Abstract
Carbon isotopes are fractionated by natural processes such as photosynthetic assimilation of CO2 and its absorption in water. Carbon fractionation is affected by the type of metabolism used by the plant to fix CO2 and differs in marine and terrestrial plants. This natural fractionation pattern is passed down the food chain and may therefore be used to elucidate questions on the origin of carbon compounds in nature. Here, the 13C fractionation pattern has been used to investigate the dietary habits of prehistoric man in northwestern Europe. The results show that whereas Danish Mesolithic man lived on a diet dominated by sea food, in the Neolithic the human diet consisted predominantly of terrestrial food.
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Tauber, H. 13C evidence for dietary habits of prehistoric man in Denmark. Nature 292, 332–333 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1038/292332a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/292332a0
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