The Myth Of Old Age At [Insert Whatever Number You Like Here] & Beyond
Does the human body have a design flaw? What contribution does our western lifestyle make to the ageing issue? It is possible to grow old gracefully without surgery or other medical procedures. Consider the modern day people of Okinawa Japan. The Okinawans are the healthiest and longest living people in the world today. There are more centenarians in Okinawa than in any other population on the planet.
A Tokyo cardiologist Dr Makoto Suzuki began studying the Okinawa population in 1976. 25 years of detailed health tests on 600 centenarians as well as many aged over 70 years produced some ground breaking results many of which dispel the effectiveness of our modern western diet in ageing well that is, disease free and mobile.
The Okinawan’s Diet
- Consume less calories – about 1/3 less than the average calorie intake of most westerners. This is a key to living longer. By lowering the calorie density of the diet, it is possible to eat the same amount of food and yet be trim and healthy. The Okinawan’s finish a meal when they are 80% full, rather than 110% full as many westerners might do.
- 80% of their diet consists of plant based foods and the remaining 20% consists of animal-based foods. The food is water-rich, meaning vegetables (including) plenty of salads and fresh fruits. Their carbohydrate intake is mainly in the form of purple sweet potato – called imo. Purple foods contain a high degree if carotenoids which are pure antioxidants. Also, whole grains are in the form of brown rice and whole wheat.
- Proteins are sourced from legumes and fish. Legumes include good quality soy products, particularly tofu (which is both anti-cancer and hormone balancing) & miso. Fish is rich in omega-3. When red meat is eaten, it is boiled and the fat scooped away. Only 10-20% of total calories come from protein.
- Refined carbohydrates such as white sugar and flour are kept to a minimum.
- Good fats are eaten sparingly and harmful trans fats and animal fats are minimal.
- The Okinawan’s drink a lot of green tea which is only partially fermented and contains a rich diversity of antioxidants.
Compare the above to a typical western diet whereby 75% of the plate is a chunk of meat with a tiny side salad or vegetables. For a longer healthier life it should be the other way around.
Other Lifestyle Practices
- Exercise is very important. The Okinawan’s do stretching exercises daily. This keeps them strong
- Don’t smoke and drink alcohol only in moderation
- They have good social networks and strong social support
- The Okinawan’s participate in daily spiritual practices including prayer, much of which centres on health and wellbeing
- Relaxed and not rushed with a strong positive outlook. In other words, they had very low stress levels
Do the Okinawan’s just have good genes?
Researchers found that Okinawan’s who moved away from their homeland and adopted the western lifestyle suffered the same problems as we do. So, the superior health of the Okinawan’s can’t just be genetic. Let me put it another way. Japanese women are well known to have very low incidence of breast cancer. It had long been assumed that this was due to genetics. However, studies of Japanese women who moved to the US to live, found that their incidence of breast cancer skyrocketed to the same level as American women. So, perhaps it’s not genetics but lifestyle.
Age does not cause illness. Lifestyle, particularly nutrition is the major influencing factor whether we stay well or become ill. In the west, degenerative diseases are more common as we get older simply because of the cumulative effects of the numerous causes of disease that are built into our modern way of living.
We humans have the potential to remain healthy for a life of great longevity and be able to play with our great-great grandchildren. The deciding factor is WHAT we put into our mouths. Isn’t it time we became more proactive and conscious about what we actually eat for the sake of our wellness long term?
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