Evolutionary origins of human alcoholism in primate frugivory

Evolutionary origins of alcohol consumption have rarely been considered in studies of ethanol addiction. However, the occurrence of ethanol in ripe an d decaying fruit and the substantial heritability of alcoholism in humans s uggest an important historical association between primate frugivory and al cohol consumption. Olfactory localization of ripe fruit via volatilized alc ohols, the use of ethanol as an appetitive stimulant, and the consumption o f fruits with substantial ethanol content potentially characterize all frug ivorous primates, including hominoids and the lineage leading to modem huma ns. Patterns of alcohol use by humans in contemporary environments nay thus reflect a maladaptive co-option of ancestral nutritional strategies. Altho ugh diverse factors contribute to the expression of alcoholism as a clinica l syndrome, historical selection for the consumption of ethanol in the cour se of frugivory can be viewed as a subtle get pervasive evolutionary influe nce on modern humans.