Interesting Article/Theory on Cooked Foods

[Zack]

I'm prepared to be severely flamed for posting this, but a friend told me about an article they read about the evolution of homosapiens due to cooked food, especially with brain size increase. I was interested in the idea and did some research on it, anyone ever heard anything like this? I think it's a pretty logical theory. I'd like to know more about it.

 

This is what i've found so far.

 

 

http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2002/06.13/01-cooking.html

http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/wrangham/wrangham_print.html

http://technology.guardian.co.uk/online/story/0,,293643,00.html

[cubby2112]

I'm prepared to be severely flamed for posting this, but a friend told me about an article they read about the evolution of homosapiens due to cooked food, especially with brain size increase. I was interested in the idea and did some research on it, anyone ever heard anything like this? I think it's a pretty logical theory. I'd like to know more about it.

 

This is what i've found so far.

 

 

http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2002/06.13/01-cooking.html

http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/wrangham/wrangham_print.html

http://technology.guardian.co.uk/online/story/0,,293643,00.html

 

That is interesting. I would love to learn as much as I can also. You really are going to be flamed, though, haha, posting something not in support of raw foods. That stuff does make a lot of sense, I hope we start to hear a lot more about this.

[michaelhobson]

Yeah, this line of thought isn't new. The first article you posted is from 2002. It's clear that cooking and hunting for meat both played a significant role in our evolution. I think veganism is a bold move to try and re-direct that to a more peaceful and sustainable evolution.

 

I have seen very little evidence that most people will thrive long-term on raw vegan diets. Most either drop it all together or have regular lapses in to cooked eating. Even finding a reasonable number of long-term raw vegans to study would be near impossible. Even our own "fruitarian one" spent much of 2005 eating tofu and cooked food to gain some size and strength.

 

Personally, I think a balance of cooked and raw is healthiest for me. Right now I'm way too far to the cooked side, eating very little raw. I eat tons of veggies though and this summer when I'm living right on the farm, I'm sure I will eat a lot more raw. Direct from the vine to my mouth is my favorite way to eat. Yum!

[bighead]

the idea of cooked food producing the logner lives of homosapiens and higher brain size is true. but you have to realize that this was in an era when cleanliness standards were not only non-exisatent, but not even thought of yet. people didn't even know to bathe.

 

nowadays with cleaner foods, sustained agriculture providing larger variety of foods to eat, and a host of other healthy practices by humans, this logic is not the same. cleaner standards for most humans equals increased safety and viabilty of a raw diet.

 

and i doubt anyone will flame you. everyone who eats raw has probably heard this before.

[princessbee]

thanks bighead.

 

 

 

to the others - this isn't flaming, just genuine curiosity. what about raw eating threatens you so much that you have to diss the lifestyle? did it actually occur to you that the reason people lapse is due to environment - that we're surrounded by cooked food at all times, and that in moments of great stress or trauma people often turn to food, given the incredibly contested and confused relationship we as a society have with food?

not that because proper healthy raw eating isn't sustainable?

 

why would you be prepared to be severely flamed if you're bringing the information out of a genuine desire to share knowledge and discuss a topic? no one would flame you for that - so what spirit is the information brought in that makes you feel you would be flamed?

[Zack]

what about raw eating threatens you so much that you have to diss the lifestyle?

 

 

??????????????????

 

 

Raw eating is cool by me, but two sides to a story.

[michaelhobson]

what about raw eating threatens you so much that you have to diss the lifestyle?

 

Ah yes, the old if you don't have "faith", then you feel threatened argument. I'm not threatened at all by raw eating, I've even tried it out for extended periods. I would just like to see even a few long-term successes. I think a lot of the so called facts thrown around in raw circles are not always best for people's health.

 

did it actually occur to you that the reason people lapse is due to environment - that we're surrounded by cooked food at all times, and that in moments of great stress or trauma people often turn to food, given the incredibly contested and confused relationship we as a society have with food?

 

It actually has occured to me and I'm sure that is part of the reason. But the same could be said for veganism and ther are plenty of long-term vegans around. At leat plenty by our standards as a tiny minority. Even vegans had to start somewhere though, perhaps there will be some long-term raw examples to come.

 

not that because proper healthy raw eating isn't sustainable?

 

I think that is the question to be answered. More power to folks have offered themselves up as test subjects. I would only ask that raw folks keep in mind that most raw theories are in their infancy, rather than deep rooted facts as they are often presented.

[Odidnetne]

I enjoyed reading the article, no flames here.