The Claim

The evolution of the human brain likely required consistent access to shore-based foods rich in DHA, iodine, and iron, because these nutrients are critical for brain development and are significantly more abundant in aquatic and coastal diets than in inland plant or terrestrial animal sources.

Source: Docosahexaenoic acid and human brain evolution: missing the forest for the trees--comments by Cunnane.

What the research says

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Supports
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Challenges
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Cause and effect
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In plain English

People think our big brains evolved because our ancestors ate lots of fish and shellfish from the shore — these foods have special nutrients that help brains grow, and you can’t get as much of them from plants or land animals.

See the scientific wording

The evolution of the human brain likely required consistent access to shore-based foods rich in DHA, iodine, and iron, as these nutrients are critical for brain development and are far more abundant in aquatic and coastal diets than in inland plant or terrestrial animal sources.

Score breakdown, mechanism chain, raw evidence, ideal studies needed

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