The average life of Japanese is 80.98 for males and 87.14 for females (survey by Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry 2016). It is said that Japan is also one of the longest life nation in the world, but what is the reason? It is said to be diet, but actually what kind of diet is it? I will introduce the reason why Japan is said to be a longer life nation while also including the aspect of Japanese ordinary households.
In the past, it was not a longer life nation ...!
Around 100 years ago, when the average life of European countries and the US countries were 50 years old, the life expectancy of Japan is 30 years old. Unlike now, it was far from the longer life nation. At that time, it is said that many people died, especially children and young people died early due to tuberculosis and pneumonia. Also, at that time, there was no opportunity to consume animal protein such as meat, thus, nutrition balance was not good as vegetables and cereals are the main diet. After the war, a well-balanced diet is said to be the major factor that raised the average life expectancy after they changed into a diet that consumes meat.
A well-balanced one soup three dishes is the basic!
"Japanese food” was also registered as World Intangible Cultural Heritage. In Japan, as "one soup three dishes" is commonly recommended, an ordinary household dinner is white rice and miso soup, main dishes are meat and fish rich in protein, plus, 2 set of side dishes such as seaweed, vegetables and soy products. "One soup three dishes" is nutritionally balanced with protein and vitamins, and another feature is that fat content is low. Mr. A living in Tokyo said, "Every morning and evening, I will have one main dish, 2 side dishes, rice and miso soup”. This is the basic menu. He said he will decide the dishes from recipe sites and cookbooks. In addition, the habit of drinking green tea is also one of the reasons for longevity as it contains a lot of antioxidants such as vitamin C and catechin components which can prevent cancer.
Enhanced health checkup and medical system
In Japan, health-checks are regularly conducted every year based on laws and regulations; they regularly examine health status to aim for early detection of disease. There is also gynecological examination for women such as breast cancer and uterus cancer examination. In addition, in Japan, citizens must subscribe to either "National Insurance" for individual business owners etc., or "Social insurance" for regular employees who work for the company. Both are guaranteed to be able to receive treatment right away in case of illness or injury, the self-pay amount is about 2 to 30%. Guarantee of treatment is also one of the reasons for higher life expectancy because there is a "high medical care cost system", expensive medical expenses but no financial worry.
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