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• Primal Lakeshore Diet
  Celia M. Ross
  Published on: 10 November 2014

• Published on: 10 November 2014

  Primal Lakeshore Diet

  • Celia M. Ross, writer

  Mosconi et al's (2014) fascinating study found a diet that is rich in produce and fish appears to be neuroprotective (1). This brought to mind some other literature.

  It has been asserted that our brains were shaped for a tropical lakeshore lifestyle (2, 3). The land/water interface would have provided docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which is needed for brain development. Early man is believed to have had a DHA-rich...

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  Mosconi et al's (2014) fascinating study found a diet that is rich in produce and fish appears to be neuroprotective (1). This brought to mind some other literature.

  It has been asserted that our brains were shaped for a tropical lakeshore lifestyle (2, 3). The land/water interface would have provided docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which is needed for brain development. Early man is believed to have had a DHA-rich diet featuring fish, shellfish, and shorebird nestlings and eggs. This supported the shaping of the human brain.

  It might also be argued that the tropical lakeshores likely would have been rich in plant life and thus produce. Milton (2000) points to physiological evidence indicating that our ancient ancestors ate a diet rich in tropical plant foods (4). There is some indication that phytochemicals play roles in brain health (5, 6). Produce would have also provided prebiotics (7). Gut microbiota are believed to influence brain health (8). A tropical lakeshore diet rich in prebiotics would have promoted a healthy gut ecosystem.

  Thus Mosconi et al's (2014) study is consistent with the idea that our brains were shaped by a tropical lakeshore lifestyle and modern health educators should take our primal diet into consideration when developing nutritional advice.

  About the author: www.CeliaMRoss.com

  (1) Mosconi L, Murray J, Davies M, et al. Nutrient intake and brain biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease in at-risk cognitively normal individuals: a cross-sectional neuroimaging pilot study. BMJ Open. 2014 Jun 24;4(6):e004850.

  (2) Crawford MA, Bloom M, Broadhurst CL, et al. Evidence for the unique function of docosahexaenoic acid during the evolution of the modern hominid brain. Lipids. 1999;34 Suppl:S39-47.

  (3) Broadhurst CL, Wang Y, Crawford MA, et al. Brain-specific lipids from marine, lacustrine, or terrestrial food resources: potential impact on early African Homo sapiens. Comp Biochem Physiol B Biochem Mol Biol. 2002 Apr;131(4):653-73.

  (4) Milton K. Hunter-gatherer diets-a different perspective. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Mar; 71(3):665-7.

  (5) Miller MG, Shukitt-Hale B. Berry fruit enhances beneficial signaling in the brain. J Agric Food Chem. 2012 Jun 13;60(23):5709-15.

  (6) Kesse-Guyot E, Andreeva VA, Ducros V, et al. Carotenoid-rich dietary patterns during midlife and subsequent cognitive function. Br J Nutr. 2014 Mar 14;111(5):915-23.

  (7) Blaut M. Relationship of prebiotics and food to intestinal microflora. Eur J Nutr. 2002 Nov;41 Suppl 1:I11-6.

  (8) Tillisch K. The effects of gut microbiota on CNS function in humans. Gut Microbes. 2014 May 16;5(3).

  Conflict of Interest:

  None declared

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  Conflict of Interest:
  None declared.

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