Ancient Europeans were lactose intolerant long after they made cheese

Scientists have identified that ancient Europeans remained intolerant to lactose for 5,000 years after they adopted agricultural practices and 4,000 years after the onset of cheese-making among Central European Neolithic farmers. The findings also suggest that major technological transitions in Central Europe between the Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age were also associated with major changes in the genetics of these populations. The research team extracted nuclear ancient DNA from 13 skeletons buried on the Great Hungarian Plain, which is known to be “at the crossroads of major cultural transformations.” Petrous bones proved to be the most promising in this experiment because they are the hardest in the human body, and most resistant to decay.

Ireland is the place in the world with the highest concentration of lactose tolerance, and undoubtedly that’s to do with a heavy reliance on drinking unprocessed milk in pre-history, and a culture focused on dairying.

Co-author and Trinity College Dublin professor Daniel Bradley

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