Why ferment?

While reading a book called "Alcohol and it's role in the evolution of human society" I came across some interesting thoughts on why we ferment things (not just for drinking):

1. Enrichment of the diet through the development of greater range of flavours, aromas and textures.

This does makes sense to me, if you get a different taste to it you might eat or drink things that you normally wouldn't. For example, I might not drink something that is just boiled barley. However if you make it into beer, sure enough I would drink it!

2. Preservation of food via lactic acid, acetic acid, ethanolic and alkaline fermentation.

Oh yes, fermenting things does preserve your food, be it drinks or otherwise. Preserving food when you have lots of it and saving it for sparser times can be the difference between life and death.

3. Biological enrichment of food substrates through proteins, essential amino acids, essential fatty acids and vitamins.

We do know that things change in the food when you ferment it and you are able to get other kinds of food as you do. Vitamins that you might lack otherwise.

4. Detoxification of some foodstuffs and degradation of anti-nutritive matter.

As stated in number three, things change when you ferment them. By removing bad things in the food, like the poison in the shark that the Icelanders did but also other not as bad ingredients, that helps you to stay healthy and was perhaps one of the reasons people thought that beer kept you in better health than if you were drinking water.

5. Expedition of cooking times (reduced fuel use). Related to this last point is the fact that fermentation often improves the digestibility of food.

If your body can take care of the nutrition in the food/drinks easier it must be a positive thing. Now since I'm mostly into brewing I don't think that the notion of less fuel usage is relevent.