Evolutionary explanation for food preference Flashcards
What is an evolutionary explanation?
an explanation that focuses on the adaptive nature of behaviours.
What is food neophobia?
A reluctance to consume new or unusual foods. A naturally occurring reaction that protects animals from the risk of being poisoned by consuming something that is potentially harmful.
What is taste aversion?
A learned response to eating toxic, spoiled, or poisonous food. The animal avoids eating the food that made it ill or that they associate with the illness.
How did early human diets produce a preference for meat?
The daily diet of early hunter-gatherer humans was primarily animal based. Meat is full of densely packed nutrients that act as a catalyst for the growth of the brain.
Where did humans’ preference for sweet foods come from?
The sweet taste is associated with quickly available sugar and readily available calories. Ripe fruit, characterized by a sweet taste, was a source of sugar and therefore calories in the EEA. It was also a source of vitamins and minerals necessary for bodily functions and growth. Therefore it would be adaptive for early humans to have evolved an innate preference for sweet-tasting foods.
What is meant by EEA?
Environment of evolutionary adaptation.
How can evolutionary explanations be applied to real world scenarios?
Chemotherapy patients given novel tasting ice cream before treatment.
Develop an association between the gastrointestinal illness from the treatment and the novel tasting food.
Produced an aversion to the ice cream.
“scape goat technique” to ensure patients continue to consume nutritious foods to help their immune system.
Is there evidence for an evolved preference for sweet foods?
Bell et al (1973)
Iñupiat people native to north alaska. No experience of sweet foods.
Did not reject sugary food and drink.
Grill and Nogren (1978) found that sweet tastes elicit an innate response from infants. Smiling, sucking, lip licking
Is there any research to support the idea of food neophobia?
Knaapila (2007)
estimate for food neophobia heritability was 67%
468 female twins (MZ and DZ)
food neophobia scale questionnaire
Suggested that this comes from early survival tactic of avoiding unfamiliar foods to avoid illness
Is there any limitations of the idea of neophobia being adaptive?
Perry et al (2005)
neophobia is associated with poorer dietary quality among children. Maladaptive.
Birch et al (1987)
repeated exposure to tastes without visual or olfactory cues increases the preference for unfamiliar foods
Not 100% concordance for genetics and neophobia suggest that environmental factors play a part.
