If you have seen the Fedex Caveman Ad then you know that life was no piece of cake in the neanderthal ages. Not only did you not have Fedex, but you ran the risk of being stomped on by dinosaurs everytime you took an angry stroll outside your cave.
So between figuring out if the carrier-pterodactyl would reach its destination and if the huge shadow over your head is just a rain cloud, early-man just didn’t have the time to make reservations at Applebees restaurant and eat a good meal whenever he wanted. Actually the real reason was that Applebees had not been invented yet, but you get the drift: Early man had no idea where his next meal would come from (if it did at all).
And thus the human body adapted and atleast two things happened. First, the brain became adept at figuring out which foods were nutritionally dense and energy-rich and which were not (Berries: yes, dinosaur poo-poo: ummmm…. not-so-much!). It realised that foods rich in sugar like fruits, berries and chocolate-chip-ice-cream (however anachronistic that sounds) provided much needed energy to replenish the body from all those t-rex-avoidance marathons. The brain released certain chemicals called opioids which gave the body pleasurable feelings at the sight and taste of sugar so that it would never forget to get more of those the next time it found them.
The second adaptation was that, of course, the body became an expert at storing energy in the form of fat. All excess food consumed was converted and stored in the gut to be used during the weekend Who-Can-Outrun-A-Cheetah games (cavemen were strange that way - no wonder most of them aren’t around anymore except on Geico commercials).
Fast forward to modern day. There is a Dunkin Donuts on every street and a Starbucks on either side of every Dunkin Donuts, not to mention the invention of Applebees. There is no dearth of food and no famines to threaten our existence, but some things are just the same. Like a dog that to this day will walk around a few times in the same spot before settling down (its prehistoric ancestors had to flatten the tall grass before they could lie down), man also does just as his genes have been programmed. He salivates at the sight of sugar and eats way more then he has to.
So the next you gorge on sweets, just blame it on your great-great…great-grandparents. And remember that you really don’t need to eat more than you need because, after all, if push comes to shove you can always make a reservation at Applebees.
Technorati Tags: health, fitness, sugar craving
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