Food hierarchy

[Ava6]

Just when I thought I had learnt it all about the true nature of our males, here comes something that truly makes me lose it:

I had always assumed that the sky high mortality of mothers& babies in times past was due to lack of medicine, sanitation + too many kids for mums to look after them properly. Turns out that an even bigger factor was malnutrition due 2 men & boys hogging the food for themselves, leaving pregnant & breastfeeding women + growing girls 2 feed on their leftovers. Fetuses became too weak on such low nutrition, which would explain the staggering no. of stillbirths. This was probably the reason girls started growing so rapidly after WW II in the developed world: for the 1st time in history there was enough food to feed the females of the family sufficiently after the males took their fill.

For some reason this gutpunches me even more than all the other misogynistic evil men have perpetrated. I mean - can you really socialise someone to be this psychopathically selfish through conditioning alone??? (in terms of the male nature vs nature debate)

If we are comparing family histories...

My grandad, born 1904 in the Welsh coal mining valleys. Somewhere in the middle of 12 kids. Whole family very bright, loved reading, education, politics. The oldest kids all went down the pit as a matter of course at 14, no real alternative, the money they earned kept the family afloat. There was a definite culture when I was growing up of bigger portions (though not necessarily the choicest bits) for the men.

By the time my Grandfather was a young man, there were a lot of adults working and contributing to the household; people lived at home then until they got married. So the family was relatively wealthy and the three youngest children got to stay on at school, do exams and go to college. Two became schoolteachers and one a hospital matron. The three were all girls.

My grandad was actually a tad bitter about how all this worked out because the girls were by no means the brightest in the family but were merely fortunate to be the youngest.

So basically, in my working class family, ultimately the girls got the lion's share of the resources. This may have been influenced by the fact that my family were extremely left wing, I don't know. It's a different perspective though.

Yes Tinkle. We forget sometimes how wonderful education is! And I don't think a moe powerful tool exists for achievinf equality.

Bit off topic, but I have often wondered if there was some kind of evolutionary element/advantage to anorexia nervosa - having the ability to sacrifice food and resources for others for long periods might have conveyed some sort of protection or value in the family or community. Therefore restricting eating at times of stress might get reinforced.

having the ability to sacrifice food and resources for others for long periods might have conveyed some sort of protection or value in the family or community.

Isn"t it true that women, in extreme marathons and things, outlast men?

Thanks for that link Didactylos. Was really wanting to read it but is very expensive on Amazon.

"Yes, life was hard, yes, men on average need higher amounts of calories, yes, death was close.

Now, tell me, how many women died in childbirth? Literally reproducing themselves to death to produce those families? Have you ever handwashed clothes for a family? Fetched and boiled the water to do that, made the bread, carried the children, produced the milk to feed those children."

To be fair - women in Eastern Europe in that time period very rarely had over 2 children or died in childbirth. But the constant abortion in those under Soviet rule took a toll on their bodies. Also the leading cause of death for men was alcohol-related, not due to hard work.

Now jumping back to be back on your side: + on top of all this in a broader context women didn't even get the fun out of making those children like men do. No automatic orgasms in reward for all that work and agony

It's not a coincidence that as soon as women had the choice to have fewer children and the choice to go out to work that they did so, straight away.

Overpopulation is 100% mens' fault. As soon as women acquire at least some degree of bodily autonomy - the fertility rate plummets to below replacement level. It's happened in every single country save for the unique case of Israel.

Funny how those mentioning the energy levels needing to be higher for a man to work always base those on a not pregnant or breast-feeding woman. Menstruation also causes a loss of nutrients.

So much for "breadwinning" then . Not earned when men ate most of the bread themselves...