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Goofy, yellow and crooked: British smiles sometimes had a less flattering international image, but a new study took advantage of the tartar of our infamous teeth.
Researchers badyzing the teeth of the British Iron Age until now opened the way for the use of protein in tooth scale to reveal what our ancestors ate.
Plaque accumulates on the surface of teeth and is mineralized by saliva components. "To bury the proteins of the food we eat in the process."
Identifying evidence of many foods, especially plants, in past diets is a challenge as they often leave no trace in the archaeological record. But proteins are robust molecules that can survive in tartar for thousands of years.
Artifical tartar has been shown to conserve milk proteins, but the international study, conducted by researchers of the University of York and the Max Planck Institute Science of Human History, has proven for the first time that it can also reveal more accurate information on a wider range of dietary proteins, including those of plants.
The discovery could provide new insights into the diets and lifestyles of our ancestors, add to the value of dental remains res in our understanding of human evolution.
The team plans to use the results of this study to refine its protein detection methods and explore specific areas of ancient dietary research
. Lead author, Dr. Camilla Speller, of the Department of Archeology at the University of York, said, "This approach may be particularly useful in unreported plant detection." It may offer a more accurate method of food identification than other methods such as badysis of DNA and old isotopes, because it allows to distinguish different cultures and to indicate if
Analyzing 100 archaeological samples from all over Britain, as well as 14 samples of living dental patients and recent deaths, the research team discovered that potential food proteins could be found in about one-third
Dr. Speller added, "In the teeth we observe in individuals who lived in the Victorian era, we identified proteins badociated with plant foods. , including oats, peas and vegetables from the cabbage family. Sometimes we find evidence of milk and oats in the same mouth – I like to think that it is porridge!
In modern samples, researchers have found proteins that reflect a British diet, such as potatoes. , soy and peanuts, as well as milk proteins.
The first author, Dr. Jessica Hendy of the Department of Archeology of the Max Planck Institute in Germany, said: "Although there are still many things we do not know It is exciting because it shows that archaeological dental calculus contains dietary information, including food products that do not usually survive in archaeological sites. "
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Material provided by University of York . : Content can be changed for style and length.
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