Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer? - PaleoHacks.com

Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T02:33:15Z

From what I've read and seen in documentaries, hunter gatherers eat the following- charred meat and fish, root vegetables, fruit, berries, honey, nuts, and seeds. Plants are used as medicine, not everyday food.

They do not eat meals, but rather, smaller servings of food throughout the day. They eat what they hunt. Usually it is very small game (squirrels, birds) and fish. When they catch a larger animal, they split it among their fellow tribesmen (This is backed up by every video posted about the Hadza and San Bushmen on youtube.com) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9-Dt9ON9MQ&feature=related. If the hunt is unsuccessful, they eat roots and fruit, hence, the status of starchy roots/tubers as fallback foods http://rockcenter.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/02/24/10497577-richard-engel-journeys-to-tanzania-for-hidden-planet-series. It would also include the occasional honey binge, as everywhere this is viewed as liquid gold, and among the Hadza, the most preferred source of energy http://www.bioanth.cam.ac.uk/fwm23/tubers_and_fallback_foods_21040_ftp.pdf.

The Inuit are definitely outliers. I do not trust Nora Gedguadas' research, and I think Melissa did a fine job of addressing this http://paleohacks.com/questions/101254/paleo-summit-hack-a-thon-nora-gedgaudas-2-29#axzz22G4QOC2c. It could also be argued that Kitavans are outliers as well. I'm fine with that, and even so, the Kitavans are not hunter gatherers to begin with, because they engage in the cultivation of fruits and vegetables. They are however, detached from modern civilization.

Why don't people eat like this? I presume because it is more palatable to eat full meals, and because we're constantly told of the importance of green vegetables. Eating just meat (a small amount) several times a day is hard for people, and most people are scared to eat a meal of just carbs because OMG THE INSULIN. LOL. No honey because fructose is toxic. It would also mean that butter and cream would be excluded, but shouldn't matter because this is paleohacks, NOT primalhacks. I've been trying to eat like this for the past week now. It is a bit harder to get away from eating salads and sautéed veggies with meat, but all in all I feel like it is more in line with how actually HGs choose to eat, so I assume it is really how we've evolved to eat.

Does anyone eat like this? If not, why? Is it because the Paleo/Primal gurus make arguments that are more convincing than video footage and studies on actual HGs? I'm genuinely curious, not trying to be argumentative. Thanks for your input.

EDIT:

I realize now what I'll inevitably end up arguing about is the proper definition of "paleo," which ultimately ends up being a useless endeavor because I am certainly not the one informed enough or well-statured in this "field" to go redefining things. But, for those than answered, thanks. I do appreciate your response. Time consuming. Not willing to go to that spot on the reenactment spectrum. Makes sense.

Answer by A at Grain Free Diet for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T02:44:18Z

Because Paleo isn't a reenactment.

Because some people can't digest starches.

Because some people like green vegetables.

Because not everyone has time to graze on small amounts of meat all day.

Because not everyone's digestive system does well on small 'meals' throughout the day.

Answer by Lyndsay for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T02:46:50Z

This is how I instinctively eat, although it's taken a long time , three years of paleo to get there. The difference is not actually that I eat less, but that I eat more. I eat once or twice per day now, whereas before, even before my beer-laden days, I would struggle to eat every day. I eat when hungry, mostly veggies, then some meat for dinner, with veggies. I have little appetite for dairy, as it upsets my stomach, and sugar-laden desserts are truly unappealing. I do love salt and fat, though. I don't know what causes some people to instinctively eat like this and others not.

Answer by UncleLongHair for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T04:52:20Z

If i lived in the forest and didn't have to make money or pay bills, i might just run around all day and hunt small game and eat roots and berries. But fortunatey or unfortunately (depending on how you look at it) i live in a house in modern society and need to buy most of my food. So i adapt to my surroundings... Like s good hunter/gatherer.

Answer by Brewster for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T06:02:27Z

Definitive statements as to a true HG lifestyle will always fall down on lack of evidence and variety of lifestyles adopted by HG in different habitats. For example 'charred meat' may be one way of cooking, but what about buried food, fire pits, or wrapping food in leaves to cook it?

Whilst it is impracticable to do a reenactment,it is valuable to add in what you can of HG lifestyle to your everyday life. It does not have to be an either/or thing. In the summer I fish at least twice a week and myself and my family eat the fish I have caught. In the autumn we go out an gather wild berries. I am sure it is no accident that these are some of the most rewarding activities that we engage in.

Regarding it as a continuum rather than sharp HG/Neolithic division is more helpful in structuring and guiding your life style, so it is still a valuable question I would say.

Answer by Alan for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T06:02:56Z

So should we get around in loin cloths as well just to be authentic?

remember Paleo is a guide :)

Answer by meta for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T07:48:28Z

Lets not forget activity, bacterial and climate exposure - to maintain authenticity you would not only want to emulate dietary habits but also activity levels and types, exposure to unwashed foods and the environment including temperature extremes without the aid of climate control and most clothing.

Answer by foreveryoung for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T12:26:54Z

Everyone has brought up good points. I agreee that paleo is a broad term- and it comes out like a spectrum. I didn't really think that eating smaller mono meals a day consisting of paleo-approved items would be very far out there, but I guess that I was wrong, considering the answers/comments. I am still going to try to eat like this for a at least a week more and see if I notice any positives like improved digestion or something like that. I do appreciate your taking the time to answer. Thank you.

Answer by Colin for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T13:14:57Z

We aren't HG's, end of story. No matter how hard we try to emulate their diet or eating patterns, until we start going out into the woods to pick berries and hunt Mastadon with spears, we're failing in our attempts to be HG's. That's not the point of the Paleo Lifestyle. The point is to consume foods that our bodies have evolved to successfully convert into energy and use efficently. That's my opinion anyways, I'm certainly no nutritionist/paleolithic historian.

Answer by Bread-Eating Beelzebub for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T13:32:02Z

"Plants are used as medicine, not everyday food."

As far as the ethnographies I've read go, most eat this "medicine" every day.

The Hadza are way more genetically distant from the average poster on this board than the Inuit or the Kitavans. And they are not representative of paleolithic hunter-gatherers.

I've certainly eaten like this and not noticed a difference. In my opinion it is pointless to follow an utterly strict diet and socially isolate yourself unless their are concrete benefits from the diet that cannot be obtained from a less strict diet. And it's impossible to re-enact anyway because we don't have access to the same foods the Hadza eat. The idea that you can take the basic principles of it (wild meat/fish, honey, fruit, roots, nuts) and get the same benefits is probably wishful thinking. Their plant foods are particularly rich in certain phytochemicals and their honeys are probably quite unique as well.

Answer by Diane for Why doesn't any body actually eat like a hunter gatherer?

2012-08-01T15:31:10Z

I don't eat a lot of vegetables. I mostly eat meat. I eat some kind of meat, often with some kind of vegetable but sometimes not, for breakfast. I eat salmon for lunch. Sometimes sweet potatoes, too. I eat meat and vegetables for dinner, but not usually a lot of vegetables. On a recent backpack trip I ate pemmican for breakfast, beef heart jerky, candy and dried fruit for lunch, and a stew made with either coconut butter or pemmican and dehydrated sweet potatoes for dinner. We found wild mushrooms, dandelion greens and chives and I put those in my stews. We typically ate about 4-6 times a day on the backpack trip. Maybe I'm not eating completely like a hunter-gatherer, but I sometimes come quite close and I feel good eating that way. Sitting at a desk it's hard to eat as many times a day as when backpacking. Depending where you are out in nature you may find lots of wild greens and mushrooms right now or you might not find any. Those things are very seasonal.