The mystery of Lactase Persistence (LP) in Europeans

[LeBrok]

Fascinating posts on this thread re mtdna, LP and connection with disease resistance. Ty all.

"I have a great appetite for anything made of cabbage, love pickles and horseradish and ordinary radish too. I'm not a fan of vinegar pickles and can't stand wine vinegar. Generally I like fresh organic veggies and salads, but I can vouch for many men from this part of Europe, they won't touch fresh veggies with exception of sauerkraut and pickles."

I wonder if a liking for certain foods necessary to survival in a particular region has been selected for in people from that region?

I think their are the Hunter Gatherer's dietary genes acting up. Affinity to meat, meat and meat.

 

[Aberdeen]

I think their are the Hunter Gatherer's dietary genes acting up. Affinity to meat, meat and meat.

I actually think it's more likely to be an affinity for either fresh water fish or seafood, depending on where the "hunter gatherer" lives. If you look at the recent paper about a 45,000 year old Siberian, it says he ate vegetables and some meat but probably also a lot of fresh water fish. And, having hunted and fished while growing up in a somewhat remote rural area, I can tell you that fishing is easier and more reliable than hunting, even with a hunting rifle. I can't imagine how difficult it would have been with a stone tipped spear, even if the hunter gatherer lived in an area where game was common. I suspect that for most hunter gatherer types throughout human history, the reality was more fishing and gathering, with hunting providing an occasional but highly prized supplement to the usual diet.

 

[LeBrok]

I actually think it's more likely to be an affinity for either fresh water fish or seafood, depending on where the "hunter gatherer" lives. If you look at the recent paper about a 45,000 year old Siberian, it says he ate vegetables and some meat but probably also a lot of fresh water fish.

I think meat is meat, regardless if it is cow, fish, or seal muscle. I meant meat as animal diet, which may include other organs as well, like liver or heart.

And, having hunted and fished while growing up in a somewhat remote rural area, I can tell you that fishing is easier and more reliable than hunting, even with a hunting rifle. I can't imagine how difficult it would have been with a stone tipped spear, even if the hunter gatherer lived in an area where game was common. I suspect that for most hunter gatherer types throughout human history, the reality was more fishing and gathering, with hunting providing an occasional but highly prized supplement to the usual diet.

I hear you. There might be some seasonal exceptions for fishing in Siberia, when water is frozen for half a year. Much farther south however in Middle East diet of HGs were more balanced with lots of veggies, nuts and starches. In north it was always skewed towards meat and fat, especially for men. It still manifests itself in modern societies, in spite of few thousand years of farming, eating bread, veggies, fruit, dairy, eggs, etc. Men of north constantly craves meat and fat.

I eat everything and my diet is quite balanced, but I don't remember a day that went by without eating meat or fish.

 

[Aberdeen]

I do think there are genetic differences in what kind of foods people need to eat in order to be healthy, perhaps partly because of what their ancestors commonly ate and partly because of the need for more calories in a colder climate. I was a vegetarian (vegan) for two year but had to go back to including meat, fish, eggs and dairy in my diet in order to be healthy. And I agree with what you've said in other posts about the importance of dairy products in making life more liveable in northern climates - livestock must have made a huge difference to population levels in northern climates.

 

[LeBrok]

I do think there are genetic differences in what kind of foods people need to eat in order to be healthy, perhaps partly because of what their ancestors commonly ate and partly because of the need for more calories in a colder climate.

I think example of Inuit not being particularly healthy on western diet goes in line with this observation. Same as lactose persistence gene and milk consumption. There was also a study pointing to the fact that Northern Europeans (on their fatty diet) can be fatter ( as per BMI) than Mediterranean folks, but still as healthy, or living as long.
Giving enough time, natural selection will find a way to make the best out of available food.
If we follow this line of thinking, natural selection and food availability, we should also consider that same system is behind shaping our food liking. At least theoretically, we should have inborn affinities, feeling pleasure, when we eat this most common foods. It is not necessarily always the case, but logical outcome of natural selection giving enough time, although it is so hard to prove which taste is acquired which one is genetic. However, taste for available foods will enhance its consumption, therefore survival.
Heck, we might already pay for this "enhancement of taste" in epidemic of obesity these days when food is everywhere and in quantities.


Having this understanding I'm trying to eat what my ancestors did, and of course as organic as possible, the full nutrient value, as they did too. So far I can't complain.

 

[Greying Wanderer]

"Having this understanding I'm trying to eat what my ancestors did"

yes, same here