Column #228

Do you ever wonder what cavemen cherished 100,000 years ago? Emotionally they differed little from us today. They were intelligent and had learned how to communicate with speech. Art, music, and ceremonies were part of their tight-nit social structures. Of course, there is probably little about their lives we could relate to today other than sex and sleep. Most other aspects of their lives were totally different, not just in tools and toys, but in terms of loyalty and dependence on family members and the tribe.1

I imagine that prehistoric man’s primary focus was on having enough to eat and staying alive. Consequently, knowing how to hunt, gather food, and store food were critical skills. Additionally, making hunting tools, meat processing instruments, cooking implements, and fire were skills everyone had to acquire. Humans also required shelter and clothing which were not available like today. Obviously human survival in prehistoric times depended on skills we no longer have today.2

 

More than 50,000 years ago cavemen were exhibiting artistic skills in their paintings on the walls of caves which are still visible today. A wide variety of animals, hands, stick figures, and geometric shapes were their favorite subjects. And we must admire the paint they used. It consisted of various colors and was so indelible it has lasted for not just centuries, but literally tens of thousands of years!3 4 5 6

Recently I ran across an article by Robert Krulwich from National Geographic. It really interested me because it was about what the cavemen did not paint.7

What they didn’t paint were plants!

Why would cavemen not paint plants such as vegetables, leaves, and fruit if they ate a lot of them as some people claim? I believe the answer is relatively straightforward.
1.    Eating plants was relatively dangerous because most plants are inedible.
2.    Nearly all meats are safe to eat.
3.    Plants are not as nourishing as meat. Meat and marrow are calorie-dense resources with essential amino acids and micronutrients, and seafood is rich in nutrients needed for brain growth.8

Today it seems it’s just the opposite. Images of vegetables are greatly admired while pictures of meat, hunting, and meat processing are not politically correct. That ignores the 2.6 million years of evolutionary trial and error that made humans the animals they became prior to the very recent invention of agriculture.

Is ignoring cave paintings similar to ignoring traffic signs?9

To your health.

Ted Slanker

Ted Slanker has been reporting on the fundamentals of nutritional research in publications, television and radio appearances, and at conferences since 1999. He condenses complex studies into the basics required for health and well-being. His eBook, The Real Diet of Man, is available online.

Don’t miss these links for additional reading:

1. Paleolithic Societies from Khan Academy

2. Tools and Toys by Ted Slanker

3. Seven Oldest Cave Paintings in The World from Oldest.Org

4. In Photos: The World's Oldest Cave Art by Jeanna Bryner from Live Science

5. Language & Symbols from Smithsonian Institution

6. Cave Art 101 a Video from National Geographic

7. Vanished! The Surprising Things Missing From Ancient Art by Robert Krulwich from National Geographic

8. Plants vs. Plant Eaters by Ted Slanker

9. Evidence for Meat-Eating by Early Humans by Briana Pobiner from Nature Education