tcha
05/31/11, 05:52 PM
Humans have some characteristics of carnivores and some of herbivores. I guess this means we’re equipped to eat omnivorously.
Some anthropological evidence suggests that our early “hunting and gathering” days were really more like “scavenging and gathering… and then if we were really lucky with a rock, hunting a small animal”.
Thus, our ability to consume all kinds of foods contributed to our evolutionary survival. Hard to be a picky eater in the forest or savannah.
Features that suggest we evolved to consume meat include:
Teeth & jaws (can both tear/rip and crush)
GI tract structure (shorter, no chambered stomachs for vegetation fermentation)
Digestive enzymes and stomach acidity
Ability to dispose of dietary cholesterol
Location of reproductive organs
Amount of food we can consume in one sitting
Ability to injure and kill animals
Based on those factors, we appear to be able to eat both plants and animals, with an emphasis on plants.
Compared to carnivores, we aren’t expert hunters (we’re comparatively slow and weak; our senses are not very keen; and without a pointy stick, we’re not very tough); we don’t have innate blood lust (well, given human history, that point is debatable); we can’t consume high quantities of meat at one time (Las Vegas buffets notwithstanding); we’re prone to bacterial illness; we prefer cooked meats; we accumulate dietary cholesterol in the body; and we have the desire to consume sodium. (See AA Sodium (http://www.precisionnutrition.com/all-about-sodium) for more.)
http://www.precisionnutrition.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/MonsterThickburger_LunchDinner-300x201.jpgAre we able to eat this? Yup. Should we? Probably not.
/www.precisionnutrition.com
Some anthropological evidence suggests that our early “hunting and gathering” days were really more like “scavenging and gathering… and then if we were really lucky with a rock, hunting a small animal”.
Thus, our ability to consume all kinds of foods contributed to our evolutionary survival. Hard to be a picky eater in the forest or savannah.
Features that suggest we evolved to consume meat include:
Teeth & jaws (can both tear/rip and crush)
GI tract structure (shorter, no chambered stomachs for vegetation fermentation)
Digestive enzymes and stomach acidity
Ability to dispose of dietary cholesterol
Location of reproductive organs
Amount of food we can consume in one sitting
Ability to injure and kill animals
Based on those factors, we appear to be able to eat both plants and animals, with an emphasis on plants.
Compared to carnivores, we aren’t expert hunters (we’re comparatively slow and weak; our senses are not very keen; and without a pointy stick, we’re not very tough); we don’t have innate blood lust (well, given human history, that point is debatable); we can’t consume high quantities of meat at one time (Las Vegas buffets notwithstanding); we’re prone to bacterial illness; we prefer cooked meats; we accumulate dietary cholesterol in the body; and we have the desire to consume sodium. (See AA Sodium (http://www.precisionnutrition.com/all-about-sodium) for more.)
http://www.precisionnutrition.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/MonsterThickburger_LunchDinner-300x201.jpgAre we able to eat this? Yup. Should we? Probably not.
/www.precisionnutrition.com