An unprecedented interdisciplinary effort suggests that there is a systematic theory behind why humans eat what they eat

Many topics of interest to health professionals, such as vegetarianism, dietary fibers, lactose intolerance, favism, cannibalism and changes in nutritional status wrought by the decline of hunter-gathering and the rise of horticulture. Many sections will appeal to the general reader. --Journal of Applied Nutrition Exceptionally well-edited. High quality individual papers are of comparable scope and are uniformly well referenced and detailed in presentation of supporting data Introductory and concluding chapters as well as section overviews create an integrated whole. --Choice Compelling...complete and...recommended. --Science Books & Films Should be of value to all nutrition educators who have an interest in the social, cultural, and international aspects of foods and nutrition. --Journal of Nutrition Education

Introduction Part I: Theoretical Overview 1. An Overview of Trends in Dietary Variation from Hunter-Gatherer to Modern Capitalist Societies - Eric B. Ross 2. Foodways: Historical Overview and Theoretical Prolegomenon - Marvin Harris Part II: Bioevolutionary Antecedents and Constraints 3. Primate Diets and Gut Morphology: Implications for Hominid Evolution - Katharine Milton 4. Omnivorous Primate Diets and Human Overconsumption of Meat - William J. Hamilton III 5. Fava Bean Consumption: A Case for the Co-Evolution of Genes and Culture - Solomon H. Katz Part III: Nutritional and Biopsychological Constraints 6. Problems and Pitfalls in the Assessment of Human Nutritional Status - P.L. Pellett 7. Psychobiological Perspectives on Food Preferences and Avoidances - Paul Rozin 8. The Preference for Animal Protein and Fat: A Cross-Cultural Survey - H. Leon Abrams, Jr. 9. Biocultural Consequences of Animals Versus Plants as Sources of Fats, Proteins, and Other Nutrients - Leslie Sue Lieberman Part IV: Pre-State Foodways: Past and Present 10. The Significance of Long-Term Changes in Human Diet and Food Economy - Mark N. Cohen 11. Life in the Garden of Eden: Causes and Consequences of the Adoption of Marine Diets by Human Societies - David R. Yesner 12. The Analysis of Hunter-Gatherer Diets: Stalking an Optimal Foraging Model - Bruce Winterhalder 13. How Much Food Do Foragers Need? - Kristen Hawkes 14. Aboriginal Subsistence in a Tropical Rain Forest Environment: Food Procurement, Cannibalism, and Population Regulation in Northeastern Australia - David R. Harris 15. Ecological and Structural Influences on the Proportions of Wild Foods in the Diets of Two Machiguenga Communities - Allen Johnson and Michael Baksh 16. Limiting Factors in Amazonian Ecology - Kenneth R. Good Part V: The Political Economy and the Political Ecology of Contemporary Foodways 17. Loaves and Fishes in Bangladesh - Shirley Lindenbaum 18. Animal Protein Consumption and the Sacred Cow Complex in India - K.N. Nair 19. The Effects of Colonialism and Neocolonialism on the Gastronomic Patterns of the Third World - Richard W. Franke 20. Stability and Change in Highland Andean Dietary Patterns - Benjamin S. Orlove 21. Social Class and Diet in Contemporary Mexico - Gretel H. Pelto 22. From Costa Rican Pasture to North American Hamburger - Marc Edelman Part VI: Discussion and Conclusions 23. The Evolution of Human Subsistence - Anna Roosevelt 24. Biocultural Aspects of Food Choice - George Armelagos Afterword About the Contributors