Before the industrial revolution, there were no technological tools available to enhance the nutritional value of the food people ate. Therefore, many people had no access to food rich in proteins. Deficiencies in proteins aggravated the problem of malnutrition. Diets with low amounts of proteins slow growth of human body. The body uses protein for growth of muscles and acts as an enzyme catalyst in the body. Every DNA in the cells is wrapped around protein thus without protein, there is no growth (Wold 64).By considering that many things were not available before the industrial revolution, people depended entirely on crops and had no access to enough supplements of proteins to grow efficiently. Therefore, most people suffered from malnutrition and were so small. Most of the farmers lacked access to an adequate and complete amount of proteins from their cultivated crops such as soya beans and barley, while at the same time those who could not access fishing had a hard time of finding proteins for their bodies. The protein’s lysine concentrations in their harvested crops were low. This inhibited the growth and development of the people. Stunted growth dominated the population resulting in a slow human population growth. Additionally, before the industrial revolution, the harvested crops were low yielding and had inadequate calories and proteins, which are essential for growth and development of human bodies. People died of malnutrition and other food nutrients related diseases.
However, advance in technological tools has enhanced the global nutritional value of the staple food. The population has increased tremendously as people can afford protein and other mineral supplements after the industrial revolution (Floros 584). This shows that lack of sufficient proteins was a major contributor to slow growth of human population before the industrial revolution.
Works Cited
Floros, John D., et al. “Feeding the world today and tomorrow: the importance of food science and technology.” Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety 9.5 (2010): 572-599.
Wold, Marc S. “Replication protein A: a heterotrimeric, single-stranded DNA-binding protein required for eukaryotic DNA metabolism.” Annual review of biochemistry 66.1 (1997): 61-92.