From Hannibal Lecter to the Donner party, cannibals are now the subject of morbid fascination and disgust—but how did eating one another become such a taboo? Join us this episode for our Halloween special: the science and history of cannibalism! Fewer species eat members of their own kind as you move through the animal kingdom toward primates—but, according to the archaeologist James Cole , cannibalism seems to have been a reasonably regular part of early human behavior too.
His question was: Why? Were ancient humans eating one another out of hunger, or for more complicated reasons that have to do with spiritual beliefs about the soul and the body? But the CDC warns that even this cutting-edge form of cannibalism is a bad idea.
Because it can transfer harmful bacteria from mother to child. So, if you have a hankering for human, maybe try some pork instead.
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A leading-edge research firm focused on digital transformation. Good Subscriber Account active since Shortcuts. Account icon An icon in the shape of a person's head and shoulders. It often indicates a user profile. Log out. US Markets Loading But if you look at the key reasons why cannibalism occurs across nature, it is usually due to overcrowding or a lack of alternative forms of nutrition. In the West we have a layer of culture that prevents us from cannibalizing.
But we know that cannibalism has taken place with humans during famine. In non-human cannibalism, the biggest surprise for me was how widespread it is across nature, for all sorts of reasons other than stress or lack of food. That blew me away. With human cannibalism, what shocked me was how extensive medicinal cannibalism was in Europe for hundreds of years.
Human body parts were used right up to the beginning of the 19 th century. Simon Worrall curates Book Talk. Follow him on Twitter or at simonworrallauthor.
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