Week 5: Paleofantasy

Overall I really enjoyed this book. It was very interesting and Zuk brought up some really strong points in her argument that we as humans are still evolving and at a faster rate than we would think. Her last sentence of the book says it all. "But change is continuous, and those ancient ancestors encountered changes as well; they domesticated animals, they grew crops, and they dealt with diseases. Change does not have to mean disaster. Sometimes it just creates more change" (Zuk, 271). I think what she means by that last part, is that changing and adapting happens as a species evolves over time. We don't really look at it as "good changes" or "bad changes" but instead at how they evolve to adjust to other factors. Another big theme in the book was Zuk proving that the paleo-diet isn't as effective as the media says it is. The paleo-diet pushes us to eat the same way as our ancestors since it is "more natural" and it is what we grew up with and that our bodies can't take the new processed foods we eat now. Zuk proved that theory to be false time and time again throughout the book which allowed her to keep linking back her arguments to the title of the book "Paleofantasy".