According to a study conducted by Bryan Hockett of the Nevada Bureau of Land Management, a pregnant Neanderthal woman needed at least 5,500 kcal per day, more than double that of a modern woman. A polar explorer’s requirement, equivalent to 10 large cheeseburgers a day, which would make any follower of a modern paleo diet more than obese. For those who want to try it, it’s worth remembering that unfortunately cheeseburgers didn’t exist, so the same study suggests the following Neanderthal paleo diet: 2.7 kg of bison, half a kilo of venison ribs and aurochs tail, 60 grams each of brain, liver, and tongue, 120 grams of stomach, a whole rabbit, and 60 grams of marrow. After removing the inedible parts, this equates to 2.5 kg of meat per day, 40% of which is fat.
