The Japanese can teach us valuable lessons about eating right and living well and long writes Meera Murugesan
THE Japanese are known for their longevity. It’s a country with many elderly people including a significant number of centenarians.
One often wonders what is it in their diet or lifestyle that makes them not only live longer but have active, productive lives well into their golden years.
In 2017, the World Health Organisation placed Japan as one of the healthiest nations in the world with an average life expectancy of 83.7 years.
In Japan itself, the prefecture of Okinawa has the highest number of centenarians, believed to be more than 1000.
The people in the prefecture are known for their lifestyle which is closely associated with the ocean and a diet that draws its food source mainly from the sea.
The link between Okinawans and longevity has been the subject of much research and study, as to how their eating habits and lifestyles could teach the rest of us about healthy living.
Dr Bejit Ideas, laboratory director of MI Innovation Labo Tokyo who has been studying the reasons behind Japanese longevity says people today are constantly searching for answers on what to eat or how to live in order to be healthy.
The answer he explains lies with people who have already succeeded at living and those are the centenarians.
“Instead of starting at the beginning, we should start with people who have already succeeded at the art of living and reached 100 years and beyond in very good health. If you want to be rich, you sit down with someone who is already rich and ask them how they did it and it’s the same with healthy living. Talk to people who have already done it.”
The Japanese centenarians he adds have not only achieved longevity but reached that point in very good shape, with no mental problems, major health issues, diabetes, skin damage or even inflammation problems.
Ideas stresses that this is crucial because living longer is one thing but the ability to live well beyond your peers in relatively good shape is exceptional.
“These people did not have problem free lives, they went through stress, divorce, problems with family and work, faced all kinds of adversity but they still reached 100 and above in very good shape. How did they do it?”
THE LAND OF IMMORTALS
The people of Okinawa, like many Japanese have a diet that includes plenty of fish and other seafood, including raw fish, green vegetables, seaweed and soy bean products and they are knowledgeable about the benefits of a balanced diet and how cuisine can also be medicine.
Fermented food, which is known to increase good bacteria in the gut and improve wellbeing also plays a major role in their diet.
While most people around the world start the day with cereal, coffee and toast or dairy products, the Japanese do so with something more traditional like tofu, miso soup and even fermented dried fish as a side dish.
Miso is a Japanese seasoning made by fermenting soy beans with selected ingredients.
Mika Tsuneyoshi vice president of licence and business development for MI Innovation Labo Tokyo, says it’s customary for Japanese mothers to make time to cook and prepare a healthy, balanced breakfast for their families and fermented food plays a key role in all main meals.
“As a child, I had to be forced to drink miso soup for breakfast but now I know the huge benefits it offers the body.”
The Japanese diet on the whole contains a wide variety of fish and there’s a good balance of nutrients in each meal she adds.
“We don’t just eat to live but care about what we eat.”
She says that centenarians have very unique microbiome in their gut and this is linked to their diet and lifestyle which is very connected to nature, particularly the ocean.
Basically, what they eat and their lifestyles influences their genes.
“It’s important to have your gut well balanced because it’s linked to everything, from your immune system to how your brain functions and how our genes express themselves.”
While Japanese do have more of these beneficial microbiomes in their bodies compared to people from other countries, those from Okinawa have even more than the average Japanese which explains why the area has more centenarians than other states in Japan says Dr Celine Valentine Caillaud, clinical trial director of Innovation Labo Tokyo.
Their lifestyles are connected to the sea and ocean produce like seaweed and seafood, both of which offer these good microbiomes.
“Raw fish in their diet also makes a difference. Fish has a certain microbiota and when you consume raw fish, you also ingest that microbiota.”
THE SECRETS OF THE SEA
Ideas agrees. While the Japanese diet is rich in fish and algae, it’s what inside these items that counts he says.
If it’s just standard vitamins and minerals or proteins we could get it anywhere from other foods.
But he believe the secret, invisible thing contained in these oceanic foods is bacteria from the sea and when we eat fish, we ingest this beneficial bacteria. Algae delivers it too which is why both are important components for longevity.
“The problem today is not what we have in our diet but what we don’t have and that is this bacteria. We have become disconnected from bacteria,” says Ideas
He explains that we have labeled all bacteria as “criminal” so we over sanitise everything, from the food we eat to the things we come into contact with and this means we miss out on beneficial bacteria which promotes health and wellbeing and longevity too.
And it’s not just about having good bacteria but strong good bacteria he stresses, the kind which can take a sick person and revive him or her.
In Okinawa if a child is sick, it’s traditional for parents to prepare some soup and bring the child to a centenarian’s house. The centenarian will consume half the soup and the remainder will be fed to the child who usually recovers soon after.
Ideas says this happens because of the transfer of strong good bacteria from the centenarian to the child and in many old civilisations this used to be the practice of healing.
Bacteria has been around for four billion years so it’s a potent force we are dealing with he adds.
But because we tend to over sanitise, over clean, not get dirty or use too much antibiotics, we are restricting our ability to acquire or retain good bacteria, especially, strong good bacteria.
“People with strong good bacteria don’t fall sick easily, don’t get tired and are even mentally more resilient. They can laugh off the things that happen to them. The centenarians for example, are highly optimistic. It is not just their personality. It’s something inside them that gives them this resilience.”
They also have an amazing memory and can still recall their younger days accurately, whether it’s their childhood, family members, their work or business or even how they used to prepare meals.
And the centenarian woman tend to have very good skin.
Ideas says healthy skin is a reflection of a healthy mind as the skin and mind is interconnected. If someone is stressed, we will see it reflected in their skin.
“The skin absorbs everything. Our skin is intelligent. It’s the wifi of the human body”.
OCEAN BOUNTY
THE centenarian gut study by Innovation Labo revealed that healthy Japanese centenarians have a higher ability to combat inflammation compared to average humans.
This is due to the unique variety of human microbiome (healthy bacteria) that resides in their bodies.
This finding has allowed Innovation Labo to engineer a solution to replicate the characteristics of the unique bacteria found in Japanese centenarians using advanced fermentation technology and marine algae.
This will have implications on healthy ageing and the body’s ability to fight inflammation, thus reducing the risk of conditions such as diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular diseases.
JAPANESE LONGEVITY TIPS
Stay Active
Most elderly Japanese including centenarians remain very mobile. They walk, ride bicycles, pursue hobbies and generally lead a life that’s not isolated or confined indoors.
Socially Connected
The elderly are respected and valued and always included in their respective communities in Japan. This benefits their mental wellbeing.
Hara Hachi Bu
This Japanese saying essentially means never over eat but stop when you are about 80 per full. This ensures that the Japanese calorie intake is lower than most people.
THE JAPANESE DIET AND HEALTH
Light cooking – pan frying, grilling or steaming
Fresh food – plenty of vegetables and a wide variety of fish including raw fish.
Small portions – a variety of food at each meal but in small portions and presented in a visually appealing manner.
Food is enjoyed slowly – this ensures meal satisfaction and better digestion.
Less meat and dairy – the diet focuses more on seafood and vegetables.
Taurine rich food: such as squid, octopus.
Foods rich in fucoidans: such as seaweed.
Flavonoid foods: such as tofu and fermented soy products like miso.
Sources: “Longevity Secrets: 6 Reasons Okinawans Live to Be Older than 100” - naturalsociety.com, “7 Japanese Habits That Ensure a Long Life” – www.ba-bamail.com and “ Longevity Diet - The Secrets Behind Japan’s High Life Expectancy” – www.letsreachsuccess.com