What's in the Japanese diet that helps make them have a longer life span?

What's in the Japanese diet that helps make them have a longer life span?

Is Japanese longevity associated exclusively with diet and nutrition? It’s partly true, but not the whole picture.

Disclosure: I live in the farmlands of northeastern Japan, close to the ocean, I’m not native Japanese, I’m an American. My wife and I are in the food business. We relocated here in 2017. Though we’ve traveled back and forth between the U.S. and Japan for 20+ years, this is the beginning of our life here as permanent residents. I’m still adjusting to life in real Japan.

First, let’s debunk some popular myths about food consumption in Japan:

1. Japanese eat primarily fish, rice, soy, and vegetables, untainted by western-influenced processed foods, Japanese convenience foods, sugars, fats, and empty carbs. Japan enjoys an almost ideal diet.
2. Japanese are blessed with more natural eating habits, they’re robust, vibrant, less obese. Japanese live long, healthy lives, because of their superior diet. Japan suffers less from high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, etc.
3. Correct food choices, rooted in ancient food traditions, are the key to longevity.

Debunking.

1. Japan loves packaged processed foods, delicious junk foods, convenience foods, 7–11 foods, like you can’t imagine. Japan has invested (no joke) billions of dollars perfecting the finest, most flavorful, most delicious junk food money can buy. The only reason Japanese astronauts haven’t planted a Japanese flag on the moon is because Japan’s R&D experts had a more important mission: perfecting the most flavorful convenience foods on earth. Do you want to talk about rice crackers? Japan has ten thousand kinds of rice crackers. Instant noodles? The world leader. Make no mistake, Japan loves processed foods. Disabuse yourself of this myth of “pure Japan”. Japan is the KING of processed foods.
2. Japanese people have heart attacks. Japanese people get diabetes. Japanese get liver disease. Japanese get stomach cancer. *POOF* Another myth, busted. Japan lives in the same modern world the rest of us do
3. Beneficial local eating habits, rooted in ancient food traditions, plays a role in longevity, but how important is that role? Is food the primary reason Japanese live longer? Let’s explore the positive side.

Promoting Japan’s diet.

1. Japanese eat primarily fish, rice, soy, and vegetables. This is true.
2. Japanese eat smaller portions. This is true.
3. Japan’s history is a story of native peoples living on isolated islands, surviving on root vegetables, grown in rich volcanic top soil (providing minerals, vitamin-rich produce, an abundance of micro-nutrients not so easily available in other regions) and soy, fresh fish, preserved fish, and fermented foods, an ideal human food. Japan was dependent on seafood and rice for thousands of years. Better yet, Japan loves its own food. Japan celebrates food. How we eat, how we respect food and nourishment, is as important as what we eat.

Non-food health benefits in Japan.

1. Old people are valued. Seniority has privileges. Getting old in Japan is normal, natural, accepted. A meaningful life, connected to family and community. This is a key to longevity. Who cares what they eat? They could eat rice crackers and frozen convenience food for years, and still outlive all of us.
2. Walking, bicycling. As recently as last week, a 85-year-old woman whizzed past me on a bike. I’m middle-aged, and I can’t keep up with these badass white-haired biker bitches. Watch out, they’ll run you over. You want to see walking, biking, not driving? Come to rural Japan. In big cities, too! Walking, walking, walking, visiting neighbors, running to the train station. Want to get fat and old? Sit your ass in a car for decades, you think food matters? Being active, and engaged, valued, living a life with meaning, walking all the time, means more than ordinary fish and tofu.
3. Social harmony. Japan isn’t perfect, but it’s cohesive, averse to pointless conflict, orderly, mostly sane, easygoing, and tolerant. That doesn’t mean Japan doesn’t struggle with despair (high suicide rate) and other social problems. But it’s less murderous and crazy than many parts of the western world. Japan is a place you can live long, modestly, with dignity, and outlast your peers in less civilized parts of the world.

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