Consumption Of Marine Foods Research Articles

Eating in prosperity: First stable isotope evidence of diet from Palatial Knossos

This paper discusses the first stable isotope evidence of diet from Protopalatial to Neopalatial Knossos on Crete to reconstruct individual long-term dietary records for people from the site, spanning the period circa 1900 to 1600BC. The aim is to shed light onto the lifeways and social organization of the respective communities, and to investigate people's everyday life for evidence of the site's politico-economic supremacy in the Neopalatial period.Eighty-one human and 12 animal individuals from two Palatial cemeteries at Knossos were sampled for cortical bone and the extracted collagen was analyzed for stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios to trace relative proportions of (broad categories of) foodstuffs that they consumed on a day-to-day basis. The human collagen stable isotope signatures follow a broad distribution that reflects a range of diets, where animal protein, including marine in addition to terrestrial, was consumed at different levels. Faunal isotope values from the site are consistent with a terrestrial C3 trophic context with apparently no C4 protein input.The observed dietary variation in the human stable isotope ratios shows no clear sex-, tomb-, or cemetery-pattern; it rather follows a temporal trend that is in tune with contemporary socio-economic and political developments and the increasing prosperity of Knossos in the period investigated. Moreover, the study yielded the first positive human palaeodietary evidence for marine food consumption in Prehistoric Crete.

An overview of methods used for the detection of aquatic resource consumption by humans: Compound-specific delta N-15 analysis of amino acids in archaeological materials

The detection of aquatic resource consumption is important in paleodietary studies as it provides insights into the adaptive strategies of modern humans. Debate as to whether or not it is a recent innovation in hominid evolution also emphasizes its importance to the field. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of bulk collagen has been powerful tool for the investigation of ancient human diet, especially for the detection of marine food consumption. However, the nitrogen isotopic composition could significantly vary even within the same animal species depending on environmental conditions, making a dietary reconstruction based on human remains difficult without enough specimens of referential animal prey. Nitrogen isotope analysis of individual amino acids in bone collagen has recently been proposed as a potentially useful technique for the detection of not only marine resources in diets but also freshwater ones. In this paper, we further test its applicability to human populations in a variety of regions and chronological time periods in the world. We found that: (i) irrespective of climatic conditions, nitrogen isotopic compositions of glutamic acid and phenylalanine of terrestrial animals group similarly; (ii) these two amino acids are particularly useful to detect marine or freshwater resource consumption; (iii) a multinomial logistic regression based on some combinations of isotope indicators successfully distinguishes aquatic and terrestrial animals; (iv) detection of aquatic resource consumption by prehistoric humans could be possible based solely on the isotopic compositions of human remains, even in the absence of coeval potential prey. This approach is therefore promising for the paleodietary reconstruction of isolated human remains with few associated faunal remains from archaeological sites.

Reconstruction of Prehistoric and Medieval Dietary Patterns in the Russian Far East: A Review of Current Data

An overview of current knowledge on the human paleodiet of the southern Russian Far East is presented. The earliest data are available for the Neolithic complexes of Primorye Province, dated to ~7000–5800 BP. For 10 humans from the coastal site of Boisman 2, a heavy reliance on marine fish and mammals (~70–80% of the total diet) has been established; this is similar to the Jomon and Chulmun complexes of Hokkaido Island and Korea. For two individuals from the inland site of Chertovy Vorota, a mixture of terrestrial and riverine (including anadromous species such as salmon, ~25% of the total diet) food resources is evident. In the Amur River basin, the diet of the Paleometal (i.e. Bronze/Early Iron Ages) population (dated to ~2500–1800 BP) was probably based on a mixture of C4 plants (millet, ~50–60% of the total diet), C3 plants, and terrestrial animals, while in the Middle Ages (~1500–300 BP) the contribution of C4 food was lower at ~20–25%. On Sakhalin Island, the maritime-oriented economy existed for a long time, at least since the Late Neolithic/Paleometal Age (dated to ~2500–1800 BP) and until the ethnographic time period (from the 17th–18th centuries AD onwards). Up to ~80–90% of the diet consisted of marine mammals and fish, and this is in accord with dietary patterns of the Epi-Jomon and Okhotsk cultural complexes on Hokkaido Island. Information on the paleodiet of the coastal populations of the Japan and Okhotsk Seas should be taken into account when calibration of 14C dates run on human bones from these regions is undertaken, because the predominant consumption of marine food caused a distortion of the true 14C age.

English

The incidences of intoxication due to the consumption of marine foods have been increasing in recent years. This is due to the presence of biotoxins in foods of marine origin. The biotoxins will be accumulated in the marine foods due to the consumption of toxic biota of marine origin. When this contaminated food is taken by the humans or animals, those toxins will be transferred to them causing intoxication and lethality. Among these intoxications, most of them are caused by the harmful algal blooms (HAB). In order to avoid the harmful effects from marine biotoxins, it is necessary to have the proper knowledge. In this manuscript, the different types of biotoxins, source of intoxication, characteristics of toxins, detection and control measures are discussed in detail.

Strategic and sporadic marine consumption at the onset of the Neolithic: increasing temporal resolution in the isotope evidence

Stable isotope analysis has provided crucial new insights into dietary change at the Neolithic transition in north-west Europe, indicating an unexpectedly sudden and radical shift from marine to terrestrial resources in coastal and island locations. Investigations of early Neolithic skeletal material from Sumburgh on Shetland, at the far-flung margins of the Neolithic world, suggest that this general pattern may mask significant subtle detail. Analysis of juvenile dentine reveals the consumption of marine foods on an occasional basis. This suggests that marine foods may have been consumed as a crucial supplementary resource in times of famine, when the newly introduced cereal crops failed to cope with the demanding climate of Shetland. This isotopic evidence is consistent with the presence of marine food debris in contemporary middens. The occasional and contingent nature of marine food consumption underlines how, even on Shetland, the shift from marine to terrestrial diet was a key element in the Neolithic transition.

Polyunsaturated fatty acids and calcaneal ultrasound parameters among Inuit women from Nuuk (Greenland): a longitudinal study

BackgroundThe traditional diet of Inuit people comprises large amounts of fish and marine mammals that are rich in omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Results from in vitro studies, laboratory animal experiments and population studies suggest that omega-3 PUFA intake and a high omega-3/omega-6 ratio exert a positive effect on bone health.ObjectiveThis longitudinal study was conducted to examine the relationship between omega-3 and omega-6 PUFA status and quantitative ultrasound (QUS) parameters in Greenlandic Inuit women.MethodsThe study included 118 Inuit women from Nuuk (Greenland), aged 49–64 years, whose QUS parameters measured at baseline (year 2000), along with PUFA status and covariates, and follow-up QUS measurements 2 years later (year 2002). QUS parameters [speed of sound (SOS); broadband ultrasound attenuation (BUA)] were measured at the right calcaneus with a water-bath Lunar Achilles instrument. Omega-3 and omega-6 PUFA contents of erythrocyte membrane phospholipids were measured after transmethylation by gas chromatography coupled with a flame ionization detector. Relationships between QUS parameters and different PUFAs were studied in multiple linear regression models.ResultsIncreasing values of EPA, DHA and the omega-3/omega-6 PUFA ratio were associated with increased BUA values measured at follow-up (year 2002). These associations were still present in models adjusted for several confounders and covariates. We found little evidence of associations between PUFAs and SOS values.ConclusionThe omega-3 PUFA intake from marine food consumption seems to have a positive effect on bone intrinsic quality and strength, as revealed by higher BUA values in this group of Greenlandic Inuit women.

Paleodietary analysis of a San Francisco Bay Area shellmound: stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of late Holocene humans from the Ellis Landing site (CA-CCO-295)

The late Holocene archaeofaunal record of the San Francisco Bay Area demonstrates temporal declines in the abundance of low-cost, high-ranked marine and terrestrial resources. During later periods of occupation, faunal assemblages are often dominated by lower-ranked, higher-cost resources, suggesting an increase in diet breadth through time. Archaeological resource intensification models argue that this marks a late Holocene decline in foraging efficiency in the Bay Area, driven by human-induced harvest pressure. This study examines dietary change in the region using stable carbon and nitrogen isotope data from 65 human burials, spanning two temporal components (cal AD 55–890 and cal AD 762–1550) at the Ellis Landing site (CA-CCO-295). The strong linear relationship between collagen carbon and nitrogen isotope values reflects both marine and terrestrial food consumption, with individuals showing a high level of dietary variability at the site. No temporal trend or meaningful sex differences were found in isotope values. The widening of diet breadth predicted by the archaeofaunal record occurred prior to the occupation of the Ellis Landing shellmound site. The trend in exploiting a greater amount of terrestrial resources during the Middle and Late Period in central California was supported by isotopic evidence.

Origin and Diet of the Prehistoric Hunter-Gatherers on the Mediterranean Island of Favignana (Ègadi Islands, Sicily)

Hunter-gatherers living in Europe during the transition from the late Pleistocene to the Holocene intensified food acquisition by broadening the range of resources exploited to include marine taxa. However, little is known on the nature of this dietary change in the Mediterranean Basin. A key area to investigate this issue is the archipelago of the Ègadi Islands, most of which were connected to Sicily until the early Holocene. The site of Grotta d’Oriente, on the present-day island of Favignana, was occupied by hunter-gatherers when Postglacial environmental changes were taking place (14,000-7,500 cal BP). Here we present the results of AMS radiocarbon dating, palaeogenetic and isotopic analyses undertaken on skeletal remains of the humans buried at Grotta d’Oriente. Analyses of the mitochondrial hypervariable first region of individual Oriente B, which belongs to the HV-1 haplogroup, suggest for the first time on genetic grounds that humans living in Sicily during the early Holocene could have originated from groups that migrated from the Italian Peninsula around the Last Glacial Maximum. Carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses show that the Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic hunter-gatherers of Favignana consumed almost exclusively protein from terrestrial game and that there was only a slight increase in marine food consumption from the late Pleistocene to the early Holocene. This dietary change was similar in scale to that at sites on mainland Sicily and in the rest of the Mediterranean, suggesting that the hunter-gatherers of Grotta d’Oriente did not modify their subsistence strategies specifically to adapt to the progressive isolation of Favignana. The limited development of technologies for intensively exploiting marine resources was probably a consequence both of Mediterranean oligotrophy and of the small effective population size of these increasingly isolated human groups, which made innovation less likely and prevented transmission of fitness-enhancing adaptations.

Palaeoenvironmental modelling of δ13C and δ15N values in the North Atlantic Islands: understanding past marine resource use

Carbon (δ(13) C) and nitrogen (δ(15) N) analysis has been extensively used to investigate the importance of marine foods in the diet of archaeological populations in the North Atlantic Islands; however, few faunal studies exist to aid the interpretation of results. Palaeoenvironmental modelling of δ(13) C and δ(15) N values is crucial in determining whether changes in the stable isotope values are a result of dietary change, rather than temporal or geographical fluctuations in carbon and nitrogen. Investigating faunal dietary behaviour can provide an insight into past foddering and land management strategies. Detailed sampling of wild and domestic species for bulk collagen analysis was undertaken in order to characterise geographical variations in δ(13) C and δ(15) N values in the Outer Hebrides and Orkney. Samples from the Neolithic to the Norse period were analysed to assess temporal and geographical variations in δ(13) C and δ(15) N values, in addition to determining the contribution of marine foods to the diet of local fauna. A δ(15) N shift of 1‰ was observed between the Outer Hebrides and Orkney in the Neolithic and Iron Age. A geographical variation in δ(13) C values was observed in the Norse period between Orkney and the Outer Hebrides. Temporal fluctuations in δ(13) C and δ(15) N values demonstrate variations in foddering practices of sheep in the Outer Hebrides. Pig specimens from the Outer Hebrides demonstrated evidence of marine food consumption in the Iron Age. Faunal dietary behaviour can act as a vital indicator of the importance of marine resources in the past. Characterisation of faunal δ(13) C and δ(15) N values geographically and temporally is crucial in our interpretation of human dietary behaviour.

Estimating marine resource use by the American crocodile Crocodylus acutus in southern Florida, USA

Alligators and crocodiles differ in their physiological capacity to live in saline waters. Crocodiles can tolerate high-salinity water, at least for limited timeframes, whereas alligators and their close relatives cannot. Experiments have placed different crocodylians in various water salinities to document physiological responses, but no study has estimated the extent to which nat- ural populations of crocodylids can live independent of fresh water. Here we estimated marine food and perhaps seawater contributions to a population of American crocodile Crocodylus acutus in southernmost Florida, USA. We evaluated the use of carbon, oxygen, and strontium isotopes as tracers of marine versus terrestrial sources. We compared C. acutus isotopic values to those of marine reptiles (marine iguanas and Pacific loggerhead turtles) and to American alligators, which require fresh water. We found that freshwater reptiles can be discriminated from those that drink seawater (or survive on metabolic and prey-included water in saline habitats) based on the mag- nitude of population-level oxygen isotope variation in bioapatite, whereas mean carbon isotope values discriminate between marine versus terrestrial food consumption. We used a 2 end- member (seawater and fresh water) mixing model to calculate percentage of marine resources used by C. acutus. Results indicate that adult C. acutus in southern Florida use marine food about 65% of the time and seawater or water gleaned from marine food about 80% of the time. This sug- gests that behavioral osmoregulatory techniques (i.e. seeking fresh water specifically for drinking, as suggested by other researchers) may not be necessary and that C. acutus is capable of being largely ecologically independent of fresh water.

Assessment of consumption of marine food in Greenland by a food frequency questionnaire and biomarkers

Objectives. We studied the association and agreement between questionnaire data and biomarkers of marine food among Greenland Inuit.Design. Cross sectional study.Methods. The study population comprised 2,224 Inuit, age 18+ (43% men); data collected 2005–2008 in Greenland. Using a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), we calculated consumption of seal, whale, and fish (g/day) and as meals/month, intake of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), total N3, and mercury. We measured erythrocyte membrane fatty acids (FA) and whole blood mercury (Hg). Associations were assessed by Pearson correlation and agreement between the 2 methods was assessed by Bland–Altman plots depicting mean difference between the methods. Using multiple linear regressions, the associations were studied between whole blood mercury, erythrocyte FA and frequency or gram per day of seal, whale, and fish.Results. Partial correlations ranged from r=0.16, p<0.0001 (DHA) to r=0.56, p<0.0001 (mercury). The best fitted lines were found for mercury and DHA. Mean difference was negative for mercury but positive for all the FA biomarkers. In a multiple logistic regression analysis, the best association was found between whole blood mercury and seal consumption, both as frequency in meals and actual intake gram per day: β=1.07 µg (95% CI: 1.06; 1.08) and β=1.04 µg (95% CI: 1.03; 1.04), respectively.Conclusion. Mercury showed the best correlation and agreement between calculated and measured values. Calculated actual intake in gram per day and frequency of meals showed similar associations with whole blood mercury and erythrocyte membrane FAs.

Large Shell Middens and Hunter-Gatherer Resource Intensification Along the West Coast of South Africa: The Elands Bay Case Study

ABSTRACT “Megamiddens” appear along the West Coast of South Africa c. 3000–2000 BP. Kalahari San ethnography was used initially to explain them as processing localities given the massive volumes of marine shell and low densities of other remains. However, recent research in Lamberts Bay using a resource intensification model seems to explain more of the observed archaeological variability. In this paper, the evidence of Elands Bay megamiddens is studied in this same light and similar conclusions are arrived to. Rising population levels between 3500 and 2500 BP are followed by a reformulation of the foraging ecology of both marine and terrestrial prey, with isotopic values from human skeletons and archaeological data showing high marine food consumption during the megamidden period when compared to other stages. Signs of black mussel overexploitation are apparent by 3000 BP, although shellfish harvesting is most intense c. 2600–2200 BP. Further sampling of Elands Bay megamiddens is needed to better understand shellfish foraging between 3000 and 2500 BP. Foragers hunted less large mobile game by 2600 BP and instead small territorial bovids were procured more heavily at this time with tortoise collection being intensified between 3000 and 2600 BP. Cave usage may have been very different to that before and after the megamidden millennium given the lack of visits to these sites in Elands Bay at this time.

A regional investigation of subadult dietary patterns and health in late Iron Age and Roman Dorset, England

This is the first regional analysis of the impact of Romanisation on subadult dietary patterns and related health parameters in Britain. A sample of 200 subadults from late Iron Age (LIA) and Romano-British (RB) Dorset were examined for dental health and specific metabolic diseases, and a sub-sample of 29 individuals were selected for nitrogen and carbon isotope analysis. The results showed that dental health declined in the Romano-British period and the incidence of scurvy and rickets rose. Increased consumption of marine foods in the RB period is indicated by an increase in δ13C between the LIA and RB subadults. After early childhood, there was no age-dependent variation in dietary protein in the RB and LIA populations from Dorset. We propose that these changes related to the introduction of urban living, Romanised diets and population migration.

13Carbon and 15nitrogen isotopes in autopsy liver tissue samples from Greenlandic Inuit and Danes: consumption of marine versus terrestrial food

The content of (13)C and (15)N isotopes is higher in marine than in terrestrial food. (13)C and (15)N in human tissue therefore reflects the relative proportions of marine and terrestrial food consumed by the individual. The objective of this study was to measure (13)C and (15)N in liver tissue from Greenlandic Inuit and Danes. Normal liver tissue was obtained at autopsy in 1992-1994 from 60 Inuit with a median age of 61 years (range 25-83) and in 1986 from 15 ethnic Danes with a median age of 84 years (range 66-93). By sieving, liver tissue was separated in a 'cellular fraction' and a 'connective tissue fraction'. (13)C and (15)N in dry liver tissue was measured on a mass spectrometer. delta(13)C indicates the (13)C content relative to the IAEA-CH-6 reference standard. delta(15)N indicates (15)N content relative to the atmospheric nitrogen reference standard. Inuit: median delta(13)C was -21.2 per thousand in cellular and -20.0 per thousand in connective tissue fractions (P=0.001). Median delta(15)N was 10.6 per thousand in both cellular and connective tissue fractions. Body mass index was negatively correlated with delta(13)C in the connective tissue fraction (r(s)=-0.42, P=0.057). Danes: median delta(13)C was -27.0 per thousand in cellular and -24.3 per thousand in connective tissue fractions (P=0.11). Median delta(15)N was 9.5 per thousand in cellular and 8.9 per thousand in connective tissue fractions (P=0.5). Inuit had higher delta(13)C than Danes in both cellular and connective tissue fractions (P<0.001) as well as higher delta(15)N in the cellular fraction (P=0.01). Inuit showed considerable variation in the ratio between marine and terrestrial food consumption, reflecting a vanishing hunter culture where elderly Inuit still adhere to the traditional hunters food with a high content of marine food, whereas the younger urbanized Inuit population consume food with a lower content of marine food and a higher content of terrestrial food. Danes consumed food of almost exclusively terrestrial origin. The present (13)C and (15)N analyses are in accordance with the dietary patterns obtained by dietary surveys.

Introducing δ 88/86Sr analysis in archaeology: a demonstration of the utility of strontium isotope fractionation in paleodietary studies

Isotopic methods are widely used in archaeology to investigate paleodiet. Here, we present a new method to identify trophic level in archaeological human populations and to investigate paleodiet. We demonstrate that strontium isotope compositions (reported as δ 88/86Sr) vary in a mass-dependent manner with increasing trophic level and can elucidate paleodiet in archaeological human populations. We present new mass-dependent strontium isotope data from tooth enamel and bone from individuals buried during the Late Intermediate Period (c. AD 1000–1300) in the large cemeteries of Chiribaya Alta, Chiribaya Baja, San Gerónimo, and El Yaral in the Ilo and Moquegua Valleys of southern Peru. We compare these data to radiogenic strontium isotope data ( 87Sr/ 86Sr) and light stable isotope data (δ 15N col and δ 13C col) from the same individuals to investigate geologic variability in strontium sources as well as marine food consumption among the Chiribaya. Our results demonstrate the utility of measurements of strontium isotope fractionation as a new tool for archaeological investigation of paleodiet. Importantly, this new technique can be used to generate paleodietary (δ 88/86Sr) and paleomobility ( 87Sr/ 86Sr) data from the same specimen, minimizing destructive analyses of invaluable archaeological material, and provides a new way to examine paleodiet through hydroxyapatite, which is particularly important when collagen is poorly preserved.

Determinants of AhR-mediated transcriptional activity induced by plasma extracts from Nunavik Inuit adults

The exposure of Inuit people to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and chlorinated pesticides has been well characterised but little is known regarding their exposure to dioxin-like compounds, which induce toxic effects through binding to the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). In order to obtain a global measure of persistent organic pollutants in plasma that interact with this signalling pathway, we used a luciferase reporter gene assay to assess the AhR-mediated transcriptional activity elicited by plasma sample extracts from 874 Inuit adults who were recruited in the course of a prospective epidemiological study conducted in Nunavik (Québec, Canada). Several sociodemographic, anthropometric, dietary and lifestyle variables were considered as possible modulating factors of the AhR-mediated activity in multivariate statistical analyses. The geometric mean AhR-mediated activity expressed as 2,3,7,8-tetachlorodibenzo- p-dioxin equivalents was 8.9 pg g −1 lipids (range: <5–144 pg g −1 lipids). PCB-153 concentration measured by high-resolution gas chromatography–mass spectrometry was moderately correlated to AhR-mediated activity (Pearson’s r = 0.53, p < 0.001). Multiple linear regression analyses revealed that age and omega-3 fatty acids in erythrocyte membranes (an index of marine food consumption) were positively associated with plasma AhR-mediated activity ( p < 0.001), whereas a negative association was noted with body fat mass ( p = 0.037). These results suggest that AhR-mediated transcriptional activity of Inuit plasma extracts is linked to their organochlorine body burden, most likely that of dioxin-like PCBs, polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxins and polychlorodibenzofurans. AhR-mediated transcriptional activity measures may prove useful in investigating possible associations between exposure to AhR agonists and adverse health effects in this indigenous population.

Large shell middens in Lamberts Bay, South Africa: a case of hunter–gatherer resource intensification

Enormous shell middens (“megamiddens”) dating to c. 3000–2000 BP along the West Coast of South Africa were explained initially within a framework based on the Kalahari San ethnography. The overwhelming dominance of marine shell and low densities of artefacts and vertebrate remains were seen as merely the reflection of processing localities. A far more complex picture has emerged recently, with a trend of raising population densities and longer residential permanence between 3500 and 2500 BP. Successive reformulations of the foraging ecology of both marine and terrestrial prey are apparent, with isotopic values from human skeletons and quantified dietary remains showing increased marine food consumption during the megamidden period when compared to other stages. Shellfish collection shifted from a mix of limpets, whelks and black mussels before 3000 BP to the intensified collection of the later from about 2600 BP, with local impact on marine fauna becoming evident at this time. Coastal groups became also increasingly less reliant on large mobile game and more so on small territorial bovids and tortoises as from 3500 BP, with strongest emphasis on this foraging behaviour after 2700 BP. Read against palaeoenvironmental data, this reconstruction is consistent with hunter–gatherer resource intensification models world-wide.

ON THE ROAD TO PARADIS: NEW INSIGHTS FROM AMS DATES AND STABLE ISOTOPES AT LE DÉHUS, GUERNSEY, AND THE CHANNEL ISLANDS MIDDLE NEOLITHIC

SummaryWe here report the results of a programme of AMS dating and stable isotope analysis on human remains from the chambered tomb of Le Déhus, Guernsey. An early use‐phase in the range 4100–3900 BC is indicated, confirming the monument's attribution to the Middle Neolithic II as defined in western France. Late Neolithic burial activity is also identified. Stable carbon isotope measurements provide little or no evidence for the consumption of marine foods, although stable nitrogen isotope values are unusually high. These results are situated in the wider context of Neolithic mortuary monuments of the Channel Islands and Normandy.

Stable isotope analysis of modern human hair collected from Asia (China, India, Mongolia, and Pakistan)

We report isotopic data (delta(2)H, delta(18)O n = 196; delta(13)C, delta(15)N n = 142; delta(34)S n = 85) from human hair and drinking water (delta(2)H, delta(18)O n = 67) collected across China, India, Mongolia, and Pakistan. Hair isotope ratios reflected the large environmental isotopic gradients and dietary differences. Geographic information was recorded in H and O and to a lesser extent, S isotopes. H and O data were entered into a recently developed model describing the relationship between the H and O isotope composition of human hair and drinking water in modern USA and pre-globalized populations. This has anthropological and forensic applications including reconstructing environment and diet in modern and ancient human hair. However, it has not been applied to a modern population outside of the USA, where we expect different diet. Relationships between H and O isotope ratios in drinking water and hair of modern human populations in Asia were different to both modern USA and pre-globalized populations. However, the Asian dataset was closer to the modern USA than to pre-globalized populations. Model parameters suggested slightly higher consumption of locally produced foods in our sampled population than modern USA residents, but lower than pre-globalized populations. The degree of in vivo amino acid synthesis was comparable to both the modern USA and pre-globalized populations. C isotope ratios reflected the predominantly C(3)-based regional agriculture and C(4) consumption in northern China. C, N, and S isotope ratios supported marine food consumption in some coastal locales. N isotope ratios suggested a relatively low consumption of animal-derived products compared to western populations.

Long-chain n-3 fatty acids and classical cardiovascular disease risk factors among the Catalan population

The protective cardiovascular effect of long-chain n-3 fatty acids has been firmly established in populations with high fish consumption, like those from Mediterranean countries. The current fish consumption in a representative sample from Catalonia, a Mediterranean region, and its relationship with plasma concentrations of eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) and some classical cardiovascular disease risk factors was evaluated. Mean fish and seafood intake was 78.5 ± 51.4 g/day. Mean plasma concentrations of EPA and DHA were respectively 0.48% and 1.99% of total fatty acids. Consumption of marine foods among the Catalan population, the main source of n-3 fatty acids, appears to beneficially affect some cardiovascular disease risk factors. Our results show that both EPA and DHA are negatively associated with triacylglycerol (TG) concentrations and the ratio of total cholesterol (TC) to HDL-cholesterol. Furthermore, EPA but not DHA has a beneficial effect on plasma HDL-cholesterol among the Catalan population. There were no significant associations between long-chain n-3 fatty acids and LDL-cholesterol, TC, glucose, insulin or blood pressure. Oily fish intake, which is richest in EPA and DHA, is currently at an order of only 1 serving per week in the Catalan population and its increase should therefore be promoted.