We often hear that the ideal diet to prevent all chronic
diseases, including arthritis, is the Stone-Age’ Diet, which
was believed to be based on the meat of hunted animals and the
leaves, roots, seeds and fruits of gathered wild
plants.
Did the ancient Stone-Age’ diet really combine the best
features of what we now call healthy eating’? In this
article, the links between evolution, nutrition, dietary change and
arthritis are explored in relation to archaeological evidence.
Arthritis in history
The earliest known case of human arthritis was found in a cave
at La
Chapelle-aux-Saints, France in 1908. It was the bent-over frame
of a Neanderthal Old Man’, who lived 60,000 years ago. His
ape-like spine was responsible for the myth that the Neanderthals
were one of the missing links in human evolution. But subsequent
finds suggest that they were regular humans who just looked a
little different from us and that their skeletal deformities were
due to diet.
Scanning forward to 4500 BC, we find that the bones of native
Americans from Tennessee showed traces of arthritis. Indeed,
evidence of arthritis has been found throughout history, from the
mummies of Egyptian Pharaohs to the citizens of Ancient Rome: even
Julius Caesar had it. There are also references to the condition in
the Bible and in Shakespeare’s plays.
So, although arthritis is not new, it is on the increase.
Obviously, we have no idea of the incidence of arthritis in
prehistory, as skeletal relics are randomly preserved and many bear
no arthritic traces. However, in modern-day Britain, more than 15%
of adults have long-term arthritic conditions.
Diet and human evolution
Human beings are believed to have evolved in east Africa between
100-200,000 years ago and the human genome has hardly changed
since. Evolution of a species is driven by its environment,
including food availability.
So what foods were available for humans as they evolved? One
thought is that the environment presented the Hunter-Gatherer with
a combination of meats and plant foods, offering a diet low in fat
and high in fibre1. Intakes of vitamins, minerals and
phyto-chemicals, such as flavonoids, would have been much higher
than today. Did this provide adequate nutriment for the evolution
of the human big brain’? Professor Michael Crawford, of the
Institute of Brain Chemistry in London, thinks not he considers
that an additional factor was necessary.
According to Prof. Crawford, humans were unlikely to have
evolved a large, complex, metabolically expensive brain in an
environment which did not provide abundant omega 3 fatty acids from
seafood. He argues that the big brain, with its high content of
omega 3 fatty acids, must have evolved in a marine environment. In
fact, in his book, The driving force of human evolution2, Prof.
Crawford says that he is convinced that fish and shellfish were key
features of the Stone-Age’ diet, along with meat from wild
animals and plant foods. Perhaps it is no coincidence, therefore,
that abundant remains of fish bones and shellfish have been found
at many fossil sites of early hominoids in Africa.
Diet in transition
Human beings continued to eat fish after their migrations from
Africa. Indeed, 12,000-year-old human remains from north Wales show
that a third of protein intake was derived from sea foods3.
However, land-locked human groups were less fortunate. During the
Ice Age, Neanderthals lived in dark caves and probably suffered
from vitamin D deficiency due to a lack of sunlight. Hence, if
their diet was low in fish, they not only missed out on its rich
vitamin D content, but also on its omega 3 fatty acids, with
consequent risk of the development of soft, deformed bones and
arthritic joints. Throughout time, other land-locked groups may
have been similarly disadvantaged, giving rise to increased
arthritis risk among humans bereft of a marine environment.
Diets changed radically with the introduction of cooking and
agriculture about 10,000 years ago. Further change was wrought
during the Industrial Revolution, when the refining of grains and
edible oils was introduced. Although both these developments
impacted on overall nutrient intake, no diet has moved further away
from the Stone-Age diet than that of today.
Back to nature
There seems to be little doubt that many current health problems
result from a mismatch between our genetically determined
nutritional requirements and our modern diet. According to numerous
studies1, the Stone-Age diet, high in fruit, vegetables and fish,
is still the best for modern humans to reduce their risk of chronic
diseases. To mimic this diet, we need to avoid rich food and eat
plenty of fruit, vegetables and high-fibre foods to maintain a
healthy digestive system and a healthy weight. Furthermore,
research shows that, together with an adequate supply of vitamin D,
calcium and magnesium, plant foods help to strengthen bones against
risk of fracture and omega 3 fatty acids from oily fish help to
moderate the inflammatory process which gives rise to
arthritis.
Interestingly, glucosamine and chondroitin (now widely used as
supplements to reduce the symptoms of arthritis) are both sourced
from marine life. The health benefits of seafood may explain why
Greenland Inuits have one of the lowest rates of arthritis in the
world.
Conclusion
There is a mismatch between the diet of our prehistoric
ancestors and our current one. Since our genes have hardly changed
over the millennia, we are still better adapted to a Stone-Age diet
than to modern fare. To live a long healthy life, most of us need
to make radical changes in our diet and bridge any remaining gaps
in our nutrient intakes with appropriate dietary supplements.
References
1. Cordain L et
al. 2005. Origins and evolution of the Western diet: health
implications for the 21st century. Am J Clin Nutr.
81:341-54.
2. Crawford M, Marsh D.
1989. The Driving Force: Food, Evolution and the Future.
William Heinemann, London.
3. Richards MP et
al. 2006. Isotope evidence for the intensive use of marine
foods by Late Upper Palaeolithic humans. J Hum Evol.
51:440-2.
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