Upon examination, a 5,300-year-old mummified man, known as the Iceman, displayed medical conditions common to modern humans.
The mummified body was found, largely surrounded by ice, in 1991 by hikers in the Alps. Between 1991 and 2001, researchers analyzed numerous images of the Iceman’s skeleton to find that he appears very similar to modern humans.
The mummy, who was estimated to be between 40 and 50 years old when he died, showed signs of both arthritis and a buildup of calcium along blood vessel walls, an indication of heart disease. Both of these conditions are common among humans today.
Researchers believe the Iceman was either killed or died as the result of an accident because of an arrowhead found in his shoulder.
They discovered signs of a common form of arthritis in the mummy’s spine and hip joints, indicating that he suffered from chronic disease during his life. They also identified signs of calcium buildup where arteries would have been located--images that resembled those taken from modern people with hardening of the arteries.
Many experts believe that hardening of the arteries is a result of modern lifestyle, including diet and cigarette smoking, so researchers noted that evidence of the condition in the Iceman may mean that cardiovascular disease is genetically controlled and may have less to do with diet than previously thought. Another possibility is that the Iceman’s diet, or a combination of factors, led to the development of cardiovascular disease.
Radiology 2003;226:614-629
Many people believe that if all they did was eat natural organic foods they would be free from disease. I am afraid life is not that simple. Although pure uncontaminated foods are important to staying healthy, you need to eat the right types of food for your particular biochemical genetics.
The Iceman mummy described above provides a real world example that even natural whole grains from processed foods and sugars in biblical days could cause chronic degenerative disease. Five thousand years ago, Europe was an agricultural community--not a hunter-gatherer culture. It is highly likely that the Iceman consumed a fair amount of grains in his lifetime.
If you are not familiar with nutritional typing, I encourage you to read my description of Metabolic Typing Principles. It is clear from my review of the literature and clinical experience that only about 15 percent of people, at most, benefit from, or at best tolerate, grains.
This is largely related to insulin dynamics. If you are not familiar with the reasons why grains will cause insulin dysfunction and chronic illness I highly recommend reviewing Dr. Rosedale’s lecture on insulin.
About 67 percent of the U.S. population is overweight or obese and another 20 percent or so have either diabetes, high cholesterol or high blood pressure that is related to elevated insulin levels. Additionally, only carbohydrate nutritional types seem to do well with grains. So my guess is that only about 10 percent of people do well with grains. There certainly are people who don’t need to avoid grains, but the clear majority of people would benefit from doing so.
It is likely that the Iceman was one of the people who did not tolerate grains and as a result was starting to experience the signs of chronic degenerative illness not much different than what the majority of us are experiencing today.
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