Current views on hunter‐gatherer nutrition and the evolution of the human diet

Abstract

Diet composition and food choice are not only central to the daily lives of all living people, but are consistently linked with turning points in human evolutionary history. As such, scholars from a wide range of fields have taken great interest in the role that subsistence has played in both human cultural and biological evolution. Central to this discussion is the diet composition and nutrition of contemporary hunters and gatherers, who are frequently conscripted as model populations for ancestral human nutrition. Research among the world's few remaining foraging populations is experiencing a resurgence, as they are making the final transition away from diets composed of wild foods, to those dominated by domesticated cultigens and/or processed foods.In an effort to glean as much information as possible, before such populations are no longer hunting and gathering, researchers interested in the evolution of human nutrition are rapidly collecting and accessing new and more data. Methods of scientific inquiry are in the midst of rapid change and scholars are able to revisit long-standing questions using state of the art analyses. Here, using the most relevant findings from studies in ethnography, nutrition, human physiology, and microbiomes, we provide a brief summary of the study of the evolution of human nutrition as it has specifically pertained to data coming from living hunter-gatherers. In doing so, we hope to bridge the disciplines that are currently invested in research on nutrition and health among foraging populations. K E Y W O R D Sdiet composition, forager, gut microbiome, human evolution, nutrition | I N T R O D U C T I O NDiet composition and food choice are indisputably a core facet in all human societies. Changes in diet are routinely associated with watershed moments in human evolution-such as tool making, brain expansion, family formation, cooperation, and even increased longevity (Aiello & Wheeler, 1995; Lee & DeVore, 1968;Wrangham, 2009). In the not-too-distant past, before industrialization, the rise of the middle class, and the development of market economies, procuring and preparing enough food to feed one's self and one's family occupied a significant portion of daily labor. In contemporary unindustrialized small-scale societies, this is still largely the case (Hawkes et al., 1997;Marlowe, 2010;Wood & Marlowe, 2013). Appropriately, anthropologists take great interest in the role that food and diet have had in human biological and cultural evolution (Messer, 1984). The old proverbs, "you are what you eat" and "tell me what you eat and I'll tell you what you are" (Brillat-Savarin, 1862) speak about food not only as a physical embodiment of the environment, but also as a means of social identity and symbolic construction of culture. Naturally, these are anthropological dialogues, but at their core, they speak the language of many fields of biology. In order for scholars interested in the evolution of the human diet to integrate work from various disciplines, a collective conversation ...

Dental calculus indicates widespread plant use within the stable Neanderthal dietary niche

“…The apparent patterns are better explained by decoupling seed and nut use from the dietary expectations of the traditionally defined 'broad spectrum revolution'. Seed and nut use may have been important foods throughout human evolution (Hockett and Haws, 2003;Revedin et al, 2010;Crittenden and Schnorr, 2017). Additionally, taxonomic diversity in diet is just one way in which diet can intensify due to demographic packing (population increase).…”

“…Foragers in grassland environments are known to follow this pattern (Marean, 1997). A second Smith, 1932;Ager and Ager, 1980;O'Connell et al, 1983;Hattori, 2006;Veltre et al, 2006;Marlowe, 2010;Clark, 2012;Berihuete-Azorín, 2013;Crittenden and Schnorr, 2017). Although the data are sparse, the slope highlights that in warm climates, where plant foods are more important, foragers exploit a higher number of species.…”

Comment on “Seasonal cycling in the gut microbiome of the Hadza hunter-gatherers of Tanzania”

“…In a recent study of seasonal changes in the gut microbiome of Hadza hunter-gatherers, Smits et al (13) contribute to this burgeoning field by undertaking longitudinal fecal sampling, however, we argue that their characterization of Hadza diet, depiction of seasonal effects, and interpretations of the gut microbiome (of both Hadza and urban industrial populations) are untenable due to insufficient data, inaccurate reporting, and inappropriate analyses. Therefore, we present the following concerns regarding the report by Smits et al: (1) apparent sample stratification within seasons challenges the conclusions that taxonomic and diversity differences match “seasonally associated functions” rather than specific dietary fluctuations; (2) CAZyme annotations are not provided and CAZyme families are qualitatively summarized using undisclosed criteria (see Figure 2 and Table S9 in Smits et al), resulting in an incorrect and reductive oversimplification of the array of reported enzymes and the potential microbiome functions (see Table 1); and critically, (3) inaccurate depictions of the Hadza diet throughout the text and a lack of data on diet composition during time of collections (for either Hadza or urban reference sample populations) make evaluation of the results potentially inaccurate and interpretations of seasonal impacts on the microbiome unfeasible.…”

“…To date, robust data has been generated on the gut microbiome of more than a dozen small-scale non-industrial populations practicing varying forms of mixed subsistence, including foraging, farming, horticulture, or pastoralism (1). It is critical for research of this nature, which focuses on biological samples collected from traditionally marginalized groups, many of them indigenous populations, to include an anthropological perspective.…”

“…It is critical for research of this nature, which focuses on biological samples collected from traditionally marginalized groups, many of them indigenous populations, to include an anthropological perspective. This not only allows for the contextualization of dietary and behavioral data, but also acts to inform our understanding of any links to more general conclusions about patterns of human health and disease (1). Microbiome biobanking and large scale data sharing are now a reality (2) and microbes from small-scale non-industrial populations are discussed as a valuable commodity that may be used in the near future for commercial enterprises and health interventions in the post-industrialized west, particularly as therapies for microbiota-driven diseases (3).…”