Sugar May Have Been a Key Ingredient in Human Evolution
Researchers said fruit and honey may have supplied more than 65% of early hominins’ energy as brain size grew over 4 million years.
- On Thursday, University of Sydney Professor Jennie Brand-Miller and colleagues published a study in Science arguing that dietary sugars played a decisive role in human brain expansion over 4 million years.
- As hominin brains grew nearly fivefold from about 300 grams to roughly 1,500 grams, the body's high glucose demand required consistent energy sources before fire made starches digestible.
- Early hominins likely derived more than 65% of their energy from sugars found in fruit and honey, supporting the brain's primary fuel needs during critical developmental stages.
- Professor David Raubenheimer, co-author and Professor of Nutritional Ecology at the Charles Perkins Centre, noted high glucose requirements during pregnancy and lactation help explain human cravings for sweet foods.
- Lead author Brand-Miller describes the findings as 'parallel stories,' noting that understanding sugar's role alongside meat, fat, and protein provides a more complete evolutionary picture.
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11 Articles
Research published today in "Science" highlights the importance of carbohydrate inputs in human evolution and their role in the brain development of our species.
“When we think about the foods that boosted human evolution, we should not consider how much it increased in size, but rather its maintenance,” the authors point out.
Study Points to Sugar, Not Just Meat, as Fuel for Human Brain Evolution
A team of researchers from the University of Sydney and the University of Glasgow argues that dietary sugars, not animal foods, may have played the decisive role in the expansion of the human brain over the past 4 million years, as hominin brain size grew nearly fivefold, from about 300 grams in early relatives like […] The post Study Points to Sugar, Not Just Meat, as Fuel for Human Brain Evolution appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science N…
One study highlights the role of carbohydrates, as well as the role of meat, in the brain and reproductive development of our ancestors
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