The Origins of Lactase Persistence in Europe

[Brännvin]

The earliest adult milk drinkers came from central Europe – a finding which overturns the notion than sun-starved Scandinavians got there first.

Unlike more than half of the world's people, most northern Europeans can digest milk, thanks to a gene that enables lactose digestion throughout adulthood. It was thought this gene first arose in Scandinavia, where lactose tolerance is most common, because it is a way of getting vitamin D in places with little sunshine, says Mark Thomas of University College London.

His team have now narrowed down the emergence of the gene to a tribe of cattle herders living around 7500 years ago between the Balkans and central Europe.

The distribution of the gene mutation across the continent runs parallel to the spread of Linearbandkeramik (Linear Band Pottery) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linear_Pottery_culture) people, a Neolithic farming culture that lived in central Europe 7500 years ago. "It is likely that Linearbandkeramik dairy farmers were the first to drink fresh milk, without first processing it into yoghurt or cheese," Thomas says.

Journal reference: PLoS Computational Biology, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000491 (http://www.ploscompbiol.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000491)

[Allenson]

One of the stranger things about the distribution of lactase persistence is that it is highest in those areas that, according to most models anyway, began a herding/pastoral lifestyle the latest.

The highest frequencies of tolerance are clearly across the northwestern fringe/North Sea regions, stretching from Ireland to Britain and across the North Sea to Denmark, Noway and Sweden.

This map shows tolerance:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_dRj9DN75euI/RexPhPGhRNI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/mLNAdNxm5Vw/s400/LPMAP.JPG

Whereas this one shows intolerance:

http://www.medbio.info/Horn/Time%201-2/Lactase%20map.gif

It's a very puzzling story as the modern distribution of tolerance is inverse to the way in which pastoralism and milk drinking supposedly spread.

My feeling is that the jury is still very much out on the matter.

[Frigga]

Lactase is in raw milk. If you do not pasturize milk, the lactase in the milk will digest the lactose. Simple experiment on anyone's part: Get a glass of fresh raw milk. Take a taste, and then leave it on the counter all day. It will naturally sour. That is because of the lactase in the milk that digests the lactose, effectively preserving the milk naturally. Most people really do have problems with lactose, especially in the last one hundred years because of the mass cooking of our milk which kills the beneficial enzyme lactase. Simple solution for those who want to drink milk, drink it raw! :)

Real Milk (http://realmilk.com)

[Brännvin]

My feeling is that the jury is still very much out on the matter.

I agree with you a little bit too, here's an interesting quote from the NY Times from an article titled "The Genetic Map of Europe" based on an interview with Manfred Kayser, a geneticist at the Erasmus University Medical Center in the Netherlands;

"Genomic sites that carry the strongest signal of variation among populations may be those influenced by evolutionary change, Dr. Kayser said. Of the 100 strongest sites, 17 are found in the region of the genome that confers lactose tolerance, an adaptation that arose among a cattle herding culture in northern Europe some 5,000 years ago. Most people switch off the lactose digesting gene after weaning, but the cattle herders evidently gained a great survival advantage by keeping the gene switched on through adulthood."

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/13/science/13visual.html?_r=1

[Rochefaton]

There is something I have noticed through reading varies studies on LTP, and that is this; there may be a correlation between the distribution of Y-DNA R1b and the C-13.9kbT SNP, which is the SNP that is generally responsible for lactose tolerance in European populations.

First here are a few studies to show what I mean:

http://www.pnas.org/content/104/10/3736.abstract

"The T allele of C/T polymorphism located 13,910 bp upstream of the lactase (LCT) gene (−13.910*T) has been shown to associate strongly with LP in Europeans (3), and recent in vitro studies have indicated that it can directly effect LCT gene promoter activity (4)."

"Based on the decay of long-range haplotypes and variation in closely linked microsatellites, the inferred age of the −13.910*T allele in Europe has been estimated to be between 2,188 and 20,650 years (16) and between 7,450 and 12,300 years (17), respectively. These dates bracket archaeological estimates for the introduction of domestic cattle breeds into Europe (18), and when considered in conjunction with the modern frequency distribution of the −13.910*T allele in Europe, they indicate a strong selective advantage to LP."

"We obtained genotypes from eight Neolithic skeletons of central, northeast, and southeast Europe ranging in age between 5800 and 5000 B.C. (Table 1). One Mesolithic sample typed is absolutely younger [2267 ± 116 calibrated date (cal) B.C.] Additionally, we typed one Medieval skeleton as a control. We identified 9 of 10 individuals as homozygous C at position −13.910; all were Mesolithic and Neolithic samples. The one Medieval individual was heterozygous for the −13.910-C/T polymorphism. This was the only heterozygous individual, and it never showed allelic dropout."

Here is a list of the sampled skeletons and which culture, timeframe, mtDNA haplotype, etc. they belond to:

http://www.pnas.org/content/104/10/3736/T1.expansion.html

The above study shows that there was little if any LTP people in those parts of Europe 7,000 years ago.

Next is a study on LTP in Cameroon, which most people know is a hot spot for Y-DNA R1b1*:

http://dienekes.50webs.com/blog/archives/000553.html

"The ability to digest the milk sugar lactose as an adult (lactase persistence) is a variable genetic trait in human populations. The lactase-persistence phenotype is found at low frequencies in the majority of populations in sub-Saharan Africa that have been tested, but, in some populations, particularly pastoral groups, it is significantly more frequent. Recently, a CT polymorphism located 13.9 kb upstream of exon 1 of the lactase gene (LCT) was shown in a Finnish population to be closely associated with the lactase-persistence phenotype (Enattah et al. 2002). We typed this polymorphism in 1,671 individuals from 20 distinct cultural groups in seven African countries. It was possible to match seven of the groups tested with groups from the literature for whom phenotypic information is available. In five of these groups, the published frequencies of lactase persistence are 25%. We found the T allele to be so rare that it cannot explain the frequency of the lactase-persistence phenotype throughout Africa. By use of a statistical procedure to take phenotyping and sampling errors into account, the T-allele frequency was shown to be significantly different from that predicted in five of the African groups. Only the Fulbe and Hausa from Cameroon possessed the T allele at a level consistent with phenotypic observations (as well as an Irish sample used for comparison). We conclude that the C-13.9kbT polymorphism is not a predictor of lactase persistence in sub-Saharan Africans. We also present Y-chromosome data that are consistent with previously reported evidence for a back-migration event into Cameroon, and we comment on the implications for the introgression of the -13.9kb*T allele."

What is the only thing that Fulbe, Hausa, and Irish men have in common? A high frequency of R1b!

Next, is a map that shows the modern percentages of lactose intolerance for the given regional European populations:

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_dRj9DN75euI/RexNkfGhRLI/AAAAAAAAAGA/rQvj2xEvC0E/s400/Lactase+map.gif

The more lactose tolerant populations are those that contain more Y-DNA R1b individuals or the ones that are in close contact with R1b carriers. Even in the sampled Finnish populations, the more tolerant ones was the two with a higher frequency of R1b. (Correct me if I am wrong on that statement. I believe I remember reading that R1b is more prevelant in the west of Finland, but I can't find the source.)

Now you may be thinking to yourself, "But wait, Northern Europe is also very high in Y DNA I1. Maybe they spread the LTP gene around". That may be true, but that doesn't explain why a population that carries a more archaic form of R1b, such as the Cameroonians which carry no Y-DNA I, carry the −13.910*T allele.

Personally, I believe the −13.910*T allele could have been passed on to Northern European I1 populations via genetic drift from incoming R1b pastoralists. Once the SNP was introduced to Northern Europe it's frequency was amplified by natural selection, since Northern Europe is obviously a place where LTP would be advantagous due to low levels of sunlight and the lack of vitamin D.

Moving along now. Here is another map. This one shows a pattern of lactose intolerance becoming more prevalent as one heads southeast in Europe:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_dRj9DN75euI/RexPhPGhRNI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/mLNAdNxm5Vw/s400/LPMAP.JPG

Now if you will compare the above map to the map below, you may seem similarities:

http://robertlindsay.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/r1b-dna-distribution.jpg

At this point, I believe that R1b made it's way to Europe with pastoralism and LTP, and once it reached Europe it came in contact with mtDNA H and that increased it's chances of survival. It seems a higher fertility rate is possessed by a man that has both Y-DNA R and mtDNA H as compared to a man that has a Y-DNA I and mtDNA H combo.

http://dienekes.blogspot.com/2008/05/eshg-2008-abstracts.html

"The frequency of the combination mtDNA-haplogroup H (especially with the CRS sequence) and Y-haplogroup R was higher in fertile than in infertile men seemingly to be favorable to fertility. On the other hand, a considerable number of infertile men belonging to mtDNA-haplogroup H (CRS) and to Y-haplogroup I, associated to a specific DAZ gene deletion pattern- 2+4d, suggests a non favorable combination to male fertility."

The above could also explain R1b's absurd frequency levels in Western Europe.

Does anyone think this is plausible? This is just my own personal theory based on research done in my spare time, so it could be way off the mark, but I believe there may be some truth to at least parts of it.

Other explanations could be that R1b mutated in Western Europe and it took the −13.910-C/T polymorphism to Cameroon via Gibraltar, but that is in conflict with Cruciani's 2002 findings which point to a likely R1b1* entry from the Mid-East via Egypt.

Or, that the −13.910-C/T polymorphism was already present in an ancestoral R1* population and it became naturally selected by both R1b and R1a popualtions due to their pasotralist lifestyles.

[Tabiti]

Lactose tolerance is not directly linked with race, but way of live. Southern Europeans were mostly farmers, so they didn't drink that much milk to survive, unlike the Northern ones and those leading nomadic and semi-nomadic way of living.

[Allenson]

At this point, I believe that R1b made it's way to Europe with pastoralism and LTP, and once it reached Europe it came in contact with mtDNA H and that increased it's chances of survival. It seems a higher fertility rate is possessed by a man that has both Y-DNA R and mtDNA H as compared to a man that has a Y-DNA I and mtDNA H combo.

I'll have a look at the studies you posted, AlabamaMan. But in the meantime, I'll just chime in with this: goold ol' Polako on DNA-Forums has postulated some type of advatage inherent in R1b/H pairings as well.... So yes, perhaps there is something to this. I'm an R1b fellow who is still waiting on his mtDNA results! :cool:

[Frigga]

Personally, I don't buy into lactose tolerance being linked to genetics. There's too much ancedotal evidence to the contrary. Why else would milk drinking be so widespread throughout Africa, the Middle East, Asia along with Europe?

[Rochefaton]

Personally, I don't buy into lactose tolerance being linked to genetics. There's too much ancedotal evidence to the contrary. Why else would milk drinking be so widespread throughout Africa, the Middle East, Asia along with Europe?

There are different genes that allow lactase persistance in adults throughout the Old World, but that is widely known, and is not the issue here.

The point I am making is this: Y-DNA R1b and the C/T-13910 SNP, which is the lactase persistent SNP found amongst Europeans, are both found in Cameroonians and a few other African populations, but not in non-R1b carrying lactase persistent African populations. The other African groups possess different SNPs that allow them to digest milk.

Since the only link between Cameroonians and Europeans, other than the C/T-13910 SNP, is a strong presence of Y-DNA R1b, I am suggesting, as did one of the studies I posted, that it is very likely that an R1b carrying population spread the European type of lactase persistence SNP to Africa, and that an R1b population may also be responsible for that gene's presence in Europe.

[Tabiti]

And what about females?

[Rochefaton]

And what about females?

I'm not suggesting that only people with R1b haplotypes (males) possess or spread the LP SNP. Genetic drift and natural selection will certainly allow the LP SNP to carry over to other people, regardless of their gender, mtDNA, or Y-DNA haplotypes.

Once again, I'm saying that the LP gene common in Europe made it's way to Africa with an R1b carrying population. It is anyone's guess as to what mtDNA haplogroups the immigrants possessed, but since you can link the spread of the European LP SNP to R1b carriers in Africa (regardless of what mtDNA haplogroups the original LP persistent immigrating men and women carried), the same may be possible in Europe.

[Bjólf]

I don't think it is linked to any particular haplogroup.

I like the calcium assimilation hypothesis, because IMO it do seem to correlate better with high latitude in Europe rather than any particular haplogroup/ethnic group/culture or whatever. This would suggest that lactase presistence didn't prevail in northern Europe out of people relying mostly on lactase products (there is no evidence for this, and lactase products have been around since the early Neolithic), but rather that it had other advantages besides a good additional nutrition.

[Rochefaton]

Bjolf, I have never actually heard an explanation of the theory you stated, but the study that this thread is based on goes against the ‘reverse-cause’ theory, and suggests that LP persistence became common due to, and after, dairy farming in Europe.

"Estimates of the age of the −13,910*T correspond well with estimates of the onset of dairying in Europe. Slaughtering age profiles in sheep, goats and cattle suggest dairying was present in south-eastern Europe at the onset of the Neolithic [21],[22], while residual milk proteins preserved in ceramic vessels provide evidence for dairying in present day Romania and Hungary 7,900–7,450 years BP [23]. Furthermore, residual analyses of fats indicate dairying at the onset of the Neolithic in England, some 6,100 years BP [24],[25], and after to 8,500 BP in the western parts of present day Turkey [26]. Allelic age estimates are also consistent with the results of a recent ancient DNA study [27] which showed that the −13,910*T allele was rare or absent among early farmers from Central and Eastern Europe. These observations lend support to the view that −13,910*T, and thus LP, rose rapidly in frequency only after the onset of dairying, as opposed to the ‘reverse-cause’ hypothesis [14], [17]–[19], whereby dairying developed in response to the evolution of LP."

I also agree that it may not be possible to trace the origin of the European LP SNP to a single haplogroup. It is possible to trace the origin of the European LP SNP in Africa to R1b carriers, however. As the study I posted earlier does.

[Thulsa Doom]

Seems to be a lot of talk about cattle herding. I can´t recall any traditional pastoral groups in Europe, and in northern Europe it´s certainly not possible at all due to the need of winter forage. Most likely cattle breeding was connected to and spread by farmers.

A south-central European origin of lactase persistence is possible but it doesn't explain this correlation.
http://forum.skalman.nu/download/file.php?id=13484

And the oldest (3500 BC) finding of the gene (to my knowledge) is also in Northern Europe.
Link in Swedish http://www.svd.se/nyheter/vetenskap/artikel_790557.svd

[Jamt]

Prior to the Scandinavian Middle-Age the agriculture was much more pastoral than after. It is seen in that the length of people in the north started to decrease a thousand years ago and a worsening in dental health, which are contributed to a more grain based diet. It is also seen in the new land clamed for fields and an explosion of new agriculture techniques that had long been used in continental Europe like better angle on the scythe, better hoes and sickles, water mills, drainage of fields, wood floors for better threshing. And the shift is seen in a great increase in population after the Viking-Age.

This is interpreted as a shift from a more pastoral to grain based agriculture. Some archeologist calls this an agricultural revolution. And of course a more pastoral agriculture connected to the farm is possible in Scandinavia. It’s perfect for it. You simply herd animals in summer, harvest hay and save it for winter in the hayloft, and you eat a larger proportion of the animals in winter. That is what we have always done in the North. So Scandinavians were more pastoral and that is the origin of high lactase persistence.

The milk drinking pastoral Scandinavians might have come from Central Europe ca 6000 years ago though.

[Brännvin]

The milk drinking pastoral Scandinavians might have come from Central Europe ca 6000 years ago though.

I also think then..

Check this study;

Migration in Prehistory : DNA and stable isotope analyses of Swedish skeletal material (http://su.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2:198368)

Ancient DNA analysis is employed in three cases. The first is an investigation of the genetic profiles of the two main cultural groups, which existed in Sweden during the Neolithic, the Funnel Beaker (TRB) and Pitted Ware (PWC) cultures. We can deduce from these genetic data that they were two separate populations, and can see that the TRB genetic profiles continue into the Bronze Age whereas the PWC profiles seem to disappear. In a second analysis based on the same material we explore the ability of adults to digest milk, i.e. lactose tolerance, a genetic trait found in high frequencies in northern Europe. We can see that the TRB population had a higher frequency of this allele than the PWC population.

[Brännvin]

A south-central European origin of lactase persistence is possible but it doesn't explain this correlation.


The study actually says central European origin though..

[Óttar]

It is a crime that raw milk is so hard to come by!

Interestingly enough, even though the Mongols drink mares' milk, fermented (koumis) and non, I remember reading they have the highest rate of lactose intolerance.

I think there is a correlation between acid reflux and consuming too much dairy product, based on personal experience. Why is this? Lactose intolerance?

[Gwynyvyr]

Hmmm...I have known a lot of folks that became lactose intolerant after age 25 or so.
I am 53 and have never had a problem with milk or any dairy products...and I drink a LOT of milk.
Of course, I had loads of raw cows milk during childhood and have continued to drink raw milk in adulthood.

[Wölfin]

It is a crime that raw milk is so hard to come by!

Interestingly enough, even though the Mongols drink mares' milk, fermented (koumis) and non, I remember reading they have the highest rate of lactose intolerance.

I think there is a correlation between acid reflux and consuming too much dairy product, based on personal experience. Why is this? Lactose intolerance?

Mare milk, is actually quite different from Cow milk. For one thing it is a lot less fat and it is much richer in vitamins, minerals etc. I think it is probably a lot more tolerable for humans, and from what I've read, studies say over all it is a lot more healthy for us two-legged creatures :)

[Frigga]

Whatever a milk producing animal eats gets put into her milk. The study comparing mares milk to cows milk most likely was comparing confinement dairy cattle to range mares, which is an unfair study. Not saying that it was so, as I haven't read the study, but it wouldn't surprise me. Free range, grass pastured cows produce the healthiest milk, since they're not only eating real grazing appropiate for cows, that is grasses and their seeds, they're also taking in minute amounts of bugs on said grasses, and in ideal situations, it is naturally fertilized by their own fecal matter and urine. Those conditions produce the best milk. And, ideally, this milk would be consumed either raw or fermented. Plus, the fat content of a milk actually makes the milk more tasty and wholesome, which is why Jersey cow milk tastes so much better than Holstein cow milk, there's 4-5% butterfat in Jersey as opposed to 3-3.5% percent butterfat in Holstein. :wink

[Tabiti]

However I don't think that the data about Lactose tolerance on the Balkans is correct. We all were pastoral nations until the middle of 20th century, especially in some mountain regions where agriculture is almost impossible.

[Wölfin]

Whatever a milk producing animal eats gets put into her milk. The study comparing mares milk to cows milk most likely was comparing confinement dairy cattle to range mares, which is an unfair study. Not saying that it was so, as I haven't read the study, but it wouldn't surprise me. Free range, grass pastured cows produce the healthiest milk, since they're not only eating real grazing appropiate for cows, that is grasses and their seeds, they're also taking in minute amounts of bugs on said grasses, and in ideal situations, it is naturally fertilized by their own fecal matter and urine. Those conditions produce the best milk. And, ideally, this milk would be consumed either raw or fermented. Plus, the fat content of a milk actually makes the milk more tasty and wholesome, which is why Jersey cow milk tastes so much better than Holstein cow milk, there's 4-5% butterfat in Jersey as opposed to 3-3.5% percent butterfat in Holstein. :wink

The fat maybe tasty, but its not as healthy once your development/growth is over ;) By the way the study compared grassfed cattle and grassfed mares, I can't remember a specific breed for the cow but the mares were mostly heavy horse breeds, Belgians and Percherons. I was reading it in a French horse mag and this info was mentioned because there's a guy in France somewhere with mares whom he milks himself, by hand, and gives people a glimpse in to the mongolian way of live (yurts included and fermented alcoholic beverages as well lol).

The main problem with mare milk though, is unlike cows, the mare needs a foal at her side, because the production of milk is stimulated by the sight of the foal.

[Frigga]

Fat in dairy is actually very healthy for human bodies regardless of your growth development. Especially when it is raw milk from grass fed cows.

[The Black Prince]

Prior to the Scandinavian Middle-Age the agriculture was much more pastoral than after. It is seen in that the length of people in the north started to decrease a thousand years ago and a worsening in dental health, which are contributed to a more grain based diet. It is also seen in the new land clamed for fields and an explosion of new agriculture techniques that had long been used in continental Europe like better angle on the scythe, better hoes and sickles, water mills, drainage of fields, wood floors for better threshing. And the shift is seen in a great increase in population after the Viking-Age.

This is interpreted as a shift from a more pastoral to grain based agriculture. Some archeologist calls this an agricultural revolution. And of course a more pastoral agriculture connected to the farm is possible in Scandinavia. It’s perfect for it. You simply herd animals in summer, harvest hay and save it for winter in the hayloft, and you eat a larger proportion of the animals in winter. That is what we have always done in the North. So Scandinavians were more pastoral and that is the origin of high lactase persistence.

The milk drinking pastoral Scandinavians might have come from Central Europe ca 6000 years ago though.

Interesting insight, personally I think that R1b might indeed be the carriers for the milk digesting gene but that they mixed with the local I1 to a state that both were equal carriers of that gene in this area.
Since (as Jammt above stated) milk was drunk and used on a daily base, perhaps especially during winter (nothing better as fresh still warm milk from a cow.:)). And I know life expectancy was low, the later might also have to do with some not able to digest milk well. Those might have drank water but good quality water was not always available. Those people thus had a (slightly) greater chance to die young and therefore to not reproduce their 'not lactase persistence'. Perhaps it took a 1000 or 3000 years, but on some point more as 99% of the North-European population was lactase persistent.

A maybe reason why that in other regions where R1b is common the percentage of lactase persistence is lower might have to do with the quicker usage of the entire package: domesticated cattle and domestication of plants like grains. Drinking beer instead of (bad quality) water increases your chance on survival. Beer is as old as the start of the Neolithic but was later introduced in North-Europe perhaps only in a time when already 99% of the local population was lactase persistent.


Whatever a milk producing animal eats gets put into her milk. The study comparing mares milk to cows milk most likely was comparing confinement dairy cattle to range mares, which is an unfair study. Not saying that it was so, as I haven't read the study, but it wouldn't surprise me. Free range, grass pastured cows produce the healthiest milk, since they're not only eating real grazing appropiate for cows, that is grasses and their seeds, they're also taking in minute amounts of bugs on said grasses, and in ideal situations, it is naturally fertilized by their own fecal matter and urine. Those conditions produce the best milk. And, ideally, this milk would be consumed either raw or fermented. Plus, the fat content of a milk actually makes the milk more tasty and wholesome, which is why Jersey cow milk tastes so much better than Holstein cow milk, there's 4-5% butterfat in Jersey as opposed to 3-3.5% percent butterfat in Holstein. :winkIn America dairyfarmers get paid by the amount of milk a cow produces (most milk is for consumption). In Europe the price of milk is based upon the fat percentage and the price for milk is established for kilograms milkfat. Reason for this is the cheese market, the fatter the milk the more cheese production per kg milk.
With that in mind European farmers have breeded dairycattle. Hence in my region al cows are Holstein-Friesians and they have on average a 4-5% fat. Jerseys are not held here because they have the lowest quality of meat hence their's no market for Jersey meat.

[Brännvin]

A south-central European origin of lactase persistence is possible but it doesn't explain this correlation.



The study actually says central European origin though..

Here the map of origin according for the study;

http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p217/dpwes/lp.png

[Brännvin]

Allele frequencies of the lactase gene in Scandinavian Neolithic populations, hunter-gatherers vs. farmers (https://sites.google.com/a/palaeo.eu/isba3/Home/abstracts/populations/allele-frequencies-of-the-lactase-gene-in-scandinavian-neolithic-populations-hunter-gatherers-vs-farmers)

"Genetics and culture are believed to interact, but it has been difficult to find direct evidence for the process. One example that has been put forward as a candidate is lactase persistance in adulthood, i.e. the ability to continue drinking milk. This genetic trait is believed to have evolved within a short space of time in connection with the emergence of farming cultures. Here we investigate certain Scandinavian Neolithic populations and their allele status with respect to the gene responsible for lactase persistance. We find that the allele responsible for lactase persistance was common and not significantly different from modern Swedish populations among Neolithic farmers, whereas Neolithic hunter-gatherers had a lower frequency of the allele".

[Osweo]

His team have now narrowed down the emergence of the gene to a tribe of cattle herders living around 7500 years ago between the Balkans and central Europe.

The distribution of the gene mutation across the continent runs parallel to the spread of Linearbandkeramik (Linear Band Pottery) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linear_Pottery_culture) people, a Neolithic farming culture that lived in central Europe 7500 years ago. "It is likely that Linearbandkeramik dairy farmers were the first to drink fresh milk, without first processing it into yoghurt or cheese," Thomas says.
I've always looked at the LBK peoples as instrumental in indoeuropeanising the continent...

One of the stranger things about the distribution of lactase persistence is that it is highest in those areas that, according to most models anyway, began a herding/pastoral lifestyle the latest.
... It's a very puzzling story as the modern distribution of tolerance is inverse to the way in which pastoralism and milk drinking supposedly spread.

I'd say it fits in VERY well with the notion of neolithicisation as less of a demic spread matter past the Iron Gates Gorges of the Danube, and more a native adoption. The ancestors of the LBK lot took on a lot of the agricultural knowledge, but not necessarily the full package. Perhaps this meant a lack of traditional knowledge about dairy matters? In the Balkans, locals will have benefited directly from ancient traditions on milk processing, but this might not have been pased on appropriately for the northerners, leading to a serious evolutionary pressure?

Lactose tolerance is not directly linked with race, but way of live. Southern Europeans were mostly farmers, so they didn't drink that much milk to survive, unlike the Northern ones and those leading nomadic and semi-nomadic way of living.
But do you traditionally prepare kefir and other such products? Ряженка?

Seems to be a lot of talk about cattle herding. I can´t recall any traditional pastoral groups in Europe, and in northern Europe it´s certainly not possible at all due to the need of winter forage. Most likely cattle breeding was connected to and spread by farmers.
The archaeological syntheses that I used to read almost a decade ago were very insistent on a mixed economy north of the Danube, with foraging, farming and pastoralism intricately interacting. This is rather long ago, so not surprising you don't recall it! :p

I was reading it in a French horse mag and this info was mentioned because there's a guy in France somewhere with mares whom he milks himself, by hand, and gives people a glimpse in to the mongolian way of live (yurts included and fermented alcoholic beverages as well lol).
SOunds like a good holiday idea - I may look him up!

Here the map of origin according for the study;
http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p217/dpwes/lp.png
That fits my favourite PIE Urheimat exactly. :thumbs up