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I agree that we're probably adapted, in our biology, to re-occurring intervals of food scarcity. I would not be surprised at all if it turned out that our bodies actually function better on that sort of regime (eat at will for a while, then forego all caloric intake for a brief period).

I wonder if this was noticed at the dawn of civilization, and then got codified into religion and so on.

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Yeah it's interesting how ancient cultures seemed to have (by trial and error I suppose) incorporated specific behaviors into their culture which, in hindsight, solve a particular problem that can be scientifically identified.

An example I love is the Canadian Inuit who traditionally ate no vegetables for 10+ months of the year without developing scurvy. The tradition of eating raw whale blubber and fish (including the broth) preserved the vitamin C and minerals from the mea, while eating cooked meat without broth drastically reduces mineral and vitamin intake.

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