Why humans love starchy foods

Starchy foods like bread, noodles, pasta, potatoes, and rice are popular all over the world. Starch is a type of carbohydrate, one of the main nutrients in food (see box at right) and an important part of the human diet. Now a study has revealed that humans’ love for these foods can be traced back more than 800,000 years—to the DNA (a chemical that carries information about a person’s body and characteristics) of our ancestors. In the study, researchers analyzed the genomes of 68 ancient humans, including one that lived 45,000 years ago. A genome is a complete set of DNA. The researchers focused on a specific gene (segment of DNA) called AMY1. AMY1 produces a substance called amylase, which helps humans break down starch in foods. Humans are able…

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The Week Junior US (Digital) - 1 Issue, Issue 244

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