I read something a while back (wish I remembered the source) about how the rotten meat thing is sort-of less gross than you’re thinking, since fermented meat can taste good if you do it right (think: sausage and aged steak), and presumably ancient people weren’t constantly sick.
presumably ancient people weren’t constantly sick.
I think you presume incorrectly. People in primitive cultures spend a lot of time with digestive issues and it’s a major cause of discomfort, illness, and death.
I have a theory that the contemporary practice of curry with rice represents a counterfeit yearning for high meat with maggots. I wonder if high meat has what our gut biomes are missing.
That seems plausible. There’s also hedonic adaptation stuff. Things that seem gross to us might have been fine to people in earlier eras. Although Claude claims that having said all of this, people still often found their food to be gross.
I read something a while back (wish I remembered the source) about how the rotten meat thing is sort-of less gross than you’re thinking, since fermented meat can taste good if you do it right (think: sausage and aged steak), and presumably ancient people weren’t constantly sick.
Edit: I think the source is this: https://earthwormexpress.com/the-prehistory-of-food/in-prehistory-we-ate-fermented-foods/
Although the descriptions might make you appreciate modern food even more.
I think you presume incorrectly. People in primitive cultures spend a lot of time with digestive issues and it’s a major cause of discomfort, illness, and death.
I have a theory that the contemporary practice of curry with rice represents a counterfeit yearning for high meat with maggots. I wonder if high meat has what our gut biomes are missing.
That seems plausible. There’s also hedonic adaptation stuff. Things that seem gross to us might have been fine to people in earlier eras. Although Claude claims that having said all of this, people still often found their food to be gross.