Reddit reviews Paleofantasy: What Evolution Really Tells Us about Sex, Diet, and How We Live

It’s only evidence that we evolved eating meat regularly. Which no one serious, or in the anthropology field, is actually trying to dispute. The idea that we were “made” to be anything or that it means we “should” be a certain way now is the naturalistic fallacy.

Evolutionarily, a long time ago we were primates related to today’s chimps, bonobos, and gorillas. We were herbivores and likely shared their ability to ferment and absorb B12 in our guts. Our diet changed to include both cooked starches, and more animal products over time. We became used to highly absorbable calories from both these sources and our intestines shrank and lost the ability to ferment. We stopped being able to make our own B12 and were fine because in the paleo days we did hunt (and scavenge) and eat meat regularly.

The evolutionary perspective should be considered, but not above more rigorous types of research that show, as you mentioned, that a plant based diet is optimal for long term health (which has little to do with our evolutionary diet as evolution only selects for traits that are beneficial for reproduction and child rearing). The near-historical cultures that ate mostly plant based diets, ate around 10% animal products, which provided sufficient B12 and were otherwise functionally similar to a 100% plant based diet.

If you want to learn more of the anthropology, there are some good papers, books, and blogs:

Paleofantasy by Marlene Zuk (or free Scientific American article)

Plant foods and the dietary ecology of Neanderthals and early modern humans

Paleovegan - blog by a vegan anthropologist it's defunct, but you can read it on the Wayback machine

The Paleoanthropology and Archaeology of Big-Game Hunting: Protein, Fat, or Politics?

Deconstructing the Paleo Diet- by vegan dietician Brenda Davis

Loren Cordain's original works are very illustrative as well - and for one, show that the majority of near-equatorial hunter gatherers ate diets low in fat and saturated fat - after all, wild game animals are very lean. Also, we have a functional upper limit on protein intake (50% at the absolute most, but under 20% is very typical for all human societies) that prevent us from getting too many of our calories from animal sources when they are low in fat. Paleo diet proponents typically ignore this.

Caveman or paleo diets are about as half-baked as any diet out there. Advising someone to go to a meat-based diet from a vegetarian one without considering the reasons for their vegetarianism is rather presumptuous.


http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-paleo-diet-half-baked-how-hunter-gatherer-really-eat

http://www.amazon.com/Paleofantasy-Evolution-Really-Tells-ebook/dp/B007Q6XM1A

If you want a really good read on the diet from a scientific point of view, look at the book titled 'Paleofantasy' by Marlene Zuk. It is a fantastic book full of interesting info.

http://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B007Q6XM1A

Bullshit, the evidence is overwhelming, you are looking like a liar and a troll for not admitting it after seeing that set of papers. Any decline is the fertility rate of a group has significant long term consequences. The environment has changed, again, and as it has always been those humans best able to adapt will prosper.

And for a good explanation of how active and rapid evolution still is even in modern humans you should read this,

http://www.amazon.com/Paleofantasy-Evolution-Really-Tells-ebook/dp/B007Q6XM1A