Entries in carnivory (1)

Wednesday
Apr252012

Carnivory shortened breast-feeding periods during human evolution

A recent news report on the impact of carnivory in human evolution begins with a blunt statement:

Carnivory is behind the evolutionary success of humankind. 

Hunting is known to have been a crucial event in human evolution. According to Science Daily:

Learning to hunt was a decisive step in human evolution. Hunting necessitated communication, planning and the use of tools, all of which demanded a larger brain. At the same time, adding meat to the diet made it possible to develop this larger brain.

However, developmental psychologist Elia Psouni, lead author of a new report published in PLoS ONE, points to another crucial role of carnivory:

... the strong connection between meat eating and the duration of breast-feeding... Eating meat enabled the breast-feeding periods and thereby the time between births, to be shortened. This must have had a crucial impact on human evolution."

Learn more at Science Daily and PLoS ONE.