How is the human flesh from a nutritional point of view? The cannibalism It has existed for millions of years. It's horrible, right? It is currently a taboo in our society. It is unthinkable. However, it was a practice carried out by our ancestors. And yes, there is evidence. For this reason, anthropologists, historians and scientists incessantly seek answers to understand their behavior. The most fascinating and most striking thing is that cannibal rituals survived the eldest cultural change of history.
Cannibalism in the Paleolithic
Findings found in Gran Dolina And The Cave of El Mirador en Atapuerca (Spain), in Gough's Cellar (United Kingdom), in Fontbregoua (France) and Herxheim (Germany) have several similarities. All the episodes happened from 20000 to 4000 years ago. In all of them humans used human skulls as goblets. Ritual practices that point to cannibalism. Palmira Saladie, researcher at Catalan Institute of Human Paleoecology and Evolution (IPHES) she is also bewildered. This behavior surprises him in such a long and transformative period:
“We see these practices in Paleolithic societies, which lived as hunter-gatherers, in the Neolithic [with the introduction of agriculture and livestock] and even in the Bronze Age, when metals were already being used. They are very long and different periods and we see a behavior that goes through everything. And we don't know why »
The accumulation of evidence of cannibalism during the Palaeolithic and Neolithic periods reveals that it was a frequent practice. The most desirable thing to stay calmer is that it was a question of survival. However, all research points to other causes. The cannibalistic acts could have been due to revenge in the struggles for control of certain territories with warmer climates and abundant water. Other theories also consider a ritual of affection to show respect to the dead as a way for them to continue among the living.
Human flesh: is it nutritious?
What is clear from a recent discovery is that human flesh is not very nutritious. That is, it is not so worth eating. In fact, jamescole, the author of a key study on the calorific importance of prehistoric cannibal episodes, corroborates this. Thus, he affirms that if we compare ourselves with other animals, we are not nutritious at all. One kilo of modern human contains 1400 calories while animals and beavers triple the amount (4000 calories). In addition, there are several diseases related to the consumption of human meat such as dry.
Hence the importance of Cole's study, since the practice of cannibalism is discarded as a need. Unlike modern humans who, in most cases in which cannibalism has been practiced, it has been for sheer survival. A very prominent case was that of the Uruguayan rugby team in The Andes. They suffered a plane crash and they were stranded in the mountains. It took them 72 days to rescue them and, therefore, they had no choice but to resort to the cannibalism of their dead companions to survive.
Cannibalism during the Russian famine of 1921 https://t.co/65NeG9V0fl pic.twitter.com/146Jipa3e6
- Caalf (@ Caalf01) September 27, 2021
Cannibalism is currently a taboo in our society and it only occurs in extreme cases like the one previously reported. Although James Cole's study is enlightening, the exact motivations of our Paleolithic ancestors. If you want to know more about this prehistoric mystery, we recommend reading «Don't be a Neanderthal! And other stories about human evolution. The author, Sang-Hee Lee, talks about all the theories about cannibalism. Nor is it that we incite you to anything, you have many other meats to choose from!
