People who find themselves lost and hungry in Wyoming‘s vast interior may have to overcome some modern apprehensions to survive.
Those who are lucky enough to catch a wild creature should not only eat red meat. That can actually kill you, and it would be a long, painful death from something called “rabbit starvation,” which is the common term for protein poisoning.
To avoid such a terrible fate, experts advise doing as the ancient hunters who roamed these lands did thousands of years ago. It breaks down the bones to obtain the marrow and maintain the fat deposits under the skin. Eat the heart and liver of your catch.
And, if things are serious enough, don’t forget that an animal’s brain and stomach contents are also loaded with vital nutrients.
“Just make sure you cook everything,” anthropologist Briana Doering of the University of Wyoming told Cowboy State Daily.
Even our Paleolithic ancestors had to cook what they ate, he explained, because unlike bears or wolves, the human digestive system cannot process raw animal tissue.
And as far as bugs go, what would be the best option in a wilderness survival scenario?
It’s not the luck of taking down a deer or a moose, Doering said. It’s the porcupine.
“In Alaska, porcupines are the survival food of choice. They are greasy and slow,” she said.
‘Rabbit hunger’
Wilderness survival experts warn that making a rookie mistake can lead to people dying from rabbit starvation. A modern person who doesn’t know any better might assume that all he needs is the red meat of a rabbit, deer, porcupine, or other critter.
The problem is that dumping all that meat protein, and nothing else, into your system can overwhelm the liver, Doering said.
This is because the body also needs other essential nutrients such as carbohydrates and fats to properly balance the processing of calories from food.
Therefore, devouring the meat alone can lead to protein poisoning or death of the rabbit.
An adult’s liver can process about 1,000 calories of protein per day. That seems like a lot, but if all someone eats is red meat from a game animal, it adds up quickly, Doering said.
If the liver is overloaded with more protein than it can process, that can lead to ammonia contamination in the blood. And that, in turn, can cause unpleasant side effects that can appear after a few days and can kill a person after a few more days.
Symptoms may include weakness, lethargy, nausea, and diarrhea.
There are accounts of the phenomenon dating back to ancient Rome, with stories of Roman soldiers on campaigns in remote areas falling ill or even dying of hunger, despite having a stomach full of meat.
Doering said the term “rabbit starvation” was apparently coined by a Russian explorer in reference to Arctic adventurers who suffered from the condition after trying to survive solely on rabbit meat.
Break those bones
The first known inhabitants of what would become Wyoming were Paleolithic groups known as the Clovis People.
They first came here about 13,000 years ago in search of game, including mammoths. Researchers have learned a lot from a site near Worland, where the Clovis people long ago killed seven mammoths at once.
“With seven mammoths killed, people might think, ‘That’s a lot of good mammoth meat.’ But if you only ate mammoth fillets, you wouldn’t get all the nutrients you need,” Doering said.
The Clovis people, along with other ancient hunting tribes, probably discovered a properly balanced diet over time, and probably the hard way.
They enjoyed their roasted mammoth steaks, no doubt. But they also learned to obtain other nutrients by consuming the bone marrow, organs, brains and even the stomach contents of the powerful beasts, Doering said.
When anthropologists began discovering broken bones at ancient hunting grounds, they initially thought people had resorted to eating bone marrow after the meat ran out.
But researchers have since discovered that Paleolithic people were simply being smart. Marrow is packed with nutrients that can help balance digestion and get the most out of every calorie, Doering said.
“Bone marrow is like the Paleolithic equivalent of a Snickers bar,” he said.
Do you want brains with that?
Even in incredibly thin wild animals, such as rabbits, internal organs such as the heart and liver can contain vital fats and other nutrients that will prevent rabbit starvation from occurring.
The stomach contents of plant-eating animals can also be extracted and boiled into a soup or broth that can provide nutrients such as vitamin C, Doering said.
Again, as gross as it may seem, Paleolithic people knew what they were doing when they prepared that type of cuisine. And a modern person could manage in extreme circumstances.
For those who find themselves stranded with only a bunny or porcupine to eat, she recommends adopting that Paleo mindset.
“Don’t worry so much about every bit of red meat left on the bones. Boil the stomach contents. Boil the organs and bone marrow and drink the broth,” she said.
And of course, don’t forget about the brain. They are loaded with healthy fats.
“The average American thinks eating brains is disgusting, but many cultures around the world still eat brains to this day,” Doering said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
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