From Vegetarian to Omnivore: Why Man Started Eating Meat
Long before man started eating meat, humans depended on vegetation as a staple diet. Grains, nuts, fruits, and plants were part of the natural diet of man. Today, most people are omnivorous and only become a vegetarian for weight loss purposes. A vegetarian weight loss diet is a far cry from the way things used to be, when man was a natural vegetarian and existed in harmony with other animals and with the earth, in general. So what happened along the way? Why did humans suddenly start eating meat?
It’s all about necessity
As we all know, eating is a basic necessity and without eating, anyone would surely die within weeks. The first humans to shift from an all-vegetarian diet to one that contained meat were forced to do so for survival purposes. Some parts of the earth, especially those that have frigid or extremely hot temperatures, have far too little vegetation to sustain life on a vegetarian diet alone. For this reason, man was forced to turn to animal meat as a source of food, energy and, essentially, life.
Making the switch
Switching from a purely vegetarian diet to an omnivorous diet must have been very difficult on man. Unlike switching from an omnivorous diet to a vegetarian weight loss diet, eating meat for the first time can cause complications in the digestive system. In fact, most people who are vegetarians for a long time cannot stand the taste of meat and they often become ill or throw up if they try eating meat again. One can only imagine how it felt for man to eat meat for the very first time, especially during the pre-historic ages, when food preparation wasn’t as developed as it is today. The truth is, man isn’t really designed to eat meat, but we adapted to it as a matter of necessity and, in most cultures today, it has become an accepted norm for people to eat meat.
Photo Credit : bandita