Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-hc48f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-18T17:55:03.945Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Human eating behaviour in an evolutionary ecological context

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 March 2007

Stanley J. Ulijaszek
Stanley J. Ulijaszek
Affiliation:
Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology, University of Oxford, 51 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6PE, UK
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Present-day human eating behaviour in industrialised society is characterised by the consumption of high-energy-density diets and often unstructured feeding patterns, largely uncoupled from seasonal cycles of food availability. Broadly similar patterns of feeding are found among advantaged groups in economically-emerging and developing nations. Such patterns of feeding are consistent with the evolutionary ecological understanding of feeding behaviour of hominids ancestral to humans, in that human feeding adaptations are likely to have arisen in the context of resource seasonality in which diet choice for energy-dense and palatable foods would have been selected by way of foraging strategies for the maximisation of energy intake. One hallmark trait of human feeding behaviour, complex control of food availability, emerged with Homo erectus (19 × 106-200 000 years ago), who carried out this process by either increased meat eating or by cooking, or both. Another key trait of human eating behaviour is the symbolic use of food, which emerged with modern Homo sapiens (100 000 years ago to the present) between 25 000 and 12 000 years ago. From this and subsequent social and economic transformations, including the origins of agriculture, humans have come to use food in increasingly elaborate symbolic ways, such that human eating has become increasingly structured socially and culturally in many different ways.

Keywords

FeedingHuman evolutionHominid dietEnergy
Type
Meeting Report
Information
Proceedings of the Nutrition Society , Volume 61 , Issue 4 , November 2002 , pp. 517 - 526
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 2002

References

Adolph, EF (1947) Urges to eat and drink in the rat. American Journal of Physiology 151, 110–125.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Asfaw, B, White, T, Lovejoy, O, Latimer, B, Simpson, S & Suwa, G (1999) Australopihecus garhi: a new species of early hominid from Ethiopia. Science 284, 629–635.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bellomo, RV (1994) Identifying traces of natural and humanly-controlled fire in the archaeological record: The role of actualistic studies. Archaeology in Montana, Butte 32, 75–93.Google Scholar
Benefice, E, Chevassus-Agnes, S & Barral, H (1984) Nutritional situation and seasonal variations for pastoral populations of the Sahel (Senegalese Ferlo). Ecology of Food and Nutrition 14, 229–247.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blumenschine, RJ (1991) Hominid carnivory and foraging strategies, and the socio-economic function of early archaeological sites. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London 334B, 211–221.Google Scholar
Blundell, JE & Greenough, A (1994) Pharmocological aspects of appetite: implications for the treatment of obesity. Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy 48, 119–125.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blundell, JE & Stubbs, J (1997) Diet composition and the control of food intake in humans. In Handbook of Obesity, pp. 243–272 [Bray, GA, Bouchard, C and James, WPT, editors]. New York: Marcel Dekker Inc.Google Scholar
Booth, D, Mather, P & Fuller, J (1982) Starch content of ordinary foods associatively conditions human appetite and satiation, indexed by intake and eating pleasantness of starch-paired flavours. Journal for Intake Research 3, 163–184.Google ScholarPubMed
Bradford, MMV & Gous, RM (1991) The response of growing pigs to a choice of diets differing in protein content. Animal Production 52, 185–192.Google Scholar
Brody, S (1945) Bioenergetics and Growth. New York: Reinhold.Google Scholar
Carretero, JM, Lorenzo, C & Arsuaga, JL (1999) Axial and appendicular skeleton of Homo antecessor. Journal of Human Evolution 37, 459–499.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chivers, DJ (1993) Diet and guts. In The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Human Evolution, pp. 60–64 [Jones, S, Martin, R and Pilbeam, D, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Cohen, NM (1998) The emergence of health and social inequalities in the archaeological record. In Human Biology and Social Inequality, pp. 249–271 [Strickland, SS andPS, Shetty, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Cooper, SDB, Kyriazakis, I & Oldham, JD (1994) The effect of late pregnancy on the diet selection made by ewes. Livestock Production Science 40, 263–275.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de Castro, JM (1990) Social facilitation of duration and size but not rate of the spontaneous meal intake of humans. Physiology and Behavior 47, 1129–1135.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de Castro, JM (1994) Family and friends produce greater social facilitation of food intake than other companions. Physiology and Behavior 56, 445–455.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
de Castro, JM (1999) What are the major correlates of macronutrient selection in Western populations? Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 58, 755–763.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
de Garine, I (1996) Food and the status quest in five African cultures.In Food and the Status Quest, pp. 193–217 [Wiessner, P and Schieffenhovel, W, editors]. Oxford: Berghahn Books.Google Scholar
de Garine, I & Koppert, G (1988) Coping with seasonal fluctuations in food supply among savanna populations: the Massa and Mussey of Chad and Cameroon. In Coping with Uncertainty in Food Supply, pp. 210–259 [de Garine, I and Harrison, GA, editors]. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Douglas, M (1975) Implicit Meanings. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.Google Scholar
Douglas, M (1978) Culture. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.Google Scholar
Drewnowski, A & Greenwood, MRC (1983) Cream and sugar: Human preferences for high fat foods. Physiology and Behavior 30, 629–633.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dugdale, AE & Payne, PR (1986) Modelling seasonal changes in energy balance. In Proceedings of the XIIIth International Congress of Nutrition, pp. 141–144 [Taylor, TG and Jenkins, NK, editors]. London: John Libbey.Google Scholar
Dunbar, RIM (1988) Primate Social Systems. London: Croom Helm.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dunbar, RIM (1993) Behavioural adaptation. In Human Adaptation, pp. 73–98 [Harrison, GA, editor]. Oxford: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eaton, SB & Konner, M (1985) Paleolithic nutrition: A consideration of its nature and current implications. New England Journal of Medicine 312, 283–289.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ellen, R (1982) Environment, Subsistence and System. The Ecology of Small-Scale Social Formations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ellis, WC, Poppi, DP, Matis, JH, Lippke, H, Hill, TM & Rouquette FM, Jr (1999) Dietary-digestive-metabolic interactions determining the nutritive potential of ruminant diets. In Nutritional Ecology of Herbivores, pp. 423–481 [Jung, H-JG and Fahey Jr, GC, editors]. Savoy, IL: American Society of Animal Science.Google Scholar
Emmans, G & Kyriazakis, I (2001) Consequences of genetic change in farm animals on food intake and feeding behaviour. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 60, 115–125.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Emmans, GC & Oldham, JD (1988) Modelling of growth and nutrition in different species. In Modelling of Livestock Production Systems, pp. 13–21 [Korver, S. and van Arendonk, JAM, editors]. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers.Google Scholar
Feld, S (1996) A poetics place: ecological and aesthetic co-evolution in a Papua New Guinea rainforest community. In Redefining Nature. Ecology, Culture and Domestication, pp. 61–87 [Ellen, R and Fukui, K, editors]. Oxford: Berg.Google Scholar
Ferro-Luzzi, A & Branca, F (1993) Nutritional seasonality: the dimensions of the problem. In Seasonality and Human Ecology, pp. 149–165 [SJ, Ulijaszek and SS, Strickland, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fiddes, N (1991) Meat. A Natural Symbol. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Fleagle, (1999) Primate Adaptation and Evolution. San Diego, CA: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Foley, RA (1987) Another Unique Species. Patterns in Human Evolutionary Ecology. Harlow, Essex: Longman Scientific and Technical.Google Scholar
Foley, RA (1993) The influence of seasonality on hominid evolution. In Seasonality and Human Ecology, pp. 17–37 [Ulijaszek, SJ and Strickland, SS, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Foley, RA (1995) Humans Before Humanity. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Foley, RA & Lee, PC (1991) Ecology and energetics of encephalization in hominid evolution. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London 334, 223–232.Google ScholarPubMed
Forbes, JM (1996) Integration of regulatory signals controlling forage intake in ruminants. Journal of Animal Science 74, 3029–3035.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
French, SJ (1999) The effects of specific nutrients on the regulation of feeding behaviour in human subjects. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 58, 533–540.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Galvin, KA, Coppock, DL & Leslie, PW (1994) Diet, nutrition, and the pastoral strategy. In African Pastoralist Systems: An Integrated Approach, pp. 113–131 [Fratkin, E, Galvin, KA and Roth, EA, editors]. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner.Google Scholar
Herman, CP & Mack, D (1975) Restrained and unrestrained eating. Journal of Personality 43, 647–660.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hladik, CM (1988) Seasonal variations in food supply for wild primates. In Coping with Uncertainty in Food Supply, pp. 1–25 [de Garine, I and Harrison, GA, editors]. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Illius, AW & Jessup, NS (1996) Metabolic constraints on voluntary intake in ruminants. Journal of Animal Science 74, 3052–3062.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Isaac, G (1983) Aspects of human evolution. In Evolution from Molecules to Men, pp. 509–544 [Bendall, S, editor]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Isaac, G & Crader, D (1981) To what extent were early hominids carnivorous? An archaeological perspective. In Omnivorous Primates, pp. 37–103 [Harding, RSO and Teleki, G, editors]. New York: Columbia University Press.Google Scholar
Kyriazakis, I, Emmans, GC & Taylor, AJ (1993) A note on the diets selected by boars given a choice between two foods of different protein concentrations from 44 to 104 kg liveweights. Animal Production 54, 151–154.Google Scholar
Kyriazakis, I, Tolkamp, BJ & Emmans, G (1999) Diet selection and animal state: an integrative framework. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 58, 765–772.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leonard, WR (2000) Human nutritional evolution. In Human Biology. An Evolutionary and Biocultural Perspective, pp. 295–343 [Stinson, S, Bogin, B, Huss-Ashmore, R and O'Rourke, D, editors]. New York: Wiley-Liss.Google Scholar
Leonard, WR & Robertson, ML (1994) Evolutionary perspectives on human nutrition: the influence of brain and body size on diet and metabolism. American Journal of Human Biology 6, 77–88.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leonard, WR & Robertson, ML (1997) Rethinking the energetics of bipedality. Current Anthropology 38, 304–309.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Levi-Strauss, C (1970) The Raw and the Cooked. London: Cape.Google Scholar
Lewin, R (1998) Principles of Human Evolution. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Machida, H, Perkins, E & Giacometti, L (1967) The anatomical and histochemical properties of the tongue of primates. Folia Primatologica 5, 264–279.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Martin, RD (1993) Scaling. In The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Human Evolution, p. 42 [Jones, S, Martin, R and Pilbeam, D, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Mela, D (1996) Eating behaviour, food preferences and dietary intake in relation to obesity and body-weight status. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 55, 803–816.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mela, DJ & Catt, S (1996) Ontogeny of human taste and smell preferences and their implications for food selection. In Long-term Consequences of Early Environment. Growth, Development and the Lifespan Developmental Perspective, pp. 139–154 [Henry, CJK and Ulijaszek, SJ, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Milton, K (1987) Primate diets and gut morphology: implications for human evolution. In Food and Evolution: Toward a Theory of Human Food Habits, pp. 93–116 [Harris, M and Ross, EB, editors]. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.Google Scholar
Moore, MS (2000) Interactions between physical activity and diet in the regulation of body weight. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 59, 193–198.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mori, A (1979) An experiment on the relation between the feeding speed and the caloric intake through leaf eating in Japanese monkeys. Primates 20, 185–195.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nestle, M (1999) Animal v. plant foods in human diets and health: is the historical record unequivocal? Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 58, 211–218.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pelto, GH (1987) Social class and diet in contemporary Mexico. In Food and Evolution: Toward a Theory of Human Food Habits, pp. 517–540 [Harris, M and Ross, EB, editors]. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.Google Scholar
Pitroff, W & Kothmann, MM (1999) Regulation of intake and diet selection by herbivores. In Nutritional Ecology of Herbivores, pp. 366–422 [Jung, H-JG and Fahey JrG, C, editors]. Savoy, IL: American Society for Animal Science.Google Scholar
Poppitt, SD & Prentice, AM (1996) Energy density and its role in the control of food intake: evidence from metabolic and community studies. Appetite 26, 153–174.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ralph, A & James, WPT (1999) New understanding in obesity research. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 58, 385–393.Google Scholar
Richard, AF (1993) Food in a primate's life. In The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Human Evolution, p. 66 [Jones, S, Martin, R. and Pilbeam, D, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Rolls, BJ, Castellanos, VH, Halford, JC, Kilara, A, Panyam, D, Pelkman, CL, Smith, GP & Thorwart, ML (1998) Volume of food consumed affects satiety in men. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 67, 1170–1177.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rothwell, N & Stock, M (1982) Obesity and Leaness. London: John Libbey.Google Scholar
Schachter, S (1971) Some extraordinary facts about obese humans and rats. American Psychologist 26, 129–144.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schachter, S & Rodin, J (1974) Obese Humans and Rats. Washington, DC: Erlbaum/Halsted.Google Scholar
Shetty, PS (1993) Chronic undernutrition and metabolic adaptation. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 52, 267–284.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shipman, P (1983) Early hominid lifestyle: Hunting and gathering or foraging and scavenging. In Animals and Archaeology. vol. 1, Hunters and their Prey. British Archaeological Reports International Series, no.163, pp. 31–49 [Clutton-Brock, J and Grigson, C, editors]. London: British Archaeological Reports International.Google Scholar
Simmen, B & Hladik, CM (1998) Sweet and bitter taste discrimination in primates: scaling effects across species. Folia Primatologica 69, 129–138.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Speth, J (1991) Protein selection and avoidance strategies of contemporary and ancestral foragers: unresolved issues. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society 334, 265–270.Google ScholarPubMed
Spitzer, L & Rodin, J (1981) Human eating behavior: A critical review of studies in normal weight and overweight individuals. Appetite 2, 293–329.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stringer, CB (1993) Evolution of early humans In The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Human Evolution, pp. 241–242 [Jones, S, Martin, R and Pilbeam, D, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Stubbs, J (1998) Appetite, feeding behaviour and energy balance in human subjects. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 57, 341–356.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ulijaszek, SJ (1991) Human dietary change. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society 334, 271–279.Google ScholarPubMed
Ulijaszek, SJ (1992) Energetics methods in biological anthropology. Yearbook of Physical Anthropology 35, 215–242.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ulijaszek, SJ (1993) Seasonality of reproductive performance in rural Gambia. In Seasonality and Human Ecology, pp. 17–37 [Ulijaszek, SJ and Strickland, SS, editors]. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ulijaszek, SJ (1995) Human Energetics in Biological Anthropology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Ulijaszek, SJ (1996) Energetics, adaptation, and adaptability. American Journal of Human Biology 8, 169–182.3.0.CO;2-Y>CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ulijaszek, SJ & Strickland, SS (1993) Nutritional Anthropology. Prospects and Perspectives. London: Smith-Gordon.Google Scholar
Vrba, ES (1988) Late Pleistocene climatic events and hominid evolution. In Evolutionary History of the ‘Robust’ Australopithecines, pp. 405–426 [Grine, FE, editor]. Hawthorne, NY: Aldine.Google Scholar
Waterlow, JC (1986) Notes on the new estimates of energy requirements. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 45, 351–360.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
White, TD, Suwa, G & Asfaw, B (1994) Australopithecus ramidus, a new species of early hominid from Aramis, Ethiopia. Nature 371, 306–312.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wiessner, P (1996) Introduction: food, status, culture, and nature. In Food and the Status Quest, pp 1–18 [Wiessner, P and Schieffenhovel, W, editors]. Oxford: Berghahn Books.Google Scholar
Wood, B (1994) The oldest hominid yet. Nature 371, 280–281.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wood, B & Collard, M (1999) The human genus. Science 284, 65–71.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wrangham, RW, Jones, JH, Laden, G, Pilbeam, D & Conklin-Brittain, NL (1998) The raw and the stolen. Cooking and the ecology of human origins. Current Anthropology 40, 567–594.CrossRefGoogle Scholar