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The significant change in his diet was the inclusion of meat in his meals in the history of man evolution. This is believed to have occurred about 2.6 million years ago. The human ancestors began consuming large portions of meat from animals because of the emergence of the genus homo. Isotopic and archaeological remains evidence of this. Evidence shows that before our ancestors’ diet changed toward meat, the genus homo diet was plant foods and with very small amounts of meat and insects.
The expansion of brains in genus homo has been closely associated with meat consumption that supplemented their diet. The scavenging activities, as well as energy metabolism, contributed to their brain size increase. The cooperative behavior of hunting and storing the meat that of the animals they hunted allowed them to experience brain enlargement.
Evidence from Koobi fora archaeological site in Kenya shows that humans butchered aquatic animals as far as 1.95 million years ago. Some of the animals believed to have been consumed by our ancestors around there are fish, crocodiles, turtle, turtle, and other animals that dwell on the land. Furthermore, aquatic animal meat enabled the genus home brain to increase. This is due to the minerals contained in aquatic meat that promotes brain growth.
Generally, growing brain size requires a lot of energy for growth and maintenance. The available evidence shows increased brain capacity of the genus homo. As the brains of these ancestors grew, their guts reduced in size. The brain growth of the genus homo is attributed to the fact that they started consuming a lot of meat from the large animals.
Many of the features seen in genus homo have been linked with meat-eating. The reduced size of their guts and teeth indicates they consumed a lot of meat. The consumption of meat enabled these ancestors to have an increase in body size as well as brain size.
Archaeologists discovered a skull remains of an infant in Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania. The analysis concluded that the infant might have died due to a malnutrition form mainly seen diets that are poor in meat. In addition, the bone lesions seen in that fossil are porotic hyperostosis. This results from a lack of vitamin B12 and B9. Furthermore, this nutritional deficiency type is mainly seen from weaning kids or shifting to solid food. The analysis indicates that the infant died due to lack of meat that consists of vitamin B. Therefore, this indicates that no brain development could exist with no meat consumption. The skull has been associated with the genus homo.
The size of the gut is related to the amount of food and its digestibility. The diet associated with large quantities and low digestibility will require large guts and a big stomach for fermentation. On the other side, quality food that is easily digestible will require small guts. In addition, it requires a small stomach and small colons. The genus homo had reduced guts and also a tiny stomach, and the researchers have associated this with quality food that incorporated consumption of the meat they were hunting.
The use of tools by the genus homo to hunt or the scavenging of large dead animals for food greatly affected their energy input. Their energy intake was improved. Furthermore, this improved their diet. Also, it led to changed cranium dental anatomy and reduced guts. It also promoted food adequacy through the consumption of less at frequent times. Since our ancestors had food now in the form of meat that had been hunted, they got enough time to stay together as a family where parents would have long time interaction within their children.
Conclusion
The emergence of large brain size of the genus homo can be concluded to have resulted from the complex interacting web of forces. Nutrition, especially meat consumption, has been described as one of the major contributing factors. However, other activities like interaction, hunting have played an essential role in enhancing the growth of big brain size among the genus homo ancestors. Furthermore, this also appears to indicate that metabolism fuel that promoted the evolution of large brains was mainly based on a proper diet supplemented by meat. Generally, the overall brain size and body size are mostly tied to food. Also, they are associated with the life pattern history of early human beings. The ability to make improved tools by genus homo that were used in hunting changed their life as far as diet was concerned. The tools reduced time for chewing the meat and also hunting time. They would hunt large animals and keep meat to eat slowly that offered them enough time for interaction and sharing. Furthermore, with the reduction of the forest cover on the earth’s surface, the genus homo needed high brain capacity and ways of foraging within an area where dangers from predators were increasing. Therefore, the incorporation of meat in the diet of early human beings significantly improved their lives throughout the evolution process.
References
Domínguez-Rodrigo, Manuel, et al. “On meat-eating and human evolution: A taphonomic analysis of BK4b (Upper Bed II, Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania), and it’s bearing on hominin megafaunal consumption.” Quaternary International 322 (2014): 129-152.
Zink, Katherine D., and Daniel E. Lieberman. “Impact of meat and Lower Palaeolithic food processing techniques on chewing in humans.” Nature 531.7595 (2016): 500-503.