselfelsgrotte (about 90,000–50,000 years old) shows bone growth patterns akin to modern human fetuses, including prenatal development around eight to nine months of gestation, with long bones developing faster than the jaw. The teeth reveal interglobular dentine defects indicating metabolic stress during late pregnancy to early childhood, potentially vitamin/metabolism-related deficiencies, representing the oldest evidence of metabolic bone disease in a non-modern human lineage.