To Your Health:

Hara Hachi Bu To You Too!

By Nancy DiMarco, Ph.D.

As a dietitian and sports nutritionist, I have tried, relentlessly, to teach student athletes, children, teens and their parents about the virtues of eating fruits and veggies, whole grain products, lots of natural fiber, water and foods containing antioxidants.

The United States government has pushed “5-a-day” forever, it seems, to encourage people to get a minimum of five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. But Americans are slow to wise up, and research studies show that we don’t get even half of that amount. Children between the ages of 2 and 6 barely get more than one serving each a day, and that’s the age when our troubles begin.

If we don’t model good behavior to children when they are still impressionable, how are they ever going to make significant changes later in life when they’ve practiced bad habits for years, maybe decades?

The majority of scientific studies have concluded that a high-carbohydrate, low-fat, high fiber, plant-based diet is optimal for health and long life.

One of the longest-studied cultures is that of the Okinawans. Bradley Wilcox, MD, a gerontologist at Harvard, along with his twin brother, Craig, a medical anthropologist, and Makoto Suzuki, MD, Ph.D., have determined that not only are the Okinawans long-lived, but they are also some of the healthiest people on earth.

The study of the Okinawans began in 1976 when the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare confirmed that Okinawans, indeed, had much longer life expectancies and better health habits. Since that time, more than 600 individuals over the age of 100 have been studied revealing their genetics, exercise, diets, daily habits and spiritual components that contribute to their longevity.

It is generally accepted that in most westernized cultures there are 10 centenarians (people over age 100) per 100,000 people, but in Okinawa that rate is 33.6 per 100,000, the highest level in the world. Okinawa also has one of the highest fertility rates in Japan.

Life expectancy in the U.S., based on 1996 data, is 76.8 years, making us 18th in the world. Italy is 8th at 78.3, Japan is 2nd at 79.9, but Okinawa tops them all at 81.2 years (85.1 for women and 77.2 for men). The data from Okinawa is pristine because of their careful attention to detail — birth, marriage and death records — that has been in place since 1879. Many people have attempted to disregard the data by pointing to genetic influence as being of greatest importance to such connectivity. However, in studies following Okinawans who have left their native land and acquired western habits, their causes of morbidity and mortality are no different than those who grew up in the west.

One remarkable feature of healthy Okinawans is they have a much-reduced risk for cardiovascular diseases. In addition, the Okinawans also have drastically reduced rates of breast, prostate and stomach cancer and stroke compared to mainland Japan.

As an example, the average concentration of homocysteine, an amino acid known to cause damage to arteries in those people who do not consume enough folic acid (found in green leafy vegetables) as well as vitamins B6 and B12, in Okinawans is about one third of that found in Americans and Japanese. Other factors include rare, if any, use of hormones following menopause in women; very low rates of hip fractures (20 percent less than the Japanese, 50 percent less than Americans) despite Okinawans lack of milk intake; dementia rates two and half times less than the U.S. or Japan; average body mass index range from 18 to 22 (23 is considered to be lean); strong social support system and deep spiritual beliefs; daily physical activity either from Tai Chi, gardening, dance or walking; avoidance of smoking and alcohol and use of both Eastern and Western methods of health care.

And their diet is amazing. The major principle is hara hachi bu, or eat until you are 80 percent full. This idea is consistent with our knowledge of digestion that says that it takes 20 minutes for the stretch receptors in the stomach to tell our brains we have consumed enough food.

The Okinawans consistently eat 10 to 40 percent fewer calories than we do in America. Their portion sizes are also about half of ours.

The diet emphasizes a high carbohydrate intake, 55 to 60 percent of calories, coming predominantly from vegetables and whole grains; moderate amounts of protein, 19 percent of calories, mostly plant-based from legumes and soy products; and small amounts of fat, 26 percent, divided into about 14 percent monounsaturated (such as canola oil), 5 percent polyunsaturated (soybean oil) and 7 percent saturated.

Their diet is also rich in phytochemicals and micronutrients such as calcium (tofu, seaweed), vitamin D (sunshine, fish, mushrooms) and vitamin E (cooking oils). The phytochemicals come predominantly from jasmine green tea (six cups a day) that provides large amounts of polyphenols, especially the catechins.

As far as amounts go, they consume a ratio of 6:1, vegetables to fruit. They emphasize fish rather than red meat and consume it daily. They eat seven servings of whole grains, two servings of soy products, two servings of foods containing good amounts of calcium, six glasses of water in addition to the tea and have little salt intake every day.

What’s the key to their longevity? Is it the diet? Yes. Is it the exercise? Yes. Is it the mental attitude? Yes. Is it the social support system? Yes. Is it the spiritual component? Yes.
It is everything.

Can Americans learn something from our eastern friends? We have a lot to learn.

Dr. Nancy DiMarco is a research professor in the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, the nutrition coordinator for the Institute for Women's Health and coordinator of the master's program in Exercise and Sports Nutrition at Texas Woman's University. She can be reached at ndimarco@twu.edu.

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