Why pandas don't eat meat!

Scientists' theory really is bamboozling

- By Stephen Beech

GIANT pandas spurn meat despite being built to eat it because chemicals in their bamboo diet have meddled with the way their DNA works.

The black and white bears have the constitution of a carnivore but exist almost entirely on bamboo leaves, stems and shoots.

Now Chinese scientists say they have evidence that molecules in the plants have infiltrated the pandas' systems and given them a real taste for it.

The animals have also evolved “pseudo thumbs” to grasp the evergreen and flat teeth perfect for crushing it - making it possible for them to live off it.