On Thu, 17 Dec 1998, Jacques Laurin wrote:

> Todd Moody wrote:
>
> > This is adaptation.  Note that it works in the other direction as
> > well.  When a population is no longer making extensive use of a
> > particular food, lack of tolerance for that food is no longer
> > very disadvantageous, so the genes/mutations that cause that
> > intolerance can increase.
> >
>
> Tolerance and adaptation,
> I am puzzled about the use of those two words as almost synonymous. I thought
> tolerance was somekind of a resignation of the body (stopping to show the signs of
> rebellion) to repetitive aggession... I guess it can be called adaptation, but of a
> genetical order, I'm not so sure...

I'm not sure why you thought this about tolerance.  To the extent
that one is adapted to a food, one tolerates it.  There are
degrees of adaptation and degrees of tolerance.  Persistance of
the lactase enzyme into adulthood means increased tolerance for
dairy foods, though not necessarily *perfect* tolerance.

Perhaps you are thinking of tolerance as it is sometimes applied
to drug addicts who, tolerate greater doses of the drug even as
they need greater doses to get the desired effect.

Todd Moody
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