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Three Million Years Ago, Our Ancestors Were Vegetarian (www.wits.ac.za)

submitted 2 weeks ago by shreddy_scientist@lemmy.ml to c/science@lemmy.ml

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Human ancestors like Australopithecus – which lived around 3.5 million years ago in southern Africa – ate very little to no meat, according to new research published in the scientific journal Science. This conclusion comes from an analysis of nitrogen isotope isotopes in the fossilized tooth enamel of seven Australopithecus individuals. The data revealed that these early hominins primarily relied on plant-based diets, with little to no evidence of meat consumption.

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[–] shreddy_scientist@lemmy.ml 14 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Not exactly, Homo erectus and Neanderthal's both ate meat. The consumption of meat by Homo erectus was associated with a reduction in the size of the gut area due to consistently incorporating animal foods into their diet. Neanderthals were known to be skilled hunters as well. The biggest difference between us and our more recent ancestors is the truncation of a GTPase gene in our DNA, which led to the ability to have neurons grow on top of one another. Previously, neuron growth would be stopped when a neuron came into contact with another. So that's without question the biggest genetic feature that sets us apart.

[–] otp@sh.itjust.works 5 points 2 weeks ago

Fascinating! Thanks for sharing!