Summer 2002

A serving of history

Eat meat. That's the dietary advice from scientists who examined the role of fat in the diet of ancient hunter-gatherer societies.

But there's a catch: To be as healthy as a caveman you have to eat certain kinds of fish, wild game such as venison or grass-fed meat such as beef.

The research was conducted by Bruce Watkins, director of Purdue's Center for Enhancing Foods to Protect Health and Colorado State University anthropologist Loren Cordain, who did a chemical analysis of meats people ate 10,000 years ago and the most common meat people eat today.

They found that wild game, such as venison or elk meat as well as grass-fed beef, contain a mixture of fats that are healthy for you, lower cholesterol and reduce other chronic disease risks.

For the entire study, see the January issue of European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.