How have humans survived "basically" on one food source, like RICE or Potatoes..??
Single food "ONLY". HOW do humans actually survive.? Especially "RICE".
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We really can't. There has been research done that indicates we need multiple types of food for both physical and mental health.
Do you remember that movie "Martian"? Where the astronaut was stranded on Mars with just potatoes? Several researchers said it wouldn't work very long. Mentally, the lack of different textures, flavors, and odors in the food will eventually mess with the mind and cause behavioral issues. My belief is, that is a survival mechanism. The body needs different nutrients from different sources, and the mental desire for different tastes, textures, and smells drives us to desire many different foods in order to get proper nutrition...
Do you remember that movie "Martian"? Where the astronaut was stranded on Mars with just potatoes? Several researchers said it wouldn't work very long. Mentally, the lack of different textures, flavors, and odors in the food will eventually mess with the mind and cause behavioral issues. My belief is, that is a survival mechanism. The body needs different nutrients from different sources, and the mental desire for different tastes, textures, and smells drives us to desire many different foods in order to get proper nutrition...
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I don't think people do survive on just rice or potatoes. Fresh or raw potatoes would be better than rice, because the peelings provide better nutrition.
People store rice and canned or potato flakes. I do. I have no plan to cook and eat rice or to cook and eat potatoes. For rice, I plan on serving it with other things, such as in fried rice. There are many possibilities, using rice as a base, and putting other food over the top. Asians have been doing this forever. Rice is the filler. With potatoes, it is similar. Take potatoes and make soup, stew, fried in oil or fat of some sort. Ever eat potato latkes or pancakes?
Either rice or potatoes could be eaten with something that was hunted or foraged. This is also where spices and seasonings come in. Try eating rice for days and days. Blah!
A good thing to do with rice is to cook lentils with a few other things and spices, such as dal.
Creativity and practice are important, IMHO. The bottom line about people who store rice is that this will fill the gap of hunger and can be augmented with other foods. Look at rice recipes. There are some out there in preparedness cookbooks.
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You can survive on one food source. For a while. Short term. But not long term. Eventually you will have all kinds of deficiencies - vitamins, minerals and a whole bunch of other stuff your body needs. You can survive on carbs with no proteins - for a while. And you can survive on proteins with no carbs - for a while. But neither will end up being good for you later on. Eventually you will starve, then die. That's the way things go. If you find yourself in a situation where you only have one food source, sure, go ahead and eat it. And pray that you will move on to a new situation where you can obtain other food sources before you die.
My understanding of this is NOT derived from prepping for SHTF. But from studying the history of Monks and Zen.
I hate rice.
Ate too much of it when I was young
.Perhaps a better question would be: "what single food can provide you all the nutrients you need to survive?".... because rice sure won't do it
....Especially one that can be stored in bulk for years, like rice can.
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A person should always eat beans with rice. When eaten together, beans and rice contain all nine essential amino acids to form a complete source of protein.
Asians eat tofu (bean curd) with their rice.
Central Americans, Hispanics, Africans, Indian (India), Mediterranean, etc. have many dishes that contain both beans and rice together. Even the Cajuns in Louisiana have caught on.
Asians eat tofu (bean curd) with their rice.
Central Americans, Hispanics, Africans, Indian (India), Mediterranean, etc. have many dishes that contain both beans and rice together. Even the Cajuns in Louisiana have caught on.
You're one of the people here who probably knows the most about this.
It's a good thing that both beans and rice can be stored for a very long time. Just plain beans and rice are too blah for me usually - I like mine mixed with Andouille and Cajun seasonings. Not bad in a burrito either. I always make a salad or some other green with them, because they are just too "heavy" for my stomach all alone. Very filling though. Exceedingly so at times.
So, "MY" goal with this thread is NOT current "best" healthy way to eat. What I want to know is have there been periods (Long Periods) even if not perfect, there humans consumed exclusively only one food.
We are so brainwashed from birth. Because of my chosen lifestyle (now 50+ years) I have learned much of commonly held "government and EXPERT" certified beliefs are totally invalid.
We are so brainwashed from birth. Because of my chosen lifestyle (now 50+ years) I have learned much of commonly held "government and EXPERT" certified beliefs are totally invalid.
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Rice is just one of many bulk carb sources that can be used as a "staple" food.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staple_food
Virtually all human societies through human history have had at least one (but often only one) staple food.
The staple chosen is often more determined by what grows well in that region and what seeds/species they have access to (eg potatoes only became a staple in Europe after they were found in South America and spread from there by explorers).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_potato
On one hand, staples are usually efficient to grow and the adoption of a monoculture results in economy of scale. But monocultures also make that society vulnerable to pests, diseases and climatic events that can cause crop failures. Staples put all the eggs in one basket.
As far as eating just a staple and water, there are plenty of examples of that in history (eg bread and water for prisoners), but it is worth noting that doing so long term results in degraded health and physical capability. Such people were covered in boils and had their teeth falling out, but those serious side effects were usally not so well documented in the accounts of people eating just one staple long term.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staple_food
Virtually all human societies through human history have had at least one (but often only one) staple food.
The staple chosen is often more determined by what grows well in that region and what seeds/species they have access to (eg potatoes only became a staple in Europe after they were found in South America and spread from there by explorers).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_potato
On one hand, staples are usually efficient to grow and the adoption of a monoculture results in economy of scale. But monocultures also make that society vulnerable to pests, diseases and climatic events that can cause crop failures. Staples put all the eggs in one basket.
As far as eating just a staple and water, there are plenty of examples of that in history (eg bread and water for prisoners), but it is worth noting that doing so long term results in degraded health and physical capability. Such people were covered in boils and had their teeth falling out, but those serious side effects were usally not so well documented in the accounts of people eating just one staple long term.
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I agree totally. Never made anything that was just beans and rice. We've been eating a lot of gumbo lately. Our burritos are pretty much chili beans, spanish rice, and stir fried onions and peppers.
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No, can't think of any.
I have not read of any extended "only one food" scenarios. You can find "missing one food" scenarios though. Like Scurvy killing lots of sailors when they didn't have any vitamin C.
People subsist MOSTLY on rice but they have vegetables, beans, a small portion of meat, or something else for flavour, texture, and nutrition.
Beans and any grain make a complete protein. That is why many bean recipes are served with rice, cornbread, tortillas, etc.
Beans and any grain make a complete protein. That is why many bean recipes are served with rice, cornbread, tortillas, etc.
No, people don't do that. They always look for ways to expand their diet. If you were stuck on your mountain, with a ton of rice, you would scrounge edible plants, shoot a moose or other game to vary your diet. The single food source is just a base to start from. If your single food source was moose you would be scrounging edible plants.
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Our motto is to "eat the rainbow." In other words, we try to vary the color, variety, and family of foods we eat.
My question is "NOT" what people "SHOULD" do 2023. It is; did they live on only "ONE" food source for decades. The Monks were forbidden any pleasures in their earthly life. My understanding is anything other than one bowl a day of just "PLAIN" rice, was seeking pleasure.
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Have you ever heard of Google?
I have heard of it, never have used it. I have always been advised by people I trust, to avoid Google.
As I read this I think of the rice I do have stored away. But along with the rice I have salt and pepper and Italian Seasoning and in a few kits I have Tabasco sauce. But, I have that packaged to go along with whatever meat I am able to obtain, whether it be deer or fish or jackrabbit or dove or if I am lucky some beef or pork or whatever. But, along with that we need vitamin C (remember stories of pirates and scurvy) and if you make a tea of pine needles that will give you vitamin C,
Each of us will need to be familiar with what plants are native to our areas so we can use various trees and weeds and whatever else to supplement the survival foods we may have stored away.
I have mentioned before that I have eaten racoon and it is delicious, I would also not hesitate to eat squirrel or mountain lion or coyote or crow or pigeon or several other animals if I needed to add to protein to my rice supply. The dandelion weed is edible as are many other weed type plants like chickweed. Some tree bark is nutritious.
I have a book on edible plants for the the desert southwest. I haven't studied it but I have it available if needed.
I do have some other foods stashed away, and hopefully one day I can stash away some more, but even if you have only one food source stocked on the shelf you should think of what you have naturally around your area to supplement your supply. Plant a nut tree, and apple tree, or some berries. Have a section of a small garden to some perennial herbs. Heck, make an area of the yard a dandelion forest, or whatever other weed that survives in your area that is edible.
If I could only stock away one food that I had to survive on it would be jerky or pemmican or biltong. If it couldn't be a meat product it would be rice, simply for the calories needed to hunt down any meat source needed to supplement the rice. The rice would be served in very small portions.
Each of us will need to be familiar with what plants are native to our areas so we can use various trees and weeds and whatever else to supplement the survival foods we may have stored away.
I have mentioned before that I have eaten racoon and it is delicious, I would also not hesitate to eat squirrel or mountain lion or coyote or crow or pigeon or several other animals if I needed to add to protein to my rice supply. The dandelion weed is edible as are many other weed type plants like chickweed. Some tree bark is nutritious.
I have a book on edible plants for the the desert southwest. I haven't studied it but I have it available if needed.
I do have some other foods stashed away, and hopefully one day I can stash away some more, but even if you have only one food source stocked on the shelf you should think of what you have naturally around your area to supplement your supply. Plant a nut tree, and apple tree, or some berries. Have a section of a small garden to some perennial herbs. Heck, make an area of the yard a dandelion forest, or whatever other weed that survives in your area that is edible.
If I could only stock away one food that I had to survive on it would be jerky or pemmican or biltong. If it couldn't be a meat product it would be rice, simply for the calories needed to hunt down any meat source needed to supplement the rice. The rice would be served in very small portions.
the Irish were eating mostly potatoes till the potato famine hit.
that was for a pretty decent long time till it happened.
sidenote...this wouldnt have happened because they grew record crops of wheat at the same time during this period. the wealthy landowners took wheat and sold it all and left nothing for people on the land to live on. this goes directly against bible as it says to leave edges and such of fields for poor and needy to glean from. but anyway...these rich bastards killed people for money...genocide i say. this is very reason to have your own lands and titles in hand and more...yall know the drill...or be able to be on a bit of land that undesirable for many to extract resources from to profit from agriculture wise. one household can carve out a daily living from a bit of land bit it take work.
puruvians ate lots of potatoes too.
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There are other search engines that you can use. I am not sure what the prepper community is recommending now.
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If you have seen Far and Away, a historical fiction film, it shows how the gentry or noblemen treated their peasants, the people who worked the land. They were treated like criminals because of crop failures and starvation.
Another thing about the crop failure of the potatoes was because they didn't diversify what they grew. Peru grows many varieties of potatoes. They've been growing potatoes for 1000's of years. Europe didn't have potatoes until after Columbus was in America. Czech Republic got them in the 1830's or 1840's. Now they are a basic food for many.
A Guide To Peruvian Potatoes - Aracari Travel
columbus brought back potatoes in 1500 but catholic church forbid them from being grown because they grew underground so they were from the devil...lol..how sad and backwards can you be and power hungry.
the king of france went against them and he had large numbers imported or grown for seed stock and one year early on after getting potatoes he planted a huge crop. there were crop failures in england and more and he sent potatoes to them and saved a bunch of lives and from then on the church said it was ok to grow them and then they spread.
theres old photos from famine and theres still records of the sales of how much wheat was took away and sold. i posted video showing and talking about this very thing.
Products stored
Qullqas (Inca Warehouses) by Guaman Poma
The products stored in qullqas varied from region to region in the Inca Empire depending upon production in the local area. At Wanuku Pampa in north central Peru, a major Inca administrative and storage area, 50 to 80 percent of the qullqas were used to store dried potatoes and other root crops. Only 5 to 7 percent of qullqas were devoted to the storage of maize, probably because the high altitudes and cool climate limited the local production of maize. Root crops were layered with straw and baled for storage. Maize was shelled and stored in large jars.[8]
Additional agriculture products stored in qullqas consisted of quinoa, beans, other vegetables, dried meat (Ch'arki or jerky), and seeds. Non-agricultural goods stored included textiles and clothing, wool, cotton, and feathers (used in clothing), tools and weapons and gold and silver vessels and other luxury items. Inventories of items stored were kept on quipus, the knotted strings the Incas used in lieu of a written language.[9]
The scope of the Inca's commitment for storage is described by Pedro Sánchez de la Hoz the first Spanish chronicler to visit the Inca capital of Cuzco who said that in the city «[there are] storehouses full of blankets, wool, weapons, metals and clothes and of everything that is grown and made in this realm ... and there is a house in which are kept more than 100,000 dried birds, for from their feathers articles of clothing are made. ... There are shields, beams for supporting house roofs, knives, and other tools; sandals and armor for the people of war in such quantity that it is not possible to comprehend.»[10][11]
The economy of the Inca Empire was to a large extent redistributive. "The Inca state seems to have financed itself primarily through direct managerial command of land, labor, and storage systems, rather than through a market exchange system."[12] Under the mit'a system, citizens were required to contribute labor to the Empire and the resultant production of food, textiles, and other goods were stored by the State to be distributed as needed.[13]
Agricultural products such as maize and quinoa might have had a storage life of one or two years and treated products such as freeze-dried potatoes and dried meat might have had a storage life of 2–4 years. However, early Spanish chroniclers said that some products were stored for up to 10 years.[14]
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The Americas is different then the rest of the World.
