Revealing the Benefits of the Okinawa Diet that Can Be Inspiring
Liputan6.com, Jakarta – If you go to Japan in the South Pacific, you’ll find islander communities that have consistently lived for over 100 years. The astonishing longevity of people Okinawa has encouraged extensive scientific research on the specific habits that lead to long and healthy lives.
Instead of finding the source of youth, the researchers found the Okinawa diet unique. Additionally, strong social networks have helped these centenarians slow down the aging process.
Even if you live in another part of the world, a similar style of eating can be an inspiration to help improve your health. What is the Okinawa diet?
“The traditional Okinawa diet is very rich in produce, making it abundant in phytonutrients and antioxidants, which is likely the reason for its health benefits and associated anti-aging properties,” says Stefani Sassos, MS, RDN., A registered dietitian. Good Housekeeping, Tuesday, January 26, 2021.
“The Okinawa diet restricts meat, refined grains, saturated fat, sugar, salt and full fat dairy products, which tend to have more inflammatory properties,” he added.
Most of Okinawa’s diet consists of green and yellow vegetables, root vegetables, soy-based foods, and mushrooms. Okinawans eat much smaller amounts of fish, meat, dairy products and whole grains such as rice.
Some examples of foods common to the Okinawa diet include, vegetables such as orange sweet potato, purple sweet potato, seaweed, bamboo shoots, radishes, bitter melon, cabbage, carrots, pumpkin, papaya, and mushrooms. Soy-based foods, namely tofu, miso, natto (fermented soybeans), and edamame.
Meanwhile, for grains, namely millet, wheat, rice, and noodles. For meat and seafood includes, fish, seafood. Diets usually do not include beef, processed meat, eggs, cheese, milk, and refined carbohydrates, such as sweet foods and snacks.
“Even though the Okinawa diet is low in refined carbohydrates, that doesn’t mean it’s low in carbohydrates,” says Sassos. “In fact, Okinawans are known for their high intake of raw carbohydrates such as root vegetables and greenish yellow vegetables, their staple diet is sweet potatoes,” adds Sassos.
Sassos said Okinawans would stop eating when they were 80 percent full. This was done in order to play a role in weight management and fight obesity.