The Columbian Exchange greatly affected almost every society on earth. New diseases (some from Asia) to which indigenous people had no immunity, depopulated many cultures. By some estimates, nearly 80 percent of the native population of the Americas was wiped out from the introduction of European diseases.

On the other hand, the contact between the two areas circulated a wide variety of new crops and livestock which supported increases in population. Explorers returned to Europe with maize, potatoes, and tomatoes, which became very important crops in Eurasia by the 18th century. Similarly, Europeans introduced manioc and the peanut to tropical Southeast Asia and West Africa, where they flourished and supported growth in populations on soils that otherwise would not produce large yields.