Post by Joann on Mar 28, 2006 20:25:14 GMT -5
Beauty depends on calcium
The cuisines evolved by our ancestors and those of the world's few remaining non Westernized groups all contain an important source of calcium.
Calcium is interesting. Without enough of it you simply don't get good bone structure, and consequently don't get all the good looks you deserve. Calcium won't create great bone structure all by itself. It wants protein, phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin C, various fats and vitamin D to be useful, but availability of calcium is the limiting factor.
So where do we find this calcium? Among Eskimos, Scandinavian people and many other groups who depend on fish, small fish are dried or pickled and eaten whole. This is a great way to get calcium. One ordinary sardine is the equal of a quart of milk as a source of calcium.
For most of the people I know, insects don't appeal. Nonetheless, in lots of places they are eaten whole, raw or toasted, with enthusiasm. I knew a retired priest who taught grade school in East Africa. He said that when a flight of locusts arrived it was impossible to control the boys and girls. They trooped outside and snatched locusts right out of the air and ate them. The priest was an accomplished photographer and showed me pictures of this.
It is fashionable now to interpret the bit in the Bible where the diet of John the Baptist is described as “locusts and honey” as meaning “carob beans and honey”, presumably because the carob tree is a species of locust and to modern ears sounds more appetizing. However, John was said to be a big strong person and locusts are real body building food. John lived in locust country and since in Mark 1:6 it says “locusts”, I say he ate locusts!
In National Geographic I have seen pictures of Chinese in a silkworm district eating larval silkworms, deep fried. In early California days a US Army captain contracted with local Indians in the Sacramento Valley to supply provisions. A certain flour was a popular favorite with the troops until one day when the Indians were late with their delivery and a trooper went to investigate. He found the Indians pounding and sifting dried grasshoppers to make the flour. This was a big turnoff to the garrison, but having for some years attempted to garden in that area I admit to thinking it might make better sense to go ahead and eat the grasshoppers than to try to raise a crop in competition with them. They are more nutritious than virtually any crop one can grow. Besides quality protein, all insects are an excellent source of calcium.
Indians of the Eastern United States, except those living next to the sea, ate mostly animals, corn and berries. These are marginal sources of calcium, although they supply the accessory factors for bone building. I used to wonder what could have been the important calcium source they must have eaten regularly. Then I learned they used ashes as a condiment: this was almost like sprinkling on pure bone meal. The ashes of different plants and bones have different flavors and were used with discrimination.
Limestone bowls used for grinding grain were another important source of calcium in the Southwest and elsewhere. The lime (calcium) wears off the stone and enriches the flour.
Milk is the best source of calcium. Animals have been herded and milked for at least 25,000 years. Men and women tended herds for many thousands of years before they started planting crops.
This is an excerpt from Real Food by Joann S Grohman copyright 1995
The cuisines evolved by our ancestors and those of the world's few remaining non Westernized groups all contain an important source of calcium.
Calcium is interesting. Without enough of it you simply don't get good bone structure, and consequently don't get all the good looks you deserve. Calcium won't create great bone structure all by itself. It wants protein, phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin C, various fats and vitamin D to be useful, but availability of calcium is the limiting factor.
So where do we find this calcium? Among Eskimos, Scandinavian people and many other groups who depend on fish, small fish are dried or pickled and eaten whole. This is a great way to get calcium. One ordinary sardine is the equal of a quart of milk as a source of calcium.
For most of the people I know, insects don't appeal. Nonetheless, in lots of places they are eaten whole, raw or toasted, with enthusiasm. I knew a retired priest who taught grade school in East Africa. He said that when a flight of locusts arrived it was impossible to control the boys and girls. They trooped outside and snatched locusts right out of the air and ate them. The priest was an accomplished photographer and showed me pictures of this.
It is fashionable now to interpret the bit in the Bible where the diet of John the Baptist is described as “locusts and honey” as meaning “carob beans and honey”, presumably because the carob tree is a species of locust and to modern ears sounds more appetizing. However, John was said to be a big strong person and locusts are real body building food. John lived in locust country and since in Mark 1:6 it says “locusts”, I say he ate locusts!
In National Geographic I have seen pictures of Chinese in a silkworm district eating larval silkworms, deep fried. In early California days a US Army captain contracted with local Indians in the Sacramento Valley to supply provisions. A certain flour was a popular favorite with the troops until one day when the Indians were late with their delivery and a trooper went to investigate. He found the Indians pounding and sifting dried grasshoppers to make the flour. This was a big turnoff to the garrison, but having for some years attempted to garden in that area I admit to thinking it might make better sense to go ahead and eat the grasshoppers than to try to raise a crop in competition with them. They are more nutritious than virtually any crop one can grow. Besides quality protein, all insects are an excellent source of calcium.
Indians of the Eastern United States, except those living next to the sea, ate mostly animals, corn and berries. These are marginal sources of calcium, although they supply the accessory factors for bone building. I used to wonder what could have been the important calcium source they must have eaten regularly. Then I learned they used ashes as a condiment: this was almost like sprinkling on pure bone meal. The ashes of different plants and bones have different flavors and were used with discrimination.
Limestone bowls used for grinding grain were another important source of calcium in the Southwest and elsewhere. The lime (calcium) wears off the stone and enriches the flour.
Milk is the best source of calcium. Animals have been herded and milked for at least 25,000 years. Men and women tended herds for many thousands of years before they started planting crops.
This is an excerpt from Real Food by Joann S Grohman copyright 1995