10 Things We Can Learn From The Japanese About Living A Long And Healthy Life
Japan is one of my favorite countries to travel to! I try to visit there for at least two weeks every winter to snowboard in deep powder through birch and bamboo forests, soak in traditional Japanese bathhouses (onsens), eat amazing food, and drink the light and floral whiskey that Japan is known for.
This trip however, I had an ulterior motive.
I wanted to understand first-hand how the Japanese people can have a much higher life expectancy and significantly lower rates of cardiovascular disease compared to the US, despite the fact that they party way harder than us (1).
On average, the Japanese smoke more, drink more alcohol, and sleep less than North Americans do, all of which are huge risk factors for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD).
To put it in perspective, their rates of heart disease are almost 25% of what we experience here in the US (2). Heart disease and the complications of heart disease are the number 1 cause of death in the US, and being a health provider who specializes in longevity, these statistics are very interesting to me.
As a health consultant to middle-aged men who want to maximize the number of good years they have, a lot of my focus is on reducing the biological and behavioral risk factors that increase the likelihood of my clients having a stroke or heart attack before the age of 80.
This is the low-hanging fruit. If we can manage, reduce, or reverse any of these cardiovascular risks, we have a significant chance of living a very long, healthy and active life…beyond what we’ve seen in previous generations!
If I could create a product that reduces your risk of heart disease by 75% I’d be a bazillionaire…and still probably writing this blog.
Given the high prevalence of these cardiovascular risk factors in many of my North American clients, I’m always looking for simple, actionable strategies to help them manage these risks, thus improving their quality of life, health and longevity.
This recent trip to Japan gave me some insight about why they live longer than we do, why they have fewer deaths from heart disease, and what we can learn from them about extending our life and improving our health.
But first, to avoid a couple easy misconceptions, it’s important to address two things.
First, while genetics can be one of the factors that explains their longer lives, one of the most comprehensive genetic studies of the Japanese people state that it’s near to impossible to separate their genetic factors from their lifestyle factors when considering longevity and lower prevalence of ASCVD (3).
It would be tempting to simply point to their collective DNA and say, “ah, it must be genetic!” The research warns that it’s not so cut and dry.
Second, it’s important to note they do have their own serious public health problems. For example, their prevalence of stomach cancer is 4x more that we have in the US. From talking with Japanese health experts and reviewing research articles, this can also be attributed to the interplay between their genes and lifestyle.
Specifically, many urban Japanese eat a diet high in nitrosamines, a chemical byproduct from smoking meats and fish, and from processed meat products. These nitrosamines create local inflammation in the stomach and small intestine causing gastritis (stomach inflammation), which can lead to stomach cancer.
So, not only can we learn from one of the longest lived people about what we can do to improve lifespan and healthspan, we can also learn what not to do.
What follows is my list of the 10 things we can learn from the Japanese about living a long and healthy life.
Slower Pace Of Life
One of the things I noticed, especially outside of the bigger cities was the pace of life was much slower, even compared to my small rural town in Oregon.
Even in Tokyo where the population is almost 14M people, the rhythm of life and movement felt much slower and less chaotic than other large cities like Los Angeles (3.8M), New York (8.5M), or Mumbai (17M).
When you sit down to eat, even at a $-$$ restaurant, you will get a hot towel to soothe your face and clean your hands followed by a small appetizer of side dishes before you even order.
When you walk into the bathroom to use the toilet, a sensor will open the toilet lid for you and warm the seat. You can push a button and it will play you soothing music or nature sounds and will then wash your bum with warm water followed by an air drying. Don’t worry, I’ll write more about the amazingly clean and relaxing toilet culture of Japan later in this article.
So, while life in places like Tokyo or Sapporo can seem to be more rushed and hectic compared to rural towns and villages, the rhythm of life in the cities feels way more relaxed than other industrialized cities I’ve visited.
One thing that can be said about a slower pace of life is there’s less perceived stress. In train stations and airports I could easily distinguish the Japanese from the Chinese and pretty much everyone else because they rarely seemed to be in a rush.
They arrived 5 minutes before the train arrived and would quickly and easily find a seat or place to stand without bustle or drama.
If the cab driver told you 10 minutes to the restaurant, it would most likely only take 7 minutes.
The elevator will come when it comes and will greet you with a cute female robot voice saying in Japanese “your elevator has arrived, please be careful getting in and out, thank you for riding the elevator, we hope your family is well and all your ancestors are happy.”
That last one might be slightly hyperbolic but not by much. I honestly think this slower life rhythm and a culture that avoids rushing also contributes to the next longevity factor.
Far Less Road Rage
Culturally, being in a rush is considered rude, especially in traffic. Most drivers, both in and out of the cities, tended to drive very close to the speed limit which is generally lower than our speed limits for the same type of roadways and highways.
It’s considered extremely rude to tailgate someone or to pass them in a non-passing lane. In my experience driving there, slow drivers stayed in their lane, allowing faster drivers to freely access the passing lanes. Merging with traffic and changing lanes was always easier, even on city streets in snowy and icy conditions, than it is at home.
This could be the reason that Japan has 80% fewer automobile deaths per driving capita compared to the US.
In fact, this contributes to their overall higher life expectancy. Our top 3rd reason for death in the US, automobile accidents, doesn’t even make it into the top 10 for Japan.
Fewer calories
On average the Japanese eat about 20-25% fewer calories per day. When you eat a traditional Japanese meal you’ll notice that most of the servings are far smaller than we typically eat here in the US.
They also eat every meal with a small bowl of rice and use seasonings like miso and furikake which, in addition to tasting delicious, increase satiety and reduce hunger. Also, most of the animal protein they eat is low in saturated fat which makes their protein-to-fat ratio much higher, decreasing overall caloric intake.
What they lack in serving size they make up for in variety! It’s not uncommon to have two different bowls of soup, one bowl of rice and 8-10 different small plates of different fish, veggies, and meats in front of you…and that’s just breakfast!
Honestly, I’ve never gotten up from a traditional Japanese meal still feeling the least bit hungry. Nor do I feel the carb crash that happens from eating a starch-heavy meal.
The combination of:
-smaller servings
-more variety
-whole-grain rice
-delicious seasonings and sauces that increase satiety
-lower fat protein sources
are all factors that I think contribute to their healthy calorie consumption
Lower Saturated Fat
Saturated fat found in butter, beef, and pork is known to increase Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol which is a main contributor to cardiovascular disease.
While the Japanese still do eat beef and pork, it’s not a main part of their diet as they get most of their protein from fish and beans. In contrast, most of our animal protein in the US comes from beef and pork which contribute to higher LDL cholesterol levels and increases our risk for heart disease.
Higher Omega 3
They eat an insane amount of fish and seafood including roe (fish eggs) that are very high in a specific type of Omega-3 fatty acid called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). These DHA-Omega-3 fats reduce inflammation in the body but especially in the brain and blood vessels. This can account for their lower rates of cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer’s disease.
More Vegetables Rice and Tubers
Fresh veggies, especially root vegetables and tubers like sweet potato make up a large part of their diet. Not only are these vegetables high in nutrients but they also provide a high variety of different fibers which help to nourish their gut microbiomes. More on that in a moment.
Fermented foods
Pickled, lactofermented vegetables are very common to eat with almost every meal in traditional Japanese cuisine. At most sit-down restaurants you’ll be given an appetizer of pickled veggies (usually cucumber, sweet potato, daikon radish) and miso soup which is made of fermented rice and soybean.
My Thoughts On Natto: They also eat a very slimy soybean dish called natto which they say has a ton of health benefits. Even though I’m relatively adventurous with my cuisine and I was in Japan partially to understand their health practices, I couldn’t get myself to eat it every day.
Imagine a Great Dane sneezed on a bowl of soft peanuts…and you have natto. While it doesn’t taste horrible, the texture is bluuuch!
Eating fermented foods daily has been associated with a healthier gut microbiome and less inflammation which could account for their lower levels of cardiovascular disease.
In fact, researchers feel that if it wasn’t for their high-fiber diet coupled with regularly eating fermented foods, the prevalence of stomach and other intestinal cancers in Japan would be much worse!
More Physical Activity
One thing I’ve noticed through most of my travels is that people outside of the US and UK are much more physically active. Japan exemplifies this!.
While many people do drive, a lot of them get around by walking, public transportation and bike (during the warmer months).
Even in the height of winter, on the northernmost island of Hokkaido where snowbanks are over 4 meters (12ish feet) tall, you will see people out walking, snowshoeing and cross country skiing to the post office, to get groceries or visit their friends.
Fun Fact: The Japanese island of Hokkaido is at roughly the same latitude as Siberia, which is just over a narrow portion of the Sea of Japan.
This close proximity to Siberia is one of the reasons that Japan is renowned for its amazing snowboarding and skiing conditions where you can have the beautiful, light, fluffy powder snow usually associated with the high Rockies at or near sea level….and there’s a LOT of it!
Japanese Bath Houses
I always look forward to visiting the Japanese bath houses, called onsens, every time I visit Japan. In fact, soaking my sore muscles in a hot pool (105F) after a full day of riding deep pow is one of the main reasons I go there. It’s truly my happy place!
In order for a hot spring or bathhouse to be called an onsen, it has to be certified by the Japanese authorities to have a very specific concentration of certain minerals and inorganic salts which are said to provide more health and vitality than a typical hot spring or hot tub.
I don’t really know if their onsen culture really adds to their longer life expectancy. What I do know is that an hour of soaking followed by a cold plunge or snow bath tunes me up and keeps me riding hard even when the powder is so deep that I need a snorkel to breathe!
It’s interesting to note that while we think of jacuzzis and hot springs as a luxury we use to relax or recover from training, for the Japanese, this is how they bathe.
I’m not exaggerating here. Most Japanese houses, apartments, and hotels that don’t cater specifically to Westerners have a bath-room where the entire room is the bath and a sit down shower.
In fact, in some traditional villages like Nozawa Onsen, many homes don’t actually have a bath or shower. While they will have an amazing robotic pleasure toilet, they will bathe communally in the public bathhouse which is just a few doors down. Some of the villages will have as many as 20-30 onsens for a relatively small population exactly for this reason.
Ok, so how does same-sex communal bathing contribute to longevity? I think it comes back down to a slower pace of life with an added benefit of social connections.
I can’t speak for the women (because they wouldn’t let me in their onsen oddly enough) but using the men’s onsen to shower, bathe and soak made me feel relaxed in a way that I’ve never felt in my shower at home.
Granted it took more time, but the effect it had on me both in the mornings and evenings made those extra minutes well worth it!
It’s also important to point out that every onsen I visited was immaculately clean as were their toilets…unless they were run by Australian expats…and then I just avoided them. No offense to the Auzzies but y’all a bunch of dirty animals!
Ok, this brings us to one of my favorite things about Japan…their robotic pleasure toilets…it’s really a thing!
Robotic Pleasure Toilets
If you’ve ever been to Japan you will have noticed that almost every bathroom, public and private, is not only super clean, it has a high-tech butt cleaner. This isn’t just fancy tourist locations. It’s everywhere! Rest stops, gas stations, dodgy bars….in fact the cleanest place in a Tokyo dive bar will often be the bathroom.
Ok, I know that a clean booty and a non-disgusting bathroom experience aren’t really contributing to longevity in Japan, but it does make life feel a bit richer to clean out the back end with a soothing spray of warm water, while listening to the relaxing sounds of dolphins, rain, or lapping waves…yeah the toilets actually play you music while you poop.
Then a warm spritz of water using your favorite pressure (pleasure) setting followed by a warm air dry that makes you wonder why they even have toilet tissue.
Come to find out, the main reason they have toilet tissue in men’s bathrooms is for the barbaric Westerners who prefer to smear feces all over their backside.
Even a small mom-n-pop restaurant with only three tables and 5 items on the menu will invest about 130,000 - 300,000 JY ($1000-2500 USD) in one of these state-of-the art butt robots. “Why?” might you ask.
To quote the words of a common commercial from the Japanese toilet manufacturer Toto,
“Even your asshole wants to feel happy!”
No shit! That’s what the advert actually says.
Personal disclosure: I was so taken in by the culture of happy assholes that I bought my own bidet for my bathroom at home. It doesn’t sing to me or lightly fluff my backend with warm air, but the high pressure setting does the trick and I’m able to walk around knowing I’ve got the cleanest cornhole in town.
Summary:
Putting this all together, here’s a definitive list of exactly why I think the Japanese have a longer life expectancy and lower cardiovascular disease than we do in the US.
-They don’t run into each other with their cars as often or violently as we do.
-They slow down from time to time and enjoy simple things.
-They love to eat, but not too much.
-They prefer to eat the swimming animals over the grazing and snorting ones.
-They learned to turn seaweed and rotting food into delicious condiments which they eat with every meal and which make their gut bacteria happy.
-They don’t let their colons get flimsy and instead fill them with plants and fiber.
-They actually use their legs for more than just wearing pants.
-Bathing is an event they enjoy, often together.
-They engage in robot-assisted, aquatic anal play every day…and have a squeaky clean pooper to boot.
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