Posted on 02/07/2008 4:21:23 PM PST by blam
Big Mac: The Whole World On Your Plate
ScienceDaily (Feb. 7, 2008) — A burger and fries may be the quintessential North American meal but it can also be viewed as the perfect example of humanity's increasingly varied diet, according to researchers who have conducted a unique study of the plants used around the world for food.
In the first-ever study of the "phylogenetic distribution" of the human diet, University of Calgary plant evolutionary ecologist Jana Vamosi, working with a team led by Serban Proches from Stellenbosch University in South Africa, found that humans likely stand alone when it comes to the spectrum of species we consume. Our ability to process food combined with an insatiable hunger for new tastes and international trade systems has also led to food becoming the ultimate product of a globalized society.
"Generally speaking, we eat very broadly from the tree of life," Vamosi said. "Others have looked at the sheer number of plant species we consume but nobody has ever examined whether the plants we eat are clustered in certain branches. It turns out that they are not."
In a paper published in the journal BioScience, the researchers examined more than 7,000 plant species commonly eaten by people to determine the origins and evolutionary relationships of the various plants that comprise humankind's menu. In addition to confirming the incredible number of species that are regularly eaten, they found that we chow down on members of a remarkably high number of plant families known to biology.
As a case study, the scientists analyzed the ingredients of a simple fast food meal -- a McDonald's Big Mac, French fries and a cup of coffee -- to illustrate how the average human diet in developed nations is more diverse than ever before. From potatoes that were first domesticated in South America to mustard that was developed in India, onions and wheat that originated in the Middle East and coffee from Ethiopia, they found the meal contained approximately 20 different species and ingredients that originated around the world. This leads to the conclusion that "a Big Mac is an apt symbol of globalization."
"That a single meal contains about 20 species is impressive, given that some human societies -- those that are largely unaffected by current globalization trend -- commonly include only 50 to 100 plant species in their entire diet," the paper states.
Vamosi says the study raises myriad questions about the diversity and nutritional aspects of the human diet that will be the subject of future investigations.
"Certainly, including many fruits and vegetables in your diet is something that has been encouraged by nutritionists for some time. However eating carrots and celery, for example, provides you with nutrients from the same plant family, as do apples, pears, apricots, peaches, raspberries and blackberries. Indeed broccoli, kale and cauliflower are actually a single species," Vamosi said.
"Eating lots of different produce might not actually provide you with a phylogenetically diverse diet, and whether that's important for providing maximum nutritional value remains to be seen."
The study also argues that steps to protect the diversity of human food plants may have to be taken as globalization and industrial-scale agriculture gradually leads to more uniform diets for the world's population overall.
"Individually we are probably eating a greater range of plant species than our ancestors, but the loss of indigenous knowledge and regional cuisines may mean that as a species our diet is becoming increasing focussed on a few plant species, and indeed a few varieties of those species" states coauthor John Wilson.
"The fact that we do eat so broadly indicates that we enjoy many different flavours and combinations of flavours and also indicates that many plants that we don't eat likely have some sort of culinary value that we just haven't discovered yet," Vamosi said. "Maintaining plant diversity ensures that we will continue to have the current flavours that we enjoy available to us and will also preserve other potential food sources into the future."
The paper "Plant Diversity in the Human Diet: Weak Phylogenetic Signal Indicates Breadth" by Serban Proches, John R. U. Wilson, Jana C. Vamosi and David M. Richardson is published in the February, 2008 issue of the journal BioScience.
Adapted from materials provided by University of Calgary, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
Just a few days ago I had Kudu, Zebra, Crocodile, Ostrich and Chicken at dinner. The chicken was tough. The Croc tasted like greasy fish. Everything else was fine.
I get these weird cravings for veggies I didn’t like as a kid. Stuff like eggplant, beets, cauliflower, etc.....but I have to start with the raw produce.
I wonder if McDonald’s freedom fries still have “beef squeezins”?
Sounds like you may have eaten a croc out of season (like they do with oysters and months containing the letter "R").
Never eat a crocodile unless it was 'harvested' during a month whose name contains the letter "W".
I have heard that the crocs were so successful in 'harvesting' gnus to the point where the gnus had to change their species name to "wildebeest" and appeal to liberals to officially declare them victims.
"I am NOT a gnu....and if anyone says otherwise, that's old gnus/news."
I was introduced to Mike's Chili Cheese Burger and Garlic Fries in 1954 and I was hooked. Mike's has been in operation since 1946 in Eureka Ca.
the gnus had to change their species name to “wildebeest” and appeal to liberals to officially declare them victims.
Hmm. That’s a gnu one on me!
I gnu you would say that.
So how does crocodile compare to alligator (taste wise, if you don’t count the greasiness)? I’ve enjoyed the few times I’ve had alligator. Also, how were the Kudu and zebra cooked (in case I ever have the chance to cook some)?
Never had alligator so I can’t compare the two. The Zebra and Kudu tasted like steak. I ordered it medium rare.
So they were cooked as steaks and not incorporated into other dishes. Interesting. I’d love to try them some day. I really enjoy trying different kinds of meat. About the only one I haven’t really cared for very much to this point was water buffalo. It had a fairly beef-like flavor, but it was extremely lean and very dry (even after having been cooked in a crock pot).
When I was pregnant I craved squash. I would go to a diner that served vegetable plates and order the 3 vegetable platter (squash, squash and squash). I hate squash.
But I never liked broccoli or other vegetables I like now. Or turnip greens, I hated them as an adult and now I slobber over a bowl of them and some cornbread. Why do we do that? I mean crave vegetables I never liked before.
Yep. They also had a spread for bread called gnutella. I hear it’s pretty gnutritious.
I bought a gnuspaper on the street just to see what was going on. Nothing gnu there.
A guy on the street told me they’re getting a gnuclear power plant soon. I asked watts the matter with the plant they had. Not enough horsepower? He told me gnutrons were more efficient.
I haven’t been here long. They call me the gnu guy around here. They say I’m pretty punny but being a gnubie is hard on the ego. Lots to learn. I’m not buffaloed though. I learn fast. I’m not lion!
From what I hear the American Bison is extra lean also. Tends to be dry and needs some preparation to make it palatable.
Month with the letter “W”? In what language?
What? You never heard of Winter?
Oh that month!Sheesh, I need to return to school and relearn what a month is then!!
That's the whole idea behind the rule. There is no month name, in English, that contains a "W".
There are many who suspect that covert crocodiles promulgated (I have to pause here and picture a crocodile promulgating) this rule.
If the saying "You are what you eat" is true, then it's obvious that the crocs are dining on too many liberals........NAH! Let 'em eat!
Sure! And there’s the month of Wotan, soon to be renamed Wahabi in Britain!
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