Why Neanderthals Didn’t Like Endive (and Neither Do You)

Thankfully, science has figured it out: why do some people dislike endive, Brussels sprouts or espresso? It’s because of our distant ancestors, from around 300,000 years ago.

During excavations of a settlement in Spain, researchers are also investigating what Neanderthals actually ate. Scientists previously thought that cavemen mainly had plenty of meat on the menu, but analyses of the dental plaque on the unearthed teeth show that they also consumed plenty of fruit, vegetables and herbs.

Yuck, broccoli

The discovery of the TAS2R38 gene in Neanderthal bones is a scientific breakthrough. People with this gene are extra sensitive to the substance phenylthiocarbamide, abbreviated as PTC. This substance closely resembles a compound that gives, for example, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cabbage their bitter taste. Some modern people have this gene, which explains why they push bitter vegetables such as endive away from their plates in disgust. And now it turns out that Neanderthals also had an aversion to bitter flavors.

Don’t eat poison

You might not think it (especially if you regularly take the train), but Homo sapiens did not descend directly from Neanderthals. We have common ancestors who hunted and gathered around 300,000 years ago. The bitter gene gave those ancestors a major evolutionary advantage, because unripe fruit, poisonous plants and rotting meat taste… bitter. That bitter taste therefore protected them from eating toxic food and meeting an early end. The researchers are nevertheless surprised that people who cannot taste bitterness still managed to survive that whole survival of the fittest process.

Chamomile between the teeth

At least one of the unearthed Neanderthals had plenty of chamomile and yarrow between their teeth. Strange, because those taste bitter too, of course. The scientists now assume that the herbs were eaten as medicine. Chamomile can act as a painkiller, and it is also known that other prehistoric people ate plants to relieve physical complaints.

Also read:

• Recipe: beets with bitter leafy greens and dashi butter
• Americans love Dutch Brussels sprouts
• Why don’t you like everything?