The low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet has a lot of followers these days. Yet its effectiveness for long-term weight loss--let alone overall health--has yet to be proven. Fortunately, we don't have to resort to trial-and-error to find out, and we don't have to wait a generation or more. We have written records of what our earliest ancestors ate--and why, and with what results.

According to the Genesis account of Creation, God said, "I have given every green herb for food." In antediluvian (before the Flood) times, people lived much longer and bore children far later in life than people have since. Later, correct diet formed the basis of Mosaic Law, and no other ancient writing regarding diet is so strict. So, what did God tell His people to eat?

The Old Testament Israelites thrived on an almost exclusively vegetarian diet. The use of meat may not have been forbidden per se, yet it was not considered necessary for health, being generally reserved for special occasions. Protein sources were mainly grains, including wheat, barley, and millet; and legumes (referred to as "pulse"), such as beans, peas, and lentils. Nuts, especially almonds and pistachios, provided an additional source.

Bread, the basis of everyone's diet, appears frequently in both Testaments. This was whole-grain, unrefined bread, containing the germ, a rich source of complex carbohydrates, vitamins, and other nutrients. Bread could be made from other grains besides wheat; barley provided fiber and high-density lipoproteins, which help control cholesterol. Grains could also be roasted rather than made into bread.

Foods were flavored with onions and garlic as well as other herbs and spices. The manna referred to in Numbers is thought to have been coriander seed.

Leviticus advises us not to eat animal fat. People used olive oil for cooking as well as flavoring; unlike animal fats and tropical oils, it guards against heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure, and obesity, rather than exacerbating them. Sugar as we know it did not exist; honey, a natural sugar, pre-digested by bees, was used for sweetening.

Fruits release digestive enzymes to help metabolize food. Apricots, figs, dates, pomegranates, and grapes were among those available to Old Testament people. What about dairy products? The Bible makes few references to any, occasionally mentioning butter and cheese, usually made from the milk of sheep and goats.

Besides water, wine is the drink most often found accompanying food in the Bible. It was less likely than water or milk to be contaminated, because the alcohol content killed germs. Often the wine probably was not fermented, and enjoyed by people of all ages.

The diet of New Testament peoples, as far as we know, was similar to that of Old Testament peoples. Unlimited seafood was available from the Sea of Galilee; seven of Jesus' disciples were fishermen. Fish could be eaten boiled, sun-dried, pickled, or salted.

Now, here's the interesting thing. Humans began to eat meat only after the Flood, when the earth was a wasteland and Noah and his family had nothing else to eat until they could establish their crops and wild plants flourished again. Whereas God originally said, "I have given every green herb for food," He now said, "Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you." For the first time, humans were allowed to include animals in their diet.

But here's the catch: we don't know if people were supposed to continue eating meat indefinitely, or if it was a temporary solution to the food shortage problem. Postdiluvian peoples have not lived such long lives as those before, and many suffer from diet-related ailments that were almost unheard-of in those days. Perhaps regular meat eating should be viewed as a sacrifice that Noah's family had to make for the survival of the species. Other episodes have occurred in human history when similar sacrifices were made: Native Americans, pioneers, people lost in the wilderness.

It is also worth noting that nearly every culture on the planet traditionally has, as its staple food, some type of complex carbohydrate product: Asians have their rice; Latin Americans, their tortillas; Irish, their potatoes; continental Europeans, their bread. There's no law against eating a low-carb, high-protein diet. But those who do so because they prefer to will not reap the health rewards of those who choose more wisely.