Then and now
The resulting dietary profile bears some resemblance to what nutritionists
recommend today. For instance, we are constantly being urged to cut our
intake of fat, particularly saturated fat, and to eat more fruits and
vegetables. Nutritionists also advise us to eat fresh, whole foods instead
of highly processed products.

But there are also significant differences. We are urged to cut back on
meat, but our ancestors evolved eating plenty of lean meat. We view
cholesterol as an evil, but Paleolithic people probably consumed more
cholesterol than we do. The dietary pyramid recommends that we eat up to 11
servings of breads and cereals a day, but our ancestors ate little grain. We
are prodded to increase our intake of milk, but early man consumed no dairy
products.

James Braly, a medical doctor in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., who specializes in
clinical nutrition and food allergies, said early man's diet sheds light on
the food allergies and sensitivities that afflict many people. Two of the
most common culprits -- gluten grains and dairy products -- make up a high
percentage of our caloric intake, he noted.
"I think we're overdosing on grains in general as our carbohydrate," he
said. "Paleolithically, fresh vegetables and fruits were our source of
carbohydrates. The change just overwhelms our diet in terms of fiber and
calories."

Braly added that dairy products, which became part of the human diet about
5,000 years ago, are "probably the most allergic of all products in children
and adults."

Allergies aside, about 70 percent of human adults are lactose-intolerant,
meaning they can't digest the carbohydrate in milk. But most people of
Northern European heritage are able to digest lactose. This is one of the
few examples of an evolutionary change that has occurred since Paleolithic
times.