Why Japanese People Are so Thin, According to Science
Japanese diets ARE healthier, and cheaper.
One of my friends just got back from Japan.
The first thing he told me was after eating and living there for a month he felt like he shed a load of death from his body.
He was skinner, felt more energized and his hair and skin were healthier too.
“It’s the fish diet,” I told him. “Lean protein out the ass, easy to break down carbs in the rice, and massive stimulants to skin, hair and brain with the omega oils !”
That was only part of it, he told me.
Obesity rates in Japan are much lower than the United States of lardmerica, not to mention longer life spans. And for good reason.
Truth be told there’s a philosophy to food in Japan that is centuries old and quite different from our own. Here’s what I learned.
Japan’s Philosophy on Food
Japan has one of the healthiest populations, with one of the highest life expectancies for women and men worldwide. It also has one of the lowest infant mortalities and maternal mortalities.
The Japanese way of eating is based on the “hara hachi bu.”
This means “eat until you are 80% full.” This concept is based on the belief that it takes the stomach 20 minutes to signal the brain saying it’s full.
So, if you eat slowly and stop when you’re no longer hungry but not stuffed, you will naturally eat less. The idea is to leave the table feeling satisfied, not bloated.
It’s not that Japanese food is inherently lower in calories than Western food; some of it is, but there’s not a heck of a difference between udon and spaghetti. The key difference is this simple attitude towards food.
There are tradeoffs to this.
Japanese people also tend to be smaller than Americans. Is that a worthwhile tradeoff? IDK. But studies show the less weight on your body the longer you live.
Die beefy and a little fat at 70 after eating steaks, burgers, and fried chicken
Die skinny with less muscle at 90 after eating rice, tofu, and micro fish
Students in Japan Learn How to Cook in Schools
Another stark difference is that in Japan boys and girls learn to cook from a young age as part of their regular school curriculum.
I recently got into an argument with my mother, who was a public school English teacher about this. Just because public school teachers are nice doesn’t make them “good teachers.”
The best teachers I had worked in the private sector before becoming teachers.
They had something to teach.
Japanese kids learn things in class that they’ll use in real life.
I know. Mind. Blown.
According to Statista, nearly 50% of all Japanese adults cook meals daily, while only one-third of Americans do the same.
In America our propensity for greatness is disproportionately higher than any other country. It’s why I love it. But our middle class is dying because we don’t learn basics like cooking and financial literacy (and how much $$$ that saves!!)
The Problem with American Marketing
According to a study at the University of Connecticut, over 80% of all food advertising promotes fast food, sugary drinks, candy, and unhealthy snacks.
This dwarfs the $1 billion marketing budget for chronic disease at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Words like “crispy” are used instead of “fried,” or companies will slap a “natural” on the package when that term is complete BS.
The average American is constantly being brainwashed into eating garbage, and sometimes that garbage is passed off as “health food.”
Japanese People Don’t Go to the Gym, They Walk Instead
I’m looking to move somewhere cheaper than New York City soon.
I’ll miss it. New York keeps you fit because you walk everywhere. I get 20,000 steps in a day committing back and forth.
Despite Japanese people having some of the longest working hours in the world, they still manage to be thin and have low rates of obesity.
The key is that they walk a lot.
A 2008 study showed that Japanese people walked an average of 18,000 steps per day, while Americans walked only half that. The study concluded that “increasing daily steps may be a simple but effective public health strategy to increase physical activity and improve obesity-related health outcomes.”
People in Japan Eat a lot More Food, Rather Than Food-like Products
Cheap low-nutrient food has a cost.
You might not feel it on the front end when you’re paying $1 for a double cheeseburger sandwiched between two pancakes, but you do feel it on the back end with healthcare costs, lower life expectancy, lower happiness, and a higher incidence of chronic disease.
As comedian Tim Dillon says, they’ll have people competing for insulin on American Ninja Warrior in no time.
The average cost of health care in Japan is about 557,703.30 JPY per person ($4,267), compared to $12,500 per person in America.
Unless we have the military surround Denny’s, Carl’s Jr, Waffle House, IHOP, and Hardees and actively turn people away, we’ll never get free health care.
Conclusion
Everything is bigger in America.
That includes our portion sizes, waistlines, and healthcare costs.
Obesity isn’t the be-all and end-all. Africa has a low obesity rate, but that doesn't mean it's healthy. That said Japan has some easy, healthy practices to implement.
If you want to enjoy a peanut butter pancake breakfast with a pitcher of syrup, feel free to do so. But MODERATE it. Food can be a drug like anything else.
I'd like to nuke those images also. It's difficult to eat healthy here in the US, especially if you have friends and family who insist on eating out, and don't care if they eat healthy or not.
Most of the US requires getting from Point A to Point B by vehicle. As an example for me, the nearest grocery is 5 miles away, the road isn't safe to ride my bike or walk. I am trying to get my husband to move to a more pedestrian friendly area. He's used to living rural, I'm not. I've lived here in Michigan for four years, it's one of the most unhealthy places I've lived in.
I envy you're living in NY, sorry it's so expensive you're forced to leave.
Any ideas where you're thinking of moving to? Share, please! We are relocating when my husband retires, I'm researching moving to another country, not sure he'll be on board with that as of yet.
Good read, as always.
Moderation is the key! That’ what my doctors always tell me during check-ups. “Moderation in everything,” they say. “Even street drugs from scary looking dealers?” I ask. “No, not in that instance!” They know I’m being tongue-in-cheek. You can eat 100% certified organic free-trade sourced cinnamon rolls three times a day, but chances are you’ll get pretty sick!