Journal of Nutritional & Environmental Medicine, 2003 (Vol. 13) (No.
3) 143-147

What actually was the stone age diet?

Gowlett, J. A. J.
Department of Archaeology, School of Archaeology, Classics and
Egyptology, William Hartley Building, University of Liverpool,
Liverpool L69 3GS, UK.

Purpose: In the last few years there has been considerable talk of the
'Stone Age diet' as an attractive alternative to the 'modern' diet.
The underlying idea is that recent distortions of diet are likely to
be harmful and that, if we can recover a primeval diet, we will live
in closer harmony with our digestive systems and their evolutionary
biochemistry. This paper aims to evaluate that set of ideas in
relation to the extensive and sometimes detailed records of the past.
Design: Comparative and direct palaeoanthropology and archaeology.
Methodology: To review evidence of the comparative picture established
by the nearest living relations of hominids (extant apes), and of the
deep view given by the fossil records and archaeological evidence.
Results: The broad outline of the evolutionary record is becoming
increasingly clear: human ancestors diverged from the last common ape
ancestor about 8-10 million years ago. Since then major stages of
dietary evolution can be traced, involving the incorporation of roots/
tubers and additional meat into a previously largely fruit-based diet.
Within the last 2 million years, early humans colonized highly diverse
environments, including arctic regions where there was no choice but
to eat meat. Conclusions: There was no one Stone Age diet. Overall,
diets of the past varied greatly. The adoption of agriculture within
the last few thousand years led to great changes in diet, especially
concentration on single cereals and milk.

PNAS | June 20, 2000 | vol. 97 | no. 13 | 7663-7666

Neanderthal diet at Vindija and Neanderthal predation: The evidence
from stable isotopes

URL: http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/97/13/7663
"Archeological analysis of faunal remains and of lithic and bone tools
has suggested that hunting of medium to large mammals was a major
element of Neanderthal subsistence. Plant foods are almost invisible
in the archeological record, and it is impossible to estimate
accurately their dietary importance. However, stable isotope (delta
13C and delta 15N) analysis of mammal bone collagen provides a direct
measure of diet and has been applied to two Neanderthals and various
faunal species from Vindija Cave, Croatia. The isotope evidence
overwhelmingly points to the Neanderthals behaving as top-level
carnivores, obtaining almost all of their dietary protein from animal
sources. Earlier Neanderthals in France and Belgium have yielded
similar results, and a pattern of European Neanderthal adaptation as
carnivores is emerging. These data reinforce current taphonomic
assessments of associated faunal elements and make it unlikely that
the Neanderthals were acquiring animal protein principally through
scavenging. Instead, these findings portray them as effective
predators."

Jesus was not a Neanderthal ...

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