eli5 why we have such complex dietary requirements. Did our ancestors thousands of years ago have extremely well balanced diets?
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Depends on how far back you go. Foragers eat very diverse diets (except for those in very harsh climates, like the high Arctic), and draw on a wide range of food groups – small animals, insects and reptiles for protein, seeds, leaves, fruits, berries, roots… They moved around a lot and their low populations meant that they did not have to worry overmuch about bad years. With the full transition to agriculture diets become much more restricted – predominantly grains, with pulses and veg like onions, and protein more rarely. Their skeletons show many more signs of ill-health and recurrent famine. By comparison, our diets are better, although still restricted compared to foragers – we rely on a handful of grains (wheat, rice, corn, barley) for the bulk of our food.
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