Apparently, the ancient Egyptians had heart disease. This is reported as if it was a surprise. But apparently, this bit of history was missed during the last major edit, and failed to vanish down the memory hole.
The researchers said that while ancient Egyptians did not smoke tobacco, eat processed food or lead sedentary lives, they were not hunter-gatherers.
Oh crikey! No wonder they’re upset! It contradicts the Party’s message! Everybody knows that heart disease is caused by tobacco, processed food (whatever that is), and sedentary lives. But we’re saved by the fact they were not hunter-gatherers. It’s an important part of the modern health message, that: be hunter-gatherers.
I’m not a hunter-gatherer, unless you count my supermarket shopping style. Should I feel guilty? Am I going to die, because I don’t gather roots and grubs in an authentic aboriginal way?
This case is unusual in that you get the strong impression these people are not lying to us – they really do believe it. And they seem genuinely astonished that people can have advanced heart disease without any of the “modern risk factors”.
Of course, it is only the briefest aberration, and soon the system will self-correct and erase the anomaly. The ancient Egyptians probably did not eat all five fruit and veg a day, or consumed saturated fats or something. (I bet Cleopatra’s bath of ass’s milk wasn’t even semi-skimmed.) But it was amusing while it lasted.
The researchers said that while ancient Egyptians did not smoke tobacco, eat processed food or lead sedentary lives, they were not hunter-gatherers.
Jeez Pa, why is it that I find it hard to believe anything a scientist tells me anymore.
A couple or more of wrong assumptions in that statement for starters.
No ancient Egyptians did not smoke tobacco, but they did smoke Marijuana and opium.
These were mummies of the upper classes, so sedentary lives are definately a likelyhood, they wern’t the ones hauling the stones for the temples and the Pyramids were they?
Plus there was a lot of inbreeding going on in Egypt. Marrying your sister or close cousin was almost compulsory.
And why do scientist assume that hunter gatherers were all fit as fleas? As if they were all running flat out after game from dawn to dusk?
Native Americans are often praised for being in touch with nature man! without the slightest evidence.
In fact the method used to kill buffallo before the Sapaniards turned up with the horses, which made the process easier, Indians used to stampede whole herds of them off cliffs. They ended up with more food than they could possibly eat and would sit on their asses singing songs and dropping peyote, till they needed to go out and do it all over again. Hardly a nine to five grind eh?
Plus the Egyptians were fond of the raising of the wrist. Beer and wine were well known to them. Ah but here is the good news!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1229088/Alcohol-cut-risk-heart-problems-men.html
Nope, must be my age, I dont believe a word of hardly anything anymore!
On a similar note:
http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/culturelab/2009/11/drink-culture-its-as-old-as-the-hills.php
I’m pretty sure that this was pointed out in diet books some time ago. Either The Atkins Diet or the Zone. So its hardly new.
(Not claiming that diet books are a good source of science, just indicating that this isn’t new.)