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  Life   Food  11 Dec 2017  Find out about the health benefits of Japanese food

Find out about the health benefits of Japanese food

THE ASIAN AGE.
Published : Dec 11, 2017, 2:50 pm IST
Updated : Dec 11, 2017, 2:50 pm IST

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Japanese women and men live longer and healthier than everyone else on Earth.

 Japan’s food habits are praised for their brevity and simplicity.
  Japan’s food habits are praised for their brevity and simplicity.

If I were to ask you to join me for dinner or lunch at a Japanese restaurant, the first reaction would be “How about that Chinese place or maybe that Indian restaurant that has just opened up in so and so place?”

When it comes to Japanese cuisine, majority of the mass are ignorant of the food’s effectiveness in nature and its contribution in making our lives healthy and satisfying. Japan’s food habits are praised for their brevity and simplicity.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Japanese women and men live longer and healthier than everyone else on Earth. In fact, due to their relatively healthier diet and lifestyle, they can anticipate an average of 75 years lived healthy and disability-free. Not to mention, Japanese people enjoy the No. 1 lowest obesity rate in the developed world at just 3per cent.

Chicken OkonomiyakiChicken Okonomiyaki

Raw, boiled, steamed –their ways of preparing food are extremely healthy. They stick to portions that are compact and yet gratifying in size. Japan style dishes are delightful lower-calorie foods, high in fiber and packed with minerals, offered in pretty plates.  This distinctive way of dining encourages you ‘to eat with your eyes’ meaning that your eyes tricks your mind into believing that your stomach is full. This is especially helpful for people aiming to lead a healthy lifestyle.

I have lived in Japan for more than twenty years before moving to Kolkata and the place never forgets to surprise me in my visits each time.  In Japan, food is always served on small plates and bowls rather than a big plate. People consume a wide variety of vegetables, legumes, seaweed, fruits and fishes. 

Chicken ShogayakiChicken Shogayaki

Sushi – a popular Japanese dish is known for its lip-smacking taste and flavors but do you know how it’s made? Ingredients used in sushi such as unprocessed soy, seaweed and various types of fish make it one of the healthiest cuisines around the world. It is minimally cooked hence, is able to retain most of its nutrients.

Japanese cuisine unlike others, are basically raw and uncooked food quite opposed to our rich palette. It has got very little to do with individual food items but, rather in moderation, and with lots of variety. So, the next time you feel like experimenting with a different cuisine that is a world in itself, try out Japanese food and you will not regret!

The author of the article is Palash Banerjee, Director, K. House India.

Tags: japanese food, health and well being, health benefits of japanese food, sushi, japanese cuisine