The word "ancestral" usually evokes ancient civilizations like the Egyptian or Mesopotamian cultures that existed over 5,000 years ago. Or perhaps, it reminds us of the indigenous cultures that started arriving to America approximately 30,000 years ago. However, in reality, our earliest homo-sapiens ancestors began to roam our planet over 300,000 years ago. Moreover, our homo-erectus ancestors appeared approximately 1,800,000 years ago, and by that time, they were already living in communities with social structures, communicating through sounds, crafting tools, mastering fire, and hunting in organized groups. In fact, the human lineage diverged from the lineage of chimpanzees and bonobos in the African plains about 6 million years ago.
Looking at these numbers, it's evident that what we know as history is just a very small part of our time on Earth as a species. In particular, the introduction of agriculture occurred approximately 10,000 years ago, representing the last 3% of our existence as homo-sapiens and only 0.5% if we include the homo-erectus in the calculation. As explained later, this event marked a dramatic change for our species in many aspects, for better and for worse.
Before agriculture, our ancestors lived in tribes of no more than 150 people, where everyone knew each other and interacted as a large family. In fact, the concept of nuclear family and marriage did not exist, and children belonged to the entire tribe. Societies were strictly egalitarian, and the role of women was as important as that of men, though each had specific functions. They were nomads, living without much planning for the future; hunting, gathering, sharing with the tribe, and resting. They had few personal belongings, and nature was their home. Whenever possible, they favored eating animals, especially big ones due to their high-fat content and their organs, unparalleled sources of nutrients. They complemented this with fruits and some roots and tubers. They lived constantly in the present moment, and their days were filled with physical activity and community. There were so many resources that conflicts between tribes were minimal, and it was a time of abundance and stability.
There is a deeply rooted belief about life expectancy during this time. It is often said that people lived much fewer years on average, but this is a misinterpretation of the data. It is true that the average life expectancy was much lower back then than today, but this result includes infant deaths during childbirth and premature deaths from infections, hunting accidents, and natural disasters. Thanks to modern science and medicine, these causes have significantly decreased, resulting in a much higher average today. However, what's interesting is that it has been demonstrated that individuals who survived such causes during the Paleolithic times often lived past 80 years.
Approximately 10,000 years ago, agriculture came into play and changed everything. Tribes no longer had to continuously move to hunt and gather, allowing them to settle in strategic locations, accumulate wealth, and protect it. This inevitably led to land ownership hierarchies and the creation of social castes. The balance between genders was disrupted, and in most cultures, power was assumed by men, relegating women to procreative roles. Private property was created, and people began to specialize. This new order allowed for the optimization of resources and freed up time for thought, innovation, and the creation of greater wealth. Things were never going to be the same again.
The quality of food dramatically declined. People began consuming significant amounts of wheat, barley, and other cereals which, in addition to being nutritionally poor, have the capacity to damage the intestinal wall and promote chronic inflammation. Our species had never eaten grass seeds, and we simply did not have the biological machinery to process them. Archaeological data shows how, from that point on, the average height of humans began to decrease, as did the quality of their teeth and bones. It has even been proven that the average size of the brain began to decrease, which supports the theory that access to meat, organs, and animal fat allowed for sufficient nutrient density, enabling our brains to grow in response to tool use and the introduction of complex language.
On one hand, agriculture provided us with a virtually unlimited source of calories, but on the other hand, these calories had very low nutritional quality. This was enough to make the population grow exponentially but significantly decreased their health and life expectancy. Our genes were still programmed for pre-agricultural nomadic environments, but now the environment was completely different. The problem is that evolution takes an immense amount of time to catch up.
Jumping 10,000 years to the present, we have developed some small genetic changes to adapt, but essentially, we remain the same humans adapted to the nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle. We are still immersed in sedentary societies, highly dependent on agriculture, but now with the added factor that technology has given us access to new processed foods previously unknown. Refined oils and margarines developed in the mid-20th century flooded the food market and are now present everywhere. Refined sugars, flours, and chemical additives abound. People are moving less and have lost touch with their bodies and nature. We are routinely taught to fear meat, animal fats, and the sun. Our controlled environments have made us weak and do not encourage our bodies to adapt and to be resilient. Chronic and mental illness rates increase each year, and obesity and diabetes rates are soaring.
Faced with this bleak outlook, the ancestral approach emerges, seeking to look back at how our ancestors lived to correct our environments and make decisions that allow us to align with our genes in the best possible way without necessarily giving up all the benefits of modern life. It is a fact that our dietary foundation must change, and we must provide our bodies with what they evolved to consume. We must accept that humans are omnivorous animals and build diets with a preference for animal products and supplements of unprocessed fruits and vegetables. We also need to move throughout the day, honor rest and sleep, connect with nature, enjoy the sun, connect in person with our tribe, and find meaningful work that allows us to grow and find fulfillment and satisfaction in contributing to others.
This is precisely the approach I used to regain my health, and it now forms the foundation for making decisions in my life and advising and guiding my clients towards health and fulfillment. If you want to delve into this world and try the ancestral lifestyle, you are in the right place. Take the plunge and schedule a trial appointment, and let's take a journey to the past.
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