nutirtion

[brandonc@advant.com (Haist, Brandon)]

Don't worry if you think you have offended me.  I just hadn't had time to
respond yet.  A valid point has been made, and I must rephrase.  It is not
only how much you eat, but the composition as well!  I wonder if there is a
way to analyse blood metabolism via bones and fossils...
~Brandon Haist


-----Original Message-----
From: Christopher Srnka <theclaw@sprintmail.com>
To: brandonc@advant.com <brandonc@advant.com>; dinosaur@usc.edu
<dinosaur@usc.edu>
Date: Wednesday, November 25, 1998 7:51 PM
Subject: Re: [Re: [Suchomimus tenerensis]]


>
>
>Christopher Srnka wrote:
>
>> Haist, Brandon wrote:
>>
>> >
>> >
>> > I know that this is old, but Grisslies which eat whatever they can
find, eat
>> > as much salmon as they can, since they are always hungry.  When I was
at
>> > Sequoia National Park in California the rangers made it a big point to
keep
>> > food away from the Black Bears.  They said that one Milky Way Candy Bar
Held
>> > more sugar and calories than what a Black Bear gets eating in a meadow
for
>> > an entire day!  I guess it is not what you eat necessarily, but how
much.
>> > ~Brandon Haist
>>
>>   Actually, it IS what you eat to a large degree, as your anecdote about
the
>> grizzlies eating candy bars demonstrates. Generally speaking, animals do
not
>> seek out or are accustomed to refined sugars, high glycemic foods, and
other
>> sources of high-carbohydrate foods. Protein and fats are essentials;
refined
>> sugars such as those in candy bars are definitely not. I don't know how
insulin
>> and blood sugar levels function in other species, but in humans excessive
>> carbohydrate consumption can lead to all sorts of bad conditions,
including
>> hypoglycemia, type II diabetes, and carbohydrate addiction. Recently, I
was able
>> to change my eating habits to restrict carbohydrate consumption and
increase my
>> overall food intake (proteins and fats) while effectively lowering my
>> cholesterol, blood pressure, and bodyfat percentage, while increasing
energy
>> levels and alertness. If insulin and glycogen work in the same ways in
other
>> vertebrates, it would explain why predators generally take in more
protein and
>> fat in their diets than herbivores do, proportionately; increased energy
and
>> alertness are essential for effective predation.
>> Just a thought, and probably somewhat off topic, sorry...
>> -Chris Srnka
>
>  I realize I didn't really make much of a point there; I guess it's just
that your
>story about the grizzlies and the candy bar points out that the diets of
wild
>animals (vertebrates, I mean) tend to be high in proteins and fats and that
sugars
>and carbohydrates are not the main dish. I have little or no understanding
of animal
>nutrition, so if anyone out there can bail me out by detailing a probable
dinosaur
>RDA, I'll shut up about the proteins and such and stick to drawing stuff!
:-P
>-Chris Srnka
>
>