From
How humans are not
physically created to eat meat
Although some historians and
anthropologists say that man is historically omnivorous, our anatomical
equipment teeth, jaws, and digestive system favors a fleshless
diet. The American Dietetic Association notes
that "most of mankind
for most of human history has lived on vegetarian or near-vegetarian
diets."
And much of the world still
lives that way. Even on
most industrialized countries, the love affair with meat is less than a hundred
years old. It started
with the refrigerator car and the twentieth-century consumer society.
But even with the twentieth century, man's body hasn't adapted to eating meat.
The prominent Swedish scientist Karl von Linne states, "Man's structure, external and internal,
compared with that of the other animals, shows that fruit and succulent
vegetables constitute his natural food." The chart below compares
the anatomy of man with that of carnivorous and herbivorous animals.
When you look at the comparison between herbivores
and humans, we compare much more closely to herbivores than meat eating animals.
Humans are clearly not
designed to digest and ingest meat.
Meat-eaters: have claws
Herbivores: no claws
Humans: no claws
Meat-eaters: have no skin pores and perspire through the tongue
Herbivores: perspire through skin pores
Humans: perspire through skin pores
Meat-eaters: have sharp front teeth for tearing, with no flat
molar teeth for grinding
Herbivores: no sharp front teeth, but flat rear molars for
grinding
Humans: no sharp front teeth, but flat rear molars for
grinding
Meat-eaters: have intestinal tract that is only 3 times their
body length so that rapidly decaying meat can pass through quickly
Herbivores: have intestinal tract 10-12 times their body length.
Humans: have intestinal tract 10-12 times their body length.
Meat-eaters: have strong hydrochloric acid in stomach to digest
meat
Herbivores: have stomach acid that is 20 times weaker than that
of a meat-eater
Humans: have stomach acid that is 20 times weaker than
that of a meat-eater
Meat-eaters: salivary glands in mouth not needed to pre-digest
grains and fruits.
Herbivores: well-developed salivary glands which are necessary
to pre-digest grains and fruits
Humans: well-developed salivary glands, which are
necessary to pre-digest, grains and fruits
Meat-eaters: have acid saliva with no enzyme ptyalin to
pre-digest grains
Herbivores: have alkaline saliva with ptyalin to pre-digest
grains
Humans: have alkaline saliva with ptyalin to pre-digest
grains
Based on a chart by A.D. Andrews, Fit Food for Men, (Chicago: American
Hygiene Society, 1970)
“The point is this: Thousands of years ago, when we
were hunter-gatherers, we may have eaten a bit of meat in our diets in times of
scarcity, but we don’t need it now. Says Dr
William C. Roberts, Editor of the American Journal of Cardiology,
“Although
we think we are, and act as if we are, human beings are not natural carnivores.
When we kill animals to
eat them, they end up killing us, because their flesh which contains cholesterol
and saturated fat, was never intended for human beings, who are natural herbivores.”
(From the book, Food For Thought: An Epigenetic Guide to
Wellness, By George J. Febish; Jo Anne Oxley)
