Hunter-gatherer diets weren’t always heavy on meat: Morocco study reveals a plant-based diet

By Zineb Moubtahij, Leiden University

About 11,000 years ago, humans made a major shift from hunting and gathering to farming. This change, known as the Neolithic Revolution, dramatically altered our diets.

For decades, scientists have thought that pre-agricultural human groups ate a lot of animal protein. But analysis has always been hampered by a scarcity of well-preserved human remains from Pleistocene sites. So, in fact, little is known about the dietary practices of that time.

I’m a a PhD candidate studying this subject in Morocco, and was part of a research team that uncovered some new insights into the Stone Age diet.

Using novel research techniques, we found evidence that our Late Stone Age hunter-gatherer ancestors in north Africa had a heavily plant-based diet, thousands of years before the advent of agriculture.

Most studies of pre-agricultural populations have been conducted at European and Asian Palaeolithic sites, so our understanding of the diet during this period has been largely based on findings from those regions. Our knowledge has also been limited by the poor preservation of certain materials in arid regions like north Africa.

Our research changes this. It challenges the long-held belief that hunter-gatherers primarily relied on animal protein, and adds to what’s known about pre-agricultural diets across different regions.

Chemical traces in bones and teeth

Imagine being able to tell what someone ate thousands of years ago just by examining their bones and teeth.

This is possible thanks to a fascinating technique called isotopic analysis. Isotopes are tiny chemical markers of the food we eat that get stored in our bones and teeth. They can be preserved for thousands of years. By studying them, we can learn directly about the diets of ancient humans.

Since the 1970s, scientists have used stable isotope analysis to learn about the diets and lifestyles of ancient human groups by analysing collagen protein in their bones. Collagen is a protein found in connective tissue, skin, tendon, bone, and cartilage. For example, carbon isotope analysis was used to detect the maize consumption of prehistoric people in North America.

https://theconversation.com/hunter-gatherer-diets-werent-always-heavy-on-meat-morocco-study-reveals-a-plant-based-diet-2309