How Processed Foods Shaped the Way We Speak

By Eben van Tonder, 27 Feb 25

Table of Contents

Introduction

Language is one of humanity’s most defining traits, yet its evolution is often studied independently of biological and cultural shifts. However, recent research suggests that dietary changes—particularly the shift to processed foods—significantly influenced human anatomy and, in turn, the way we speak (Blasi et al., 2019). The transition from hunter-gatherer diets to softer, more processed agricultural foods altered jaw growth, making certain sounds easier to pronounce. This played a role in the diversification of languages, particularly in Europe and Asia, where labiodental sounds like f and v became more common around 4,000 years ago (Bickel, 2019).

The Link Between Diet and Jaw Structure

For most of human history, diets consisted of tough, unprocessed foods like raw plants, nuts, and meat that required significant chewing. Paleoanthropologists have long noted that early humans had stronger jaws with edge-to-edge bites, which were advantageous for processing fibrous and coarse foods (Larsen, 1995). However, with the advent of agriculture, diets softened as people began consuming grains, dairy, and cooked meals (Cramon-Taubadel, 2011).

The introduction of processed foods, particularly with advancements in milling and cooking techniques, reduced the mechanical stress placed on the jaw. This shift altered craniofacial growth patterns, leading to a higher prevalence of overbites—where the upper teeth slightly overlap the lower teeth (Pinhasi & Eshed, 2015). While seemingly minor, this change had significant implications for speech.

How an Overbite Facilitated New Sounds

A groundbreaking study by Blasi et al. (2019), published in Science, proposed that this anatomical change made labiodental sounds (such as f and v) easier to pronounce. Labiodental sounds involve placing the lower lip against the upper teeth—an articulation that is less efficient for individuals with an edge-to-edge bite but becomes easier with a slight overbite.

Before these dietary shifts, languages worldwide had relatively few words featuring f and v sounds. However, as soft diets became more common, particularly in agricultural societies, these sounds spread across languages in Europe and Asia (Blasi et al., 2019). The study found a strong correlation between societies that adopted softer diets early on and the presence of labiodental sounds in their languages.

Linguistic Evolution and the Spread of Labiodentals

The Proto-Indo-European language, spoken roughly 5,000 years ago, lacked labiodental sounds (Bickel, 2019). However, as agricultural societies flourished and diets softened, these sounds emerged in descendant languages. Bickel (2019) connected this phonetic shift to the evolution of Proto-Indo-European patēr into Old English faeder, where the p sound was replaced by the f sound.

This linguistic shift was gradual, occurring over centuries as populations adapted to new diets and their speech patterns evolved accordingly. By around 1,500 years ago, languages such as Old English, Germanic dialects, and Romance languages had incorporated labiodental sounds into their phonetic inventories (Blevins, 2004). This transformation contributed to the diversity of modern European languages, illustrating how cultural and physiological factors can shape speech patterns over time.

The Biocultural Feedback Loop

This discovery highlights the deep interconnection between culture, biology, and language. It challenges the idea that language change is purely a cognitive or social phenomenon, showing that physiological adaptations can influence how we speak (Cramon-Taubadel, 2011). This aligns with research demonstrating how dietary shifts impact cranial and dental structures (Pinhasi & Eshed, 2015).

It also raises a broader question: how might other cultural innovations—such as cooking techniques, technological tools, or even orthodontics—continue shaping our speech patterns in subtle but significant ways? As modern diets become even more processed and oral health practices evolve, future linguistic changes may emerge in response.

Conclusion

The introduction of processed foods did more than change how humans ate—it altered the structure of our jaws, which, in turn, influenced the way we speak. The shift from a hunter-gatherer diet to softer agricultural and processed foods led to anatomical changes that made labiodental sounds easier to pronounce. This adaptation contributed to language diversification in Europe and Asia, demonstrating that cultural and biological evolution are deeply intertwined (Blasi et al., 2019).

This research offers a new perspective on the history of language, showing that even something as seemingly unrelated as diet can shape the way we communicate. As human lifestyles continue to change, the relationship between culture, biology, and speech remains an ongoing process—one that will undoubtedly influence how future generations talk.

References

Bickel, B. (2019). Phonetic shifts in Indo-European languages: The role of diet and craniofacial morphology. Science, 363(6432), 547-550.
Blasi, D. E., Moran, S., Moisik, S. R., Widmer, P., Dediu, D., & Bickel, B. (2019). Human sound systems are shaped by post-Neolithic changes in bite configuration. Science, 363(6432), eaav3218. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aav3218
Blevins, J. (2004). Evolutionary Phonology: The Emergence of Sound Patterns. Cambridge University Press.
Cramon-Taubadel, N. V. (2011). Global human mandibular variation reflects differences in agricultural and hunter-gatherer subsistence strategies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 108(49), 19546-19551.
Larsen, C. S. (1995). Biological changes in human populations with agriculture. Annual Review of Anthropology, 24, 185-213.
Pinhasi, R., & Eshed, V. (2015). The evolution of human diet and its impact on craniofacial morphology. Journal of Human Evolution, 82, 1-10.