In a message dated 9/16/02 2:12:46 PM, Todd Moody <[log in to unmask]
writes:

<< Eating stomach contents of prey is a
known practice among predators, including human hunters. >>

This argument certainly makes sense to me, but one thing you have neglected
to point out is that this arguably Paleo food would only have been available
seasonally, not all year round. (Honey is also a Paleo food, but also would
only have been available in limited amounts, at certain times of the year,
and we all know the dangers involved in securing this sweet treat in any
substantial quantity.)

Suckling animals would have probably only been around in the Spring, and
given the fierceness and caution most animals use in protecting their young,
they may not have been a very frequent source of food. The milk in the mother
is produced "on demand" by the suckling of the baby, so I don't think much
milk could have been gotten from killing the mother.

I find it noteworthy that virtually all of the most highly allergenic foods
are Neolithic foods such as wheat, corn, milk (pasteurized and homogenized,
from grain-fed, hormone and antibiotic laced cows), peanuts, soy, MSG, etc.

Next down the list we find allergies to seasonal foods such as certain tree
nuts, eggs, strawberries, citrus fruits, shellfish, (nowadays many of these
are farmed) peppers, tomatoes, etc.

The least allergenic foods are fresh meats, because (I believe) this is the
type of food that would have been most readily available all year-round
during Paleo times. Fruits such as apples and pears ripen in the Fall, (and
perhaps tubers such as yams) store better, and are less allergenic than some
of the more delicate summer fruits like strawberries. Those not genetically
equipped to survive well on foods available during the Fall and Winter would
be less likely to survive to pass on their genes.

This is not an all-inclusive list, but meant to point out a trend. We might
look to the prevalence of food allergies in the general population as a very
loose guide to what we consider Paleo. We might also pay more attention to
seasonal eating for better health, with fewer food allergies.

Maddy Mason
Hudson Valley, NY