Neanderthals ate meat and vegetables

This diet is "paleo»



recent discovery of 50,000-year-old human faeces, preserved in a cave in Spain, revealed that the Neanderthals in addition to meat eating a lot of vegetables. This is the best proof that Neanderthals were omnivores.

Anthropologists have had great difficulty with the definition of what the Neanderthals ate. This is an important issue because it may have played a role in their disappearance. According to one version of the Neanderthals died out because it ate only meat, while Homo Sapiens flourished sitting on a comprehensive diet rich in vegetable protein.

The ancient excrement were found in the excavations of El Salt in Spain in the area of ​​the Middle Paleolithic. They are considered the oldest human faeces were verified, much older than those found in Egyptian mummies and ancient Greek latrines.

To separate samples found near the ancient fire on the individual chemical elements, scientists have used the gas chromatograph. Through mass spectrometry, the researchers were able to determine which molecule and the quantity present in the sample. Scientists have found in fecal residues esters of plant origin, indicating that the consumption of a large number of plants.

Based on the history of the region, it is very likely that the diet of these Neanderthals consisted of meat, berries, nuts and root vegetables - the list is familiar to those who now adheres paleodiet. Of course, this does not necessarily mean that the diet has been optimized, but fair to say that after tens of thousands of years of evolution, their digestive systems are very well adapted precisely to these products.

via factroom.ru