Dental health in early Bronze Age populations of Anatolia

The data obtained from dental pathology has crucial importance in determining the dietary habits and food preparation techniques of ancient populations. The information on the dietary habits of the populations living in Anatolia during Early Bronze Age, a period with social and political complexity, is very limited. In this study, teeth and jaws of İkiztepe, Bakla Tepe, Titriş Höyük and Bademağacı people who lived in different geographic regions of Anatolia during Late Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age were examined in terms of dental diseases to understand whether there was any difference in their dietary habits. Stable isotope analysis carried out on the same populations indicates a homogenous diet being predominantly terrestrial C3 based. However, statistically significant differences in caries and calculus frequencies among populations have pointed out that they differ from each other regarding the amount of carbohydrate and protein in their diet. Whilst slight or moderate dental wear indicates the consumption of well processed, soft and small grained foods, İkiztepe varies from others with a higher average of dental wear. The temporal change of dietary habits has also been investigated and it is determined that it may be more useful to evaluate the whole period covering more than a thousand years rather than the phases of it. The increasing incidence of caries and enamel hypoplasia from Late Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age indicates that nutrients started to contain more carbohydrate, and accordingly their quality decreased in time. On the other hand, the increasing frequencies of periodontal diseases and tooth loss over time may refer to the unstable and complex structure of the period. Political and social tension during the Early Bronze Age affected the oral health of people, and increased the number of teeth they lost while living. In conclusion, considering the dental pathologies, it does not seem possible to mention a standard nutrition model that can be valid for all populations. Divergence in their ecological environment, food preparation techniques and subsistence strategies are thought to be effective in shaping the differences among them.