Human movement in paleolithic times\hunter gatherer times

Hunter gatherers from South America were visiting continental
America a few years ago and on seeing people exercising in a park
could not understand why they would do that. They (the “visitors”
) thought exercise was ridiculous! It was an alien concept to them.

Modern and paleolithic hunter gatherers do no exercise or work as
such – the only work was getting food, shelter, having off spring,
helping the tribe to survive etc.

Getting food, for hunters, was search, stalk\chase, kill, butcher,
carry. For foragers, a similar cycle.

There were no trains, planes & automobiles etc. Getting around
is exclusively by walking, running and all out sprinting
occassionally. When food became scarce and it became to far to walk
back to camp that day then the camp was shifted by a migratory walk
carrying the few possessions hunter gathers have. Adults also got to
carry small children.

Shelter for a hunter gatherer is little aside from a roof and
maybe some walls there is little else except the ground. Furniture is
a modern idea. Any conveninent logs, rocks and the ground are all
there is in the way of furniture to sit on in a hunter gathers world.
Sleep is on the ground or maybe on flat mats. Toilet seats don't
exist except, depending on your anthropometry and range of motion,
the back of your calves when in the squatting position.

Resting postures, there are many... well there is a little
information available there thanks to anthropology.

Studies on recent and still living hunter gathers gives us some
good information. Archeological information on such things is more
limited but there are clues from preserved tools\weapons, skeletons
of ancestors and prey etc. For example, tool making means
manipulation using hands, elbow, shoulder, with support provided by
torso etc and in some cases support or actions by the other hand in
others unilateral action. Evidence of muscular development can be
obtained from skeletal remains which includes more pronounced and
differing development of muscles on left versus right arms etc.

In relation to primal-paleo like diets, it is clear from both
recent hunter gatherers and our ancestors that there were ranges of
diets, with some seasonal variation and particularly with variation
that depends on the distance of the HG population from the equator.
For example, traditional eskimo versus equatorial HG. It should be no
surprise that the human movement patterns amongst hunter gatherers
also show variation (but within limits so that trends may be
observed).

Hunting involves the stages of search, stalk\chase, kill,
butcher, carry and eat. For example, “persistance” hunting
occurs in a few hot parts of the world where the human hunter with a
superior thermoregulatory system, uses this advantage, to run the
prey into the ground over a prolonged time frame involving hours and
then moves in for the kill. Hunters will often eat some of the prey
at the site where the carcass is cut up. It all has to be carried
back to base anyway, so why not carry some in the stomach. This also
facilitates nutrition for the purposes of recovery from exertion. In
the case of persistance hunting, blood drinking is often noted –
whilst it may seem unpalatable to us – it is interesting to note
that blood is a rich source of sodium (which is lost during
sweating). For example, bovine blood contains about0.3g/100 ml. So, a
300ml cup of bovine blood would contain around ~1g of sodium. Modern
“sports “ drinks contain around ~0.3g sodium per cup.

The more usual hunting method involves a shorter stalk\chase
period under an hour, followed by a short stealthy stalk or a chase
leading to a kill etc.If the kill does not occur straight away then
there may be a further tracking\chase phase until the animal dies or
is killed.

Considering the overall movement patterns (ie the overall trend ),
deviations outside the range of human requirements and limitations
would be anticipated to lead to ill-health (&injury).

Whilst some journalists and ignorant people allege that the
primal- paleo movement requires its practitioners to go and live in
caves, make spears and hunt mammals, that is clearly not the case.
Most of us would not want to. That's why I call this blog Space Age
Paleo. Mimicking the essential elements of movement does not mean
prescriptive replication of the HG way of life. Although, I suppose
if you were intensely motivated and were prepared to drop out of
society you could do that.

Human movement is that which occurs through out the day and night.
This includes consideration of exercise, non-exercise activity (the
rest of the day) and sleep. The first step is to categorize and
weight the types\range of “natural” human movements.

 

Rooibus Tea

Aspalathus linearis is the botannical name for the difficult to grow bush whose dried leaves are used to make the tea also known as Red Tea, Redbush Tea, Bush tea, Mountain tea, Long life tea, South African red tea, or Rooibos Tea. The rooibos ("red bush") is a shrub with needle-shaped leaves that grows in South Africa in the Cederberg region.

I was surprised to learn that the Khoisans, the native bushpeople from that region are said to have harvested the leaves from this plant (supposedly) for centuries. It is said that they ate the leaves for the taste and the plant was used as a herbal remedy. The Khoisan have no written records per se and talk about there ancestors having done this going back to early times. Now to put a time on what this means is difficult.

Herbal remedies and plant usage are poorly retained in the archeological record- they rot unless exceptional condition are present, primitive humans also ate and digested the evidence. Finally, social evolution (ie verbal passing down of herbal remedies 100,000 to 10,000 years ago) is very difficult to detect in archeological evidence.

Overall, we tend to underestimate the sophistication of prehistoric culture because any evidence that remains is subtle. For example, going back to the dawn of agriculture arguments about whether or not various monuments were aligned with certain constellations etc took decades to become accepted and is still not accepted by some archeologists.

Rooibus is without caffeine and contains various phytonutrients - nutritional break downs of the ingredients also list various micronutrients but really these are present in minor amounts given the amount of tea actually used and then consumed in the beverage.

The traditional method of Rooibus preparation would result in a very dilute tea solution ie some people in the Cederberg area are said to have "always" made the tea as follows.

1. Boil the water and pour 1 cup over the leaves.
2. Let it stand for several minutes, drain off the water,
3. then fill the pot with boiling water and allow it to infuse for 15 minutes.
4. You may then put it on the stove (ie assuming a metal kettle or pot) and bring it to the boil several times until you have consumed the contents of the pot.

I put some tea into the pot and fill with boiling water or even use rooibus tea bags. In a previous post I mentioned that it can be consumed with a teaspoon or so of coconut milk if you wish.

In summary, Rooibus tea has been being consumed in one form or another for a minimum of several hundred years. It is said to have been rediscovered by a german botanist in 1772. It may have been consumed as a herb out of the hand and as a tea since antiquity. It is really impossible to say whether or not it could have been consumed as a herb during paleolithic times. It has no ingredients that appear to be toxic in the amounts consumed when drinking the tea and there are no documented instances of toxicity directly attributed to the tea (ie none I have found, anyway).

Rooibus is worth a try as a good non-caffeinated hot beverage, if you like the flavour worth drinking as a safer substitute for ordinary green tea or coffee. Personally, I find it quite refreshing and having tried every other tea\coffee substitute out there was pleased to find it. Not pure paleo but a practical option that appears to be consistent with paleo\primal practices.

Coconut gelatin coffee OR coconut gelatin rooibus tea

A quick look through the literature will tell you that coffee is simply not paleo\primal. See here

To make coffee you need the beans, a means of roasting and pulverising them, fire to boil your water, a means of filtering the coffee (or going ala Turkish) and some pots\cups or similar to contain your water and tea. This technology only developed in the last few thousand years so it is not possible for coffee to be a pure paleo choice. Maybe our ancestors chewed on the odd coffee bean here or there. That would only be when the beans were on the plant in season and incidental to hunting and foraging activities as coffee is not a food per se. How many beans at a time? How many days of the years? Answer: maybe none. IF they did eat the beans, then not many and not often. From the coffee drinkers point of view this is the optimistic best case scenario and it is still quite different to the dose a coffee drinker gets: ie a small handful of beans pulverised to maximise extraction of the active ingredient which is consumed one or more times on a daily basis. Coffee drinking is just not pure paleo.

If you do like coffee then it is best to consume small quantities (eg a cup) near start of day.. that way it will less likely interfere with sleep. Consider going for one of the varieties with a moderate amount of caffeine- a smaller dose will be cleared through the body more effectively before bed time. It is a stimulant and so if elimination is not an option then moderation is the next best thing.

My version of morning coffee is as follows. I often have gelatin and coconut milk\MCT oil (medium chain triglyceride oil) for "breakfast". I may or may not have lunch.

The gelatin increases your protein intake a little for the day (ie 5-10g) with a bonus of a bit more of certain amino acids that you do not get in lean meat (not unless you eat the gristle\connective tissue, anyway). The coconut and MCT oil give you some reasonably healthy fats as a fuel. You can miss out the coconut milk and just use MCT but mixing the gelatin is trickier.

Approximate amounts are as follows:

flat teaspoon instant coffee (pick a good brand here for flavour, moderate caffeine, safe processing)

flat teaspoon of gelatin

MCT oil teaspoon + tablespoon of coconut milk

You add the coconut/mct oil and then add a teaspoon of gelatin and mix up to a paste. Wait for kettle to boil and slowly add hot water stirring. You will find the gelatin disolves pretty well.

If you don't like coffee then this works ok with Rooibus tea. Make the tea in a second cup and pour the brewed tea into your prepared cup with the gelatin-mct\cocounut paste in it.

Rooibus tea ... might write some more about it on another occassion.

Happy drinking.

　

Some contemporary published research on paleo diets

Here is a list of published research on contemporary Paleo diets ie where people have been fed paleo type diets and the effects measured and compared with the "standard" diet (ie one a dietician have you eat). There are many, many more studies on hunter gathers - both historical and ones undertaken in recent times.

Frassetto LA, Schloetter M, Mietus-Synder M, Morris RC, Jr., Sebastian A: Metabolic and physiologic improvements from consuming a paleolithic, hunter-gatherer type diet. Eur J Clin Nutr 2009.

Frassetto LA, Shi L, Schloetter M, Sebastian A, Remer T.Established dietary estimates of net acid production do not predict measured net acid excretion in patients with Type 2 diabetes on Paleolithic-Hunter-Gatherer-type diets. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2013 Sep;67(9):899-903.

Fontes-Villalba M, Jönsson T, Granfeldt Y, Frassetto LA, Sundquist J, Sundquist K, Carrera-Bastos P, Fika-Hernándo M, Picazo O, Lindeberg S. A healthy diet with and without cereal grains and dairy products in patients with type 2 diabetes: study protocol for a random-order cross-over pilot study – Alimentation and Diabetes in Lanzarote -ADILAN. Trials. 2014 Jan 2;15(1):2

Jönsson T, Granfeldt Y, Ahrén B, Branell UC, Pålsson G, Hansson A, Söderström M, Lindeberg S.. Beneficial effects of a Paleolithic diet on cardiovascular risk factors in type 2 diabetes: a randomized cross-over pilot study. Cardiovasc Diabetol. 2009;8:35

Jonsson T, Granfeldt Y, Erlanson-Albertsson C, Ahren B, Lindeberg S. A Paleolithic diet is more satiating per calorie than a Mediterranean-like diet in individuals with ischemic heart disease. Nutr Metab (Lond). 2010 Nov 30;7(1):85

Jönsson T, Granfeldt Y, Lindeberg S, Hallberg AC.Subjective satiety and other experiences of a Paleolithic diet compared to a diabetes diet in patients with type 2 diabetes. Nutr J. 2013 Jul 29;12:105.

Lindeberg S, Jonsson T, Granfeldt Y, Borgstrand E, Soffman J, Sjostrom K, Ahren B: A Palaeolithic diet improves glucose tolerance more than a Mediterranean-like diet in individuals with ischaemic heart disease. Diabetologia 2007, 50(9):1795-1807.

Mellberg, C., Sandberg, S., Ryberg, M., Eriksson, M., Brage, S., Larsson, C., et al. (2014). Long-term effects of a Palaeolithic-type diet in obese postmenopausal women: a 2-year randomized trial. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. doi:10.1038/ejcn.2013.290

O’Dea K: Marked improvement in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism in diabetic Australian aborigines after temporary reversion to traditional lifestyle. Diabetes 1984, 33(6):596-603. [see below]

Osterdahl M, Kocturk T, Koochek A, Wandell PE: Effects of a short-term intervention with a paleolithic diet in healthy volunteers. Eur J Clin Nutr 2008, 62(5):682-685.

Ryberg M, Sandberg S, Mellberg C, Stegle O, Lindahl B, Larsson C, Hauksson J, Olsson T. A Palaeolithic-type diet causes strong tissue-specific effects on ectopic fat deposition in obese postmenopausal women. J Intern Med. 2013 Jul;274(1):67-76

I was at the Baker Institute when K. O'Dea was doing her work on carb & fat metabolism in diabetic Australian aborigines going on walkabout mentioned above. I'd grown up in the city and country including farming, hunted, fished and the great outdoors - O'Dea's research was inspirational, however, what was obvious to me was not to others and and I transitioned away from heart disease research and into work involving industrial maladies and disease.

Why space age paleo ?

Why space age paleo? Why not.

 The real reason is that 10 years (?) ago I was struck by Art de Vany's quote that we are spacemen living in stone age bodies. What Art, whom I have never had the pleasure of meeting, was getting at is that our way of life and environment (diet being but one aspect ) has changed greatly since the stone age but our bodies have not. Our genes optimal functioning has been designed by evolution around a hunter gatherer lifestyle where we

- walked searching food for  ~8-16kilometres/day,
- we killed\dig up, carried food back to camp,
- we had to bend, squate, twist, push, pull, lift, carry etc as needed in such an environment.

The food was fruit, vegetables, fish and meat - all unprocessed, although, for a few hundred thousand years some of it was cooked on a fire.

Day was lit.

Night was dark except for stars and firelight.

Drink meant water.

Fight or flight existed from time to time.

Natural selection occurred based on the ability of our human ancestors to be "fit enough"to survive predation and starvation under these conditions.

The blog is "space age" paleo because its about how sensibly adapting paleo onto a modern lifestyle using what I've picked up along the way myself and what I have learnt from others whilst endeavouring to keep it pure paleo or explaining to the reader it is a shortcut and is not paleo.

Many other practitioners do not make this difference and it causes confusion.