4 ms·

No I'm talking about honey or plain white sugar depending on the tribe. I forgot their names but there are 3 main tribes that I remember being studied. Two of

No I'm talking about honey or plain white sugar depending on the tribe. I forgot their names but there are 3 main tribes that I remember being studied. Two of them ate significant amounts of honey and a third traded for refined white sugar.

cycrutchfield 5y ago
Got it, I think this may be one that you were referring to? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadza_people https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadza_people >Honey represents a substantial portion of the Hadza diet (~10-20% of calories)
- serverholic 5y ago
  Yep that's one of them. They eat roughly the same amount on average as UK citizens but don't have the metabolic issues. There is another tribe that will eat up to 60% of their calories from honey depending on the availability of food. Another tribe trades with first-world countries for white sugar.
- serverholic 5y ago
  As a followup here's a paper on the various tribes. Sorry I don't have a download link to the full PDF: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24746602/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24746602/ In that paper they also reference the Mbuti pygmies of the Congo. Specifically: "The Mbuti of the Congo forests eat large amounts of honey. According to Ichikawa (1981), honey is their favorite food. At times, during the rainy season up to 80% of the calories in their diet come from honey."
  - Malician 5y ago
    I wonder, though, what happens if you investigate the important variables - "up to", "during the rainy season," - maybe the human body can tolerate this for short periods of time, but not 24/7; and pygmies makes me think lower growth hormone / IGF-1, so the impact of the sugar may not be near as bad
    - serverholic 5y ago
      Other tribes consistently eat as much or more sugar than westerners on average. So I'm not sure if what you're saying can explain the difference.

4 ms·

No I'm talking about honey or plain white sugar depending on the tribe. I forgot their names but there are 3 main tribes that I remember being studied. Two of

by serverholic 5y ago

cycrutchfield 5y ago
Got it, I think this may be one that you were referring to? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadza_people https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadza_people >Honey represents a substantial portion of the Hadza diet (~10-20% of calories)
- serverholic 5y ago
  Yep that's one of them. They eat roughly the same amount on average as UK citizens but don't have the metabolic issues. There is another tribe that will eat up to 60% of their calories from honey depending on the availability of food. Another tribe trades with first-world countries for white sugar.
- serverholic 5y ago
  As a followup here's a paper on the various tribes. Sorry I don't have a download link to the full PDF: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24746602/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24746602/ In that paper they also reference the Mbuti pygmies of the Congo. Specifically: "The Mbuti of the Congo forests eat large amounts of honey. According to Ichikawa (1981), honey is their favorite food. At times, during the rainy season up to 80% of the calories in their diet come from honey."
  - Malician 5y ago
    I wonder, though, what happens if you investigate the important variables - "up to", "during the rainy season," - maybe the human body can tolerate this for short periods of time, but not 24/7; and pygmies makes me think lower growth hormone / IGF-1, so the impact of the sugar may not be near as bad
    - serverholic 5y ago
      Other tribes consistently eat as much or more sugar than westerners on average. So I'm not sure if what you're saying can explain the difference.