ANT202H5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: James V. Neel, Blood Sugar, Low Birth Weight
Document Summary
Differences in how effectively our bodies process particular foods. Digestive system uses food in different ways. Inuit gastrointestinal system = more capable of breaking down fats. Adapting to local nutritional opportunities led to evolution of related genetic differences. Alternating periods of food abundance and scarcity. More efficient energy storage by rapid conversion of glucose into fat. Constant access to food = quick trigger is detrimental. High levels of insulin leads to insulin resistance. Obesity and associated type 2 diabetes is very common. Not everyone eating calorie rich diet is equally likely to develop type 2 diabetes. Milk stimulates larger than expected rise in blood sugar level. Thrifty genes and milk is likely to develop diabetes and die prematurely. Unlikely hunter/gatherers are subjected to food shortages vs agriculturalists. Developmental origins of health and disease hypotheses. Exposed to nutrient scarcity during fetal and infant stages of development. Thrifty mechanisms for nutrient uptake, retention, and metabolism.
