science

Men in Roman Britain had better diets than women, study finds



Archaeologists led by the University of Cincinnati revealed in 2014 that lower class Romans living in Pompeii feasted on exotic meats and spicy seafood.

Their research disproved popular preconceptions that the rich dined on imported delicacies including flamingo, while the poor survived on gruel.

The scientists discovered a sea urchin and the butchered leg of a giraffe among less exotic foods like grain and eggs, in a poorer area of the ruined city.

Steven Ellis, an associate professor of classics at the University of Cincinnati, said: ‘That the bone represents the height of exotic food is underscored by the fact that this is thought to be the only giraffe bone ever recorded from an archaeological excavation in Roman Italy.

‘How part of the animal, butchered, came to be a kitchen scrap in a seemingly standard Pompeian restaurant not only speaks to long-distance trade in exotic and wild animals, but also something of the richness, variety and range of a non-elite diet.’

Deposits discovered also included imported spices from as far away as Indonesia, highlight the incredible reach of the Romans.

‘The traditional vision of some mass of hapless lemmings – scrounging for whatever they can pinch from the side of a street, or huddled around a bowl of gruel – needs to be replaced by a higher fare and standard of living, at least for the urbanites in Pompeii,’ Professor Ellis said.

German researchers also revealed Roman Gladiators ate a strict vegetarian diet to accompany brutal training regimes.

Instead of eating a protein-rich diet like modern athletes, the fighters managed on a diet of grain washed down with a ‘sports drink’.

Experts studied the collagen in bones of Roman gladiator corpses found in a 2nd century cemetery in modern Turkey to confirm theories of this vegetarian diet.

Using spectroscopy, researchers from the Department of Forensic Medicine at the MedUni Vienna studied stable isotope ratios, including levels of carbon, nitrogen and sulphur.

They also looked at the ratio of strontium to calcium in the bone mineral. Levels of strontium indicate the amount of vegetable matter consumed over a lifetime, and the higher the levels the more likely that the diet is devoid of meat.

The results revealed meals consisted primarily of grain and meat-free meals. All individuals consumed plants including wheat and barley as staple food, while others ate beans.

The findings also suggested these meals were washed down with a vinegar and plant ash drink, to give them energy, as a form of ancient sports drink.

‘Plant ashes were evidently consumed to fortify the body after physical exertion and to promote better bone healing,’ said study leader Professor Fabian Kanz.

‘Things were similar then to what we do today – we take magnesium and calcium, in the form of effervescent tablets, for example, following physical exertion.’



READ SOURCE

Leave a Reply

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.