Food and evolution : toward and theory of human food habits

'Many topics of interest to health professionals, such as vegetarianism, dietary fibers, lactose intolerance, favism, cannibalism and changes in nutritional status wrought by the decline of hunter-gathering and the rise of horticulture. Many sections will appeal to the general reader.'--Journal of Applied Nutrition The old adage'you are what you eat'may be more accurate than anyone could have ever imagined. This unprecedented interdisciplinary effort by scholars in primatology, biological anthropology, archaeology, nutrition, psychology, agricultural economics, and cultural anthropology suggests that there is a systematic theory behind why humans eat what they eat. Includes discussions ranging in time from prehistory to the present, and from the most simple societies to the most complex, including South American Indian groups, African hunter-gatherers, and countries such as India, Bangladesh, Peru, and Mexico.'Exceptionally well-edited. High quality individual papers are of comparable scope and are uniformly well referenced and detailed in presentation of supporting data Introductory and concluding chapters as well as section overviews create an integrated whole.'--Choice'Compelling...complete and...recommended.'--Science Books & Films'Should be of value to all nutrition educators who have an interest in the social, cultural, and international aspects of foods and nutrition.'--Journal of Nutrition Education [Cover]......Page 1 [Title Page]......Page 4 [Copyright]......Page 5 Acknowledgements......Page 6 Contents......Page 8 Introduction......Page 12 Part I. Theoretical Overview......Page 16 1. An Overview of Trends in Dietary Vlriation from Hunter-Gatherer to Modern Capitalist Societies......Page 18 2. Foodways: Historical Overview and Theoretical Prolegomenon......Page 68 Part II. Bioevolutionary Antecedents and Constraints......Page 102 3. Primate Diets and Gut Morphology: Implications for Hominid Evolution......Page 104 4. Omnivorous Primate Diets and Human Overconsumption of Meat......Page 128 5. Fava Bean Consumption: A Case for the Co-Evolution of Genes and Culture......Page 144 Part III. Nutritional and Biopsychological Constraints......Page 172 6. Problems and Pitfalls in the Assessment of Human Nutritional Status......Page 174 7. Psychobiological Perspectives on Food Preferences and Avoidances......Page 192 8. The Preference for Animal Protein and Fat: A Cross-Cultural Survey......Page 218 9. Biocultural Consequences of Animals Versus Plants as Sources of Fats, Proteins, and Other Nutrients......Page 236 Part IV. Pre-State Foodways: Past and Present......Page 270 10. The Significance of Long-Term Changes in Human Diet and Food Economy......Page 272 11. Life in the "Garden of Eden": Causes and Consequences of the Adoption of Marine Diets byHuman Societies......Page 296 12. The Analysis of Hunter-Gatherer Diets: Stalking an Optimal Foraging Model......Page 322 13. How Much Food Do Foragers Need?......Page 352 14. Aboriginal Subsistence in a Tropical Rain Forest Environment: Food Procurement, Cannibalism, and Population Regulation in Northeastern Australia......Page 368 15. Ecological and Structural Influences on the Proportions of Wild Foods in the Diets of Two Machiguenga Communities......Page 398 16. Limiting Factors in Amazonian Ecology......Page 418 Part V. The Political Economy and the Political Ecology ofContemporary Foodways......Page 434 17. Loaves and Fishes in Bangladesh......Page 438 18. Animal Protein Consumption and the Sacred Cow Complex in India......Page 456 19. The Effects of Colonialism and Neocolonialism on the Gastronomic Patterns of the Third 'Vorld......Page 466 20. Stability and Change in Highland Andean Dietary Patterns......Page 492 21. Social Class and Diet in Contemporary Mexico......Page 528 22. From Costa Rican Pasture to North American Hamburger......Page 552 Part VI. Discussion and Conclusions......Page 574 23. The Evolution of Human Subsistence......Page 576 24. Biocultural Aspects of Food Choice......Page 590 Afterword......Page 606 About the Contributors......Page 612 Glossary......Page 618 Name Index......Page 624 Subject Index......Page 636 Abstract: An interdisciplinary text for food anthropoligists and nutritionists examines recent evidence in the fields of primatology, biological and cultural anthropology, nutrition, archaeology, psychology, and agricultural economics to explain the food habits of humans in different cultures. Interrelationships among food habits and physical, social, political, and economic facts are discussed, ranging from prehistoric to current times, covering rudimentary to highly complex societies. Discussions include South American Indians, African hunter-gatherers, as well as India, Bangladesh, Peru, and Mexico. Problems caused in developing countries by modern technological development and new foods are examined, and the relationship between such change and food scarci ty and malnutrition are explored. A basis is provided for developing a general theory of human food habits to assist the intellectual understanding of bio-psycho-cultural data on consumption patterns and of the varied forms of malnutrition. Attention also is focused on nutritional and biopsychological constraints Marvin Harris is a Graduate Research Professor of Anthropology at the University of Florida. Eric B. Ross has taught at Mount Holyoke and the University of Michigan.