Tag: Animal domestication

Archaeological evidence, like ancient pottery containing milk fat residues, indicates humans have been consuming dairy products for at least 8,500 years. The question of why did humans start consuming dairy goes back to the advent of farming and the crucial evolutionary and nutritional pressures of that era.

While humans have consumed milk products for approximately 9,000 years, the regular consumption of liquid cow's milk is a much more recent development. This practice began following the domestication of cattle, though for most of that history, adults were lactose intolerant and relied on fermented products.

Approximately 65% of the global adult population has a reduced ability to digest lactose after infancy. This statistic immediately challenges the idea that all humans are designed to drink milk throughout their lives. The ability to digest milk as an adult is a relatively recent genetic mutation that spread in certain populations, making the question of our milk-drinking 'design' far more complex than simple biology.

The practice of humans consuming other mammals' milk is a relatively recent development in our species' history, dating back about 10,000 years. While most mammals stop producing the lactase enzyme after weaning, a significant portion of the human population has evolved the ability to digest lactose into adulthood, allowing us to drink other mammals' milk.

While cow milk dominates many Western markets, a significant portion of the global population drinks other animal milks or plant-based alternatives. We explore the historical, economic, and cultural factors behind why cow milk became so exceptionally prominent in certain regions, not that it is the exclusive dairy source.