How does Japanese culture view health and balance?
Are the Japanese really healthy?.
You see them eat healthy, have a long life and are generally active – so why even ask this question?
There is no set purpose to answer this, but it’s an opportunity to poke at reality.
So let’s see what’s going on behind the curtains.
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Okay, let’s get through with the obvious.
In terms of physical health, there is no doubt that the Japanese are healthy.
Looking at statistics of life-expectancy-at-birth[1], you see Japan ranked 1st even within developed nations.
Japan (84), Finland (81), Korea (81), US (77). Data provided by World Bank (2022).
And yes, Japan’s physical health is maintained through carefully coordinated strategies.
– High emphasis on the health of the citizens.
– High quality medical care with country insurance making things relatively cheap[2].
– Plenty of full medical checkup opportunities provided annually[3].
– A traditional food culture that suggests eating lots of vegetables.
And they all contribute to overall, lower average body fat percentages[4] . Along with a healthier and longer life span.
It is said that these factors contribute towards a longer life.
Japans mental well-being issue.
Glad you caught on.
There is a reason why we started off with the physical.
And it’s because there are questions around the Japanese being mentally healthy?. Being “balanced” requires you to have both your mental and physical in check. So let’s now examine the mental situation of Japan.
In 2020, UNICEF conducted a happiness experiment on developed nations. The experiment compared 38 nations, and concluded in a report[5].
Unsurprisingly, Japan scored 1st in physical health. Physical health is calculated with likelihood of obesity and mortality. And with all the reasons mentioned prior, there would be no doubts about its placement.
But interestingly, Japan scored 37th in the mental health category. With Mental well-being calculated through life-satisfaction and likelihood of suicide. Actually, you might not even be surprised. There’s been many who argue that the Japanese are not happy.
The scores are interesting. Often, higher levels of mental well being lead to a stress-free life and are healthier[6] . And less-stress coupled with a healthy life leads to longer-life-expectancy.
So how can Japan be so healthy, even while lacking mental well-being.
How is Japan compared to the world?
Let’s start. To make it clear, the 2020 UNICEF study mentioned prior was carried on children. So it’s unclear whether the results can be generalized to adults. It’s even possible that mental well-being increases as you get older.
I mean, as you get older, you can make money and live *generally* more freely. You see a lot of happy elderly right?. But alas, No. The data does not support this statement.
To my point, the graph below is from a study conducted in 2008. It showed there is tendency, around the world, for mental well-being rates to steadily rise with age. Unfortunately, they note that the same effect doesn’t occur in Japan.
You see this effect below. With a comparison between Japan and US, Japan’s happiness slowly decreases and vice-versa for the US. So even with Japan’s low-rate of happiness, it gets even lower!!.
Hmmm. If we were to only look at this graph, it looks like less mental well-being contributes to longer life-spans. But if that’s the case South Africa MHQ (Mental Health Quotient) of 50 should mean longest life span. And for reference, there average life-span at birth is expected to be around (64). One of the lowest in the contemporary world.
The causes for longer life span in Japan.
It’s interesting. The root of Japan’s longer life-span, in my opinion, relates to anxiety. There are those that feel overwhelmed by anxiety, and need support. What I mean instead is a passive gnawing of worry.
Look at the streets with tons of hospitals, all filled to the brim with people. (Mainly the elderly). Even a fraction of uncertainty sends them straight to the hospital. Why?. Because what if it is cancer?. What if it kills me?. Immobilize me?. These all sound hypocritical, but are legitimate reasons when your fueled by worry.
Small things can send people to the hospital to get it checked out. It obviously sounds hypocritical. But to an extent, we all do that too. Even with no injuries, we go to the hospital. We eat healthy and keep doing our regular exercise.
Enjoyment is a plus, but most of the time, it’s to quench the undying worry. So yes, we care about our diet, we move around, we go to the hospital. But it’s not because we always like to do it, it’s because we worry about what happens when we don’t!.
So, we have indirectly reached a path to a longer life-span.
Genetic Mutations Prevalent in Japan.
There is a genetic mutation known as Serotonin 5-HTT. The mutation, the short allele, makes you have a lower Serotonin uptake compared to the long-allele. In other words, you get less of the “happy” neurotransmitter. It’s a mutation that is hereditary.
And interestingly, the number of people with the mutation differ across ethnicities. From the image below, you see low rates of this mutation in Africa, US and in European Nations. On the flip-side, East-Asian nations (Japan, China, South Korea) have naturally higher rates of the mutation.
Feeling a sense of anxiety is the Japaneses trait. It helps them to be meticulous, serious and punctual along with paying extra attention to detail. These allow the Japanese to great magnificent pieces of art, while also being great technical workers. But it comes at a cost…
When things can’t just be ‘okay’ and needs to be ‘perfect’, there is extra pressure involved. And when that pressure piles up, it can lead to devastating consequences. In this case, lower levels of mental well-being.
This truly was an interesting question. How can a culture be so healthy physically but not mentally and still have long life spans?. And to that, I hope you now can glimpse how anxiety plays a role.
That’s all for today.
[1]: statistical measure that estimates average number of years a newborn is expected to live.
[2]: often patients only pay 30% of medical costs, while 70% is covered by insurance. Link. Inadvertently, leads to more hospital visits per individual.
[3]: known as 健康診断, and it’s conducted annually. Often, if you are inside of a company, they provide you a free (mandatory) 健康診断 annually.
[4]: Average body fat percentages in Japan for (men): 18 ~ 22% and for (women): 25 ~ 30%. Link here.
[5]: Link to the UNICEF report here.
[6]: Living a stress-less lifestyle does wonders for lowering blood-pressure, keeping binge eating low and so much more. Some of the factors that contribute to healthier life-styles.