I know that a very popular view of religious food prohibitions is that it had health-based motivations. My personal opinion about the origins of Kashrut is that they were developed as a social filter. Dining with other people is a very strong social force, and if you cannot intermingle with an outside group in this intimate way, it will go a long way toward preventing dispersion.

For the particular mandate about milk and meat, it comes from the single sentence usually translated “You shall not seethe a kid in his mother's milk.” I have heard it argued that this came as a direct response to a ritual practice that was found in a competing religious group at the time of writing. If this is true, then the purpose was very likely, again, to prevent Jews from associating with or participating in competing religious events.

Having your day-to-day life require segregation from other groups, especially when they are performing their own rituals, is a very strong preservation mechanism for the group.

I follow the traditional kashrut in a very basic form (no pork or sea food, no direct mixing milk and meat) but i am doing it only for the sake of tradition and belonging to the tribe. The origins of this commandment is probably tribal and connected to separation from other groups and probably some magical association with the foods that got lost to us.

the Biblical law itself, in my opinion, is an ethical guidance, not dietary.

I am not familiar with any studies that would support the idea of kashrut being healthier (or at least the non dairy/meat mixing).

My read has been that Kashruth was not only community-binding as others say, but also a lesson in awareness of your food and how you get it, a good lesson for a tribe settled into cities by the rabbinic era.

We were also told to send a mother bird from the nest before robbing the eggs, a passage three of the four rabbis I have studied under say was to spare the mother's feelings. The last said it was so you didn't get pecked. :)

I suspect there is a note of over-indulgence in having both main protein sources in one meal, which "Rabbi Four" hinted at during discussion. Four rabbis five opinions??

There was an article I read that connected kashrut to Albert Schweitzer's "Reverence for Life", which seems something that paleo people can get behind. In short, milk/dairy represents life. Meat represents death. In order for full life, death is a part of the mix, hence we eat meat, but we monitor how an animal was killed, and the conditions of its life. Also, we do not mix life and death in the same meal.

A bit philosophical I know, but I found it compelling. On those occasions when I still eat dairy, I avoid meat for the time being. Fish is parve though!

I believe that the seperation was intended to mean that a baby animal would not be cooked in it's own mother's milk. (What ever that is suppose to symbolize or mean) The absolute restriction against mixing dairy and meat at all times, however, probably evolved over time and became tradition but is not,, strictly speaking, from God law it's self. But I am only speculating.

I think the rabbis were on to something. By separating milk from meat one gets better absorbtion of calcium and iron. See here and here. It's interesting that dietary laws seem to be arbitrary but actually have some good reasons behind them.

Milk curds around blood in your stomach and curds around meat proteins rendering them undigestable. Kosher is definitely healthy and since becoming a strict kosher vegetarian with only occasional fish I have noticed improvements in health, digestion, muscle mass, everything I can think of. I also have a great source for raw milk though, and I occasionally make my own mayo with egg yolks. Raw protein is very good for you and is not denatured whatsoever.

I wonder if this covered in the Mishnah (oral law) or Talmud in more depth. The problem with the Torah is that the words don't mean the same as they use to, which is one of the reasons why they kept oral law around.

I've often wondered this as well if one should consume dairy with meat, I do it rarely, only when the meat sauce calls for milk such as mushroom sauce over shredded chicken.