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Food, Science and the Human Body
What foods did the human body evolve to eat, and why? How does the food we eat affect our genes and our minds? What foods are (and aren't) optimal for our everyday health? How can we use cutting-edge science to end world hunger?
In these 36 lectures, get eye-opening answers to these and other perplexing questions about the evolution of the human diet and its relationship to our bodies. Bringing together insights from a range of fields including history, anthropology, nutrition, economics, biology, and sociology, this exciting partnership between The Great Courses and National Geographic lays bare what science can teach us about food.
Taking you far beyond the supermarket and the laboratory, these lectures cross cultures, span time, and hop around the world from the most underfed to the most overfed human societies. Bringing a broad range of disciplines to these lectures, Dr. Crittenden offers an intriguing and illuminating catalog of some of the most pressing questions and concerns.
You'll compare and contrast food-related crises from mass starvation to obesity. You'll explore food trends and ideas, from the Mediterranean and MIND diets to the farm-to-table movement and the controversy surrounding GMOs. You'll bust common myths about how food acts on the body and mind. And you'll gain powerful scientific insights that will always be there in the back of your mind, every time you get hungry.
Listening Length: 17 hours and 47 minutes
In these 36 lectures, get eye-opening answers to these and other perplexing questions about the evolution of the human diet and its relationship to our bodies. Bringing together insights from a range of fields including history, anthropology, nutrition, economics, biology, and sociology, this exciting partnership between The Great Courses and National Geographic lays bare what science can teach us about food.
Taking you far beyond the supermarket and the laboratory, these lectures cross cultures, span time, and hop around the world from the most underfed to the most overfed human societies. Bringing a broad range of disciplines to these lectures, Dr. Crittenden offers an intriguing and illuminating catalog of some of the most pressing questions and concerns.
You'll compare and contrast food-related crises from mass starvation to obesity. You'll explore food trends and ideas, from the Mediterranean and MIND diets to the farm-to-table movement and the controversy surrounding GMOs. You'll bust common myths about how food acts on the body and mind. And you'll gain powerful scientific insights that will always be there in the back of your mind, every time you get hungry.
Listening Length: 17 hours and 47 minutes
18 pages, Audible Audio
Published July 21, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
September 6, 2019
Here’s my subtitle: Almost Everything That You Ever Wanted To Know About Food (if you could remember to ask).
As you can see by the list of lectures (36) there are so many aspects of food that are covered in Crittenden’s lectures, including: diet, anthropology; disease; intoxicants and stimulants; the significance of our microbiome; medication; over-consumption; spice; sweets; and vegetarianism.
Some of the things that I found most interesting were: that a grandmother’s diet can affect her grandchildren; our body does not react the same to different types of sugar; a discussion of the sustainability of producing meat; and, the consumption of things that are not normally considered food.
This series takes its time on many subjects. I am not sure that starting with the Paleo diet would have been my choice. But, Crittenden speaks with authority, provides us with many citations for her conclusions and gives us clear paths for further exploration. Well done! 4.5*
Lecture 1 Paleo Diets and the Ancestral Appetite ..........
Lecture 2 Our Hunter-Gatherer Past ................................
Lecture 3 Stones, Bones, and Teeth ...................................
Lecture 4 Did Eating Meat Make Us Human? .......................
Lecture 5 Insects: The Other White Meat ...............................
Lecture 6 Was the Stone Age Menu Mostly Vegetarian? .......
Lecture 7 Cooking and the Control of Fire.................................
Lecture 8 The Neolithic Revolution ...........................................
Lecture 9 The Changing Disease-Scape ...................................
Lecture 10 How Foods Spread around the World ......................
Lecture 11 The History of the Spice Trade ..............................
Lecture 12 How Sugar and Salt Shaped World History .........
Lecture 13 A Brief History of Bread ........................................
Lecture 14 The Science and Secrets of Chocolate .....................
Lecture 15 Water: The Liquid of Life .....................................
Lecture 16 Beer, Mead, and the Fun of Fermentation ............
Lecture 17 Humanity’s Love of Wine ......................................
Lecture 18 Coffee: Love or Addiction? ..................................
Lecture 19 The Roots of Tea..................................................
Lecture 20 The Fizz on Soda .................................................
Lecture 21 Food as Ritual ......................................................
Lecture 22 When People Eat Things That Aren’t Food .............
Lecture 23 Food as Recreational Drugs ..............................
Lecture 24 Food as Medicine .................................................
Lecture 25 The Coevolution of Genes and Diet ....................
Lecture 26 The Scoop on Poop .............................................
Lecture 27 The Gut Microbiome .............................................
Lecture 28 Brain Food ..........................................................
Lecture 29 You Are What Your Mother Ate ...........................
Lecture 30 Civilization: Diets and Diseases ..........................
Lecture 31 What the World Is Eating ....................................
Lecture 32 The Overnutrition Epidemic .................................
Lecture 33 World Poverty and Undernutrition .......................
Lecture 34 Should the World Eat Meat? ................................
Lecture 35 Should We Be Powered by Plants? .....................
Lecture 36 The Future of Food ..............................................
PS: I don't think of these lectures as suitable for "binge listening/watching" but neither did I want to quit. Each lecture gave me pause for pondering some new fact or perspective.
As you can see by the list of lectures (36) there are so many aspects of food that are covered in Crittenden’s lectures, including: diet, anthropology; disease; intoxicants and stimulants; the significance of our microbiome; medication; over-consumption; spice; sweets; and vegetarianism.
Some of the things that I found most interesting were: that a grandmother’s diet can affect her grandchildren; our body does not react the same to different types of sugar; a discussion of the sustainability of producing meat; and, the consumption of things that are not normally considered food.
This series takes its time on many subjects. I am not sure that starting with the Paleo diet would have been my choice. But, Crittenden speaks with authority, provides us with many citations for her conclusions and gives us clear paths for further exploration. Well done! 4.5*
Lecture 1 Paleo Diets and the Ancestral Appetite ..........
Lecture 2 Our Hunter-Gatherer Past ................................
Lecture 3 Stones, Bones, and Teeth ...................................
Lecture 4 Did Eating Meat Make Us Human? .......................
Lecture 5 Insects: The Other White Meat ...............................
Lecture 6 Was the Stone Age Menu Mostly Vegetarian? .......
Lecture 7 Cooking and the Control of Fire.................................
Lecture 8 The Neolithic Revolution ...........................................
Lecture 9 The Changing Disease-Scape ...................................
Lecture 10 How Foods Spread around the World ......................
Lecture 11 The History of the Spice Trade ..............................
Lecture 12 How Sugar and Salt Shaped World History .........
Lecture 13 A Brief History of Bread ........................................
Lecture 14 The Science and Secrets of Chocolate .....................
Lecture 15 Water: The Liquid of Life .....................................
Lecture 16 Beer, Mead, and the Fun of Fermentation ............
Lecture 17 Humanity’s Love of Wine ......................................
Lecture 18 Coffee: Love or Addiction? ..................................
Lecture 19 The Roots of Tea..................................................
Lecture 20 The Fizz on Soda .................................................
Lecture 21 Food as Ritual ......................................................
Lecture 22 When People Eat Things That Aren’t Food .............
Lecture 23 Food as Recreational Drugs ..............................
Lecture 24 Food as Medicine .................................................
Lecture 25 The Coevolution of Genes and Diet ....................
Lecture 26 The Scoop on Poop .............................................
Lecture 27 The Gut Microbiome .............................................
Lecture 28 Brain Food ..........................................................
Lecture 29 You Are What Your Mother Ate ...........................
Lecture 30 Civilization: Diets and Diseases ..........................
Lecture 31 What the World Is Eating ....................................
Lecture 32 The Overnutrition Epidemic .................................
Lecture 33 World Poverty and Undernutrition .......................
Lecture 34 Should the World Eat Meat? ................................
Lecture 35 Should We Be Powered by Plants? .....................
Lecture 36 The Future of Food ..............................................
PS: I don't think of these lectures as suitable for "binge listening/watching" but neither did I want to quit. Each lecture gave me pause for pondering some new fact or perspective.
April 14, 2022
This 36-section Great Course is longer than most. It covers a lot of ground under the umbrella of "anthropology and food": history, chemistry, nutrition, sociology, archeology, etc. The pacing was good, and the material well-organized.
Here's a general breakdown of the contents:
The first nine sections focus primarily on the diets of our early ancestors and how what they ate and how they acquired it may have affected their evolution and their health. The next ten sections cover the spread of foods across the globe and micro-histories of specific kinds of food (bread, chocolate, beer, coffee, sugar, salt, etc.) This is followed by several lectures on food as medicine, food as ritual, consumption of recreational drugs in food, and a really fascinating lecture on the consumption of non-food items found in cultures around the world. (This and the bugs as food lectures are probably not for the more squeamish among us.) The next six sections focus more on biology, nutrition, and epigenetics such as the gut biome, heritable changes in gene mutations due to nutritional environment, the brain-gut connections, obesity and eating disorders. The last section turns more to social sciences where topics include food insecurity/poverty, the demographics of undernourishment, the politics of food, lab-grown foods, and the future of the food supply.
Here's a general breakdown of the contents:
The first nine sections focus primarily on the diets of our early ancestors and how what they ate and how they acquired it may have affected their evolution and their health. The next ten sections cover the spread of foods across the globe and micro-histories of specific kinds of food (bread, chocolate, beer, coffee, sugar, salt, etc.) This is followed by several lectures on food as medicine, food as ritual, consumption of recreational drugs in food, and a really fascinating lecture on the consumption of non-food items found in cultures around the world. (This and the bugs as food lectures are probably not for the more squeamish among us.) The next six sections focus more on biology, nutrition, and epigenetics such as the gut biome, heritable changes in gene mutations due to nutritional environment, the brain-gut connections, obesity and eating disorders. The last section turns more to social sciences where topics include food insecurity/poverty, the demographics of undernourishment, the politics of food, lab-grown foods, and the future of the food supply.
September 4, 2019
Another of my walk-the-dog audiobooks. This was a 18 hour class on food science from the Great courses. I like to learn and found this an informative and well put together audio course. Although it was rather long and exhaustively detailed, I would listen to it again b/c of the information and benefits I received from it. At times it seemed repetitive and presented the usual "climate change from cow farts", "too many people are hungry" and "must not eat meat" tropes that are common today.
It failed to adequately address solutions for the world population explosion (ten billion people by 2050) and the cutting cutting down of forested land. It ended course by talking about GMO and engineered meat which I found both troubling and interesting.
Overall it was very good and exceptionally well done.
It failed to adequately address solutions for the world population explosion (ten billion people by 2050) and the cutting cutting down of forested land. It ended course by talking about GMO and engineered meat which I found both troubling and interesting.
Overall it was very good and exceptionally well done.
December 28, 2018
So much information about food! There were lectures devoted to beer, tea, soda, water and so many more! If you want to learn more about what we eat, why we eat and how to help other people eat ( global poverty and food insecurity) this course is for you! I warn you though it was long and it had so much information!
November 16, 2024
I didn't realize this was basically a university lecture but it was quite fascinating and took a look at food from the beginning of time to now. I happened to be reading a book about Dutch citizens in Indonesia in WWII where it talked about starvation at the same time and was interesting to compare to the malnutrition and hunger sections. I'll admit, some parts i have my own opinions on and didn't take her seriously but I learned so very much about the history of food. Definitely worth a listen, though it is 18 hours so be prepared for it!
October 24, 2023
This book is packed with facts about food. The lecturer explained what constitutes a paleo diet (complicated) and covered the history of some typical food topics, like insects, spice, sugar, salt, bread, chocolate, alcoholic drinks, tea, and soda. There were some tidbits that I found surprising, like the microbiome on your dominant hand could be different from your other hand, and you can increase the diversity of your microbiome by opening the window or stepping outside.
July 30, 2022
This book was extremely informative. Alyssa shared her experience in the field as well as scientific research to go through the history of food and human development and or change. From Paleo to contemporary diet, she analysis habits, costumes and it’s pros and cons to human beings. I really enjoyed it.
December 29, 2024
A brilliant collection of essays and studies across generations and times about the evolution of food on the Earth.
A very interesting read, from talking about stone age, evolution of body parts, evolution of fire and cooking practices, the future of food etc are such amazing topics to read about.
A very interesting read, from talking about stone age, evolution of body parts, evolution of fire and cooking practices, the future of food etc are such amazing topics to read about.
July 8, 2022
Am I the only one that worries about the students exiting the public school education system in the States United in America, the warning / reminder at the start of each chapter leads me to believe YES.
Thanks Alyssa Crittenden :-)
Thanks Alyssa Crittenden :-)
March 27, 2023
A fascinating and educating read, just like all of the Great Courses books I've enjoyed so far. I definitely thought this was going to be a bit different than what it was (had a lot more focus on history when I wasn't expecting any) but I really enjoyed it.
October 13, 2025
While there are still some interesting insights here, this is not nearly as comprehensive as the title implies--it is more an introduction to paleo diets and a deconstruction of what early humans ate.
September 9, 2018
"Post-industrialized west" was repeated like "fake news" and "Beautiful and Brave".... I genuinely wonder why!
August 18, 2021
Overview of nutrition, I listened on audible, and read the PDF, which was detailed enough to learn, but not overwhelming.
July 16, 2022
History, food and how we coexist, what to want more?
July 25, 2022
A good listen to someone who wants to scratch the surface of history, biology, economics and business of food.
August 4, 2022
Some interesting facts but overall very general knowledge. Still, interesting content about food and the human body and a bit of connection to the social impact the food has in different societies.
March 5, 2023
Very informative and interesting! Loved the narration as well!
May 1, 2023
Interesting information. Subject are broken up into sections including history, and some science without getting super technical.
June 13, 2023
good basic overview.
August 4, 2023
Finished 1/2
From the perspective of anthropology.
From the perspective of anthropology.
July 27, 2024
4-
Some great information here, but several chapters seemed to be more of an entertainment or pop culture than science.
Also, beware of cheesy jokes from the first chapter and onward 🙂
Some great information here, but several chapters seemed to be more of an entertainment or pop culture than science.
Also, beware of cheesy jokes from the first chapter and onward 🙂
December 14, 2024
Extremely wide-ranging yet indepth overview of specific food types and food systems
July 4, 2025
I enjoyed listening to this audiobook. Some interesting stuff and I thought it was arranged well.
September 2, 2023
I want my money back!
I'm a big fan of the Great Courses Audible content. Yet this book has nothing instructive or educative about actual nutrition nor about the human body. It's a long ramble about the various somewhat "hot" debates at the time of publishing about vegan vs meat diets.
If you are into stories about the history of food and highly opinionated author's views on different "media-hot" topics, then this book is for you, else simply skip it, there are cubic meters of books more relevant than this one.
I'm a big fan of the Great Courses Audible content. Yet this book has nothing instructive or educative about actual nutrition nor about the human body. It's a long ramble about the various somewhat "hot" debates at the time of publishing about vegan vs meat diets.
If you are into stories about the history of food and highly opinionated author's views on different "media-hot" topics, then this book is for you, else simply skip it, there are cubic meters of books more relevant than this one.
July 5, 2019
Sort of interesting is the best I can go with this lecture series.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews