Blue Zones: Okinawa, Japan
Okinawa is a popular island located in Japan. The island is commonly known the health and longevity of its people. The island was once known as “the land of the immortals,” according to the article on Blue Zones’ website (Okinawa Explorations). The ages of the people living on the island are way beyond what we would consider old in the U.S. The lifestyle of the people living in Okinawa definitely plays into the longevity of its people. According to an article on Okinawa’s Longevity, the people of Okinawa achieve old age by eating right, exercise, right attitude, maintaining a garden, and having a supportive group of family and friends (Okinawa Longevity). It is easily said that the life rate of the people of Okinawa is significantly higher than those of people living in America. This being said I think the people of America should definitely consider adopting some of these traits in order to lengthen our life span.
According to chapter one in the book, “Back to the Basics,” “In a population of one million, there are 900 centenarians.”(Back to Basics) I think that a very important part of why the people of Okinawa is their diet. The people of Okinawa eat a mainly plant based diet and eat foods that are closest to their natural state. This is a very good way of eating and can help prevent diseases like congestive heart failure, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. Being obese and overweight can be extremely unhealthy. The leading cause of death was forms of heart disease in Okinawa along with age related deaths (Longevity). The younger generations of people living in Okinawa are not as fortunate with their health. The younger generations have become Americanized. By becoming Americanized, they have s...
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...e to buy the fattier and process foods rather than the veggies. The fresh produce is often more expensive and it comes with less quantity. This is the culture that America is now faced with and is one of the reasons obesity and mortality is such a big problem.
I really enjoyed reading and researching the culture of Okinawa. It is a respectful and well-lived culture and lifestyle. I would definitely consider making changes in my life to be more like the people of Okinawa. I have already started eating more fruits and vegetables and trying to lay off on the amount of fatty foods that I eat. I would definitely recommend that all people in America do this. I would recommend doing this in smaller portions though so that it is more affordable. I also think that an important part of the Okinawa culture is regular exercise which I have also started to include in my life.
Kingsolver desired to embrace “a genuine food culture” which is “an affinity between people and the land that feeds them” (Kingsolver 20). Having a true food culture can limit calorie intake and represent a cultural connection to the land that you live on. Kingsolver seeks to establish that a food culture is not just for the privileged, but rather is a result of cultural regulation of impulses (Kingsolver 16). A real food culture “arises out of a place, a soil, a climate, a history, a temperament, a collective sense of belonging,” all of which mitigate the impulse to eat fats and sugar (Kingsolver 17, 15). Kingsolver then states that to live without these natural regulations of diet “would seem dangerous”, and that the United States has no food culture.
Last and biggest of the Pacific island battles of World War II, the Okinawa campaign (April 1—June 22, 1945) involved the 287,000 troops of the U.S. Tenth Army against 130,000 soldiers of the Japanese Thirty-second Army. At stake were air bases vital to the projected invasion of Japan ("Battle of Okinawa," 1996). The Battle of Okinawa remembered more for its iconic photograph of US Marines raising the US flag on Okinawa more so than any other war or battle ever fought. Okinawa the largest of the Ryukus islands played a major role in the American forces overall strategic efforts to advance to the mainland’s of Japan. Because it was the last major battle of WWII, the battle of Okinawa used lessons learned and TTP’s from all previous battles with the Japanese to successfully employ combined striking power of the services and techniques of amphibious operations.
In Wendell Berry’s “The Pleasures of Eating,” this farmer tells eaters how their separation from food production has turned them into “passive consumers” who know nothing about the food they eat, or their part in the agricultural process (3). They are blindsided by a food industry that does not help them understand. Berry argues that the average consumer buys available food without any questions. He states consumers that think they are distanced from agriculture because they can easily buy food, making them ignorant of cruel conditions it went through to get on the shelf. Humans have become controlled by the food industry, and regard eating as just something required for their survival. Berry wants this to change as people realize they should get an enjoyment from eating that can only come from becoming responsible for their food choices and learning more about what they eat. While describing the average consumer’s ignorance and the food industry’s deceit, he effectively uses appeals to emotion, logic, and values to persuade people to take charge, and change how they think about eating.
December 7, 1941 was marked as the day that will live in infamy, Pearl Harbor dramatically changed the course of the war and world history. Many things led to Pearl Harbor, such as Japan becoming an economic threat, the U.S Embargo on Japan and Japan's quest to grow their empire. Pearl Harbor was a traumatic day in American history which led to many deaths during and after the attack. 2,335 U.S. servicemen died in Pearl Harbor. Some of the effects of Pearl Harbor include the U.S going to war, the Manhattan project and internment camps. December 7, 1941 marks the day that the world was never the same.
“Everybody lost something, and many people lost everything.” George Robinson. During World War Two, the United States banished the Japanese Americans to internment camps. Internment camps were the less extreme versions of concentration camps that Hitler had built in Europe. The struggle for the Japanese Americans was divided into the stages of evacuation, the camps, and life afterwards.
Many issues, both genetic and environmental, affect how we age. A 2014 Census Bureau report, “65+ in the United States: 2010,” present some statistics regarding people over 65 years old in the United States. Laura Skarnulis publishes her study titled “7 Health Challenges Of Aging” where she explains seven of the most common heath issues senior citizens face. Obesity, arthritis, osteoporosis and cancer are among the most common challenges senior citizens have to face. Skarnulis mentions that we should take care of ourselves while we are young. Some of these health issues can be prevented if the respective precautions are taken on
It is very tempting as human beings to put blame on someone else. Especially during a time of tragedy. Besides the attack of 9/11, Pearl Harbor is one of the most surprising attacks the United States of America has ever faced. The attack on December seventh, 1941 is what brought America into World War Two. The nation proceeded to declare war on Japan. Then, because of the alliance between Germany and Japan, Germany declared war on the U.S. At the time, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) was president. From the beginning of his presidency and the start of the war, he had wanted to get involved with the war. Historians have debated for many years who is at fault for the attack on Pearl Harbor and causing the deaths of two thousand Americans. He believed that without the United States aid, Russia and England would collapse, and the United States government had broken a diplomatic code and intercepted a message from Japan threatening war. Roosevelt missed many opportunities to prevent the bombing. This bomb attack brought our nation into war and caused the deaths of over a thousand American citizens.
On December 7, 1941 the Japanese Empire had declared war on the United States by planning and carrying out a devastating surprise attack on Pearl Harbor killing 2388 people and wounding 1178. (I) This horrible act provoked the U.S. to take part in WWII and because of the threat of espionage by Japanese Americans on February 19th, 1942 President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066. This order authorized military commanders to designate areas for internment camps where people of Japanese ancestry who might pose a danger would be held. “…The Roosevelt administration was pressured to remove persons of Japanese ancestry from the West Coast by farmers seeking to eliminate Japanese competition, a public fearing sabotage, politicians hoping to gain by standing against an unpopular group, and military authorities.” (II) Congress supported the Executive Order by authorizing a prison term for those who do not obey.
When we think of our national health we wonder why Americans end up obese, heart disease filled, and diabetic. Michael Pollan’s “ Escape from the Western Diet” suggest that everything we eat has been processed some food to the point where most of could not tell what went into what we ate. Pollan thinks that if America thought more about our “Western diets” of constantly modified foods and begin to shift away from it to a more home grown of mostly plant based diet it could create a more pleasing eating culture. He calls for us to “Eat food, Not too much, Mostly plants.” However, Mary Maxfield’s “Food as Thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating”, argues differently she has the point of view that people simply eat in the wrong amounts. She recommends for others to “Trust yourself. Trust your body. Meet your needs.” The skewed perception of eating will cause you all kinds of health issues, while not eating at all and going skinny will mean that you will remain healthy rather than be anorexic. Then, as Maxfield points out, “We hear go out and Cram your face with Twinkies!”(Maxfield 446) when all that was said was eating as much as you need.
This is because of smaller weekly food budgets, in addition to poorly stocked stores. Those with lower incomes are more likely to spend money on inexpensive fats and sugars versus fresh fruits and vegetables that are more costly on a per-calorie basis. Healthy foods like whole grain products are more expensive than high-calorie junk foods. Economic forces have driven grocery stores out of many cities in the past few years, leaving only a few, and in some cases none. Many of these people living in these rural urban areas do not own cars and because the grocery stores that are still around are so far away, a person’s shopping trip may require them to take several buses or trains....
Nutrition and health have become more popular in today 's society. Our generation is becoming more and more indebted to the idea of being healthy and eating nutritious meals. However, in “The American Paradox,” by Michael Pollan he argues that our unhealthy population is preoccupied with nutrition and the idea of eating healthy than their actual health. He also mentions the food industry, nutrition science and how culture affects the way we eat and make food choices. While Pollan is right about all these factor that affect our eating habits, there is more to it than that. Convenience, affordability and social influence also affects our food choices making them inadequate.
The population in the United States as of 2009 was 307,006,550 the younger population is projected to slightly increase and eventually plateau though the older population has been steadily increasing and projected to continue on an upward trend (Vincent & Velkoff, 2010). The lack of a healthier diet is something that has been highlighted in the media for the past decade and more often than not we are seeing the effects of overindulging and the consumption of highl...
Zinczenko also states that, if you were to drive down any thoroughfare in America you are guaranteed to see a Mcdonald’s, but you are unlikely to find a place that sells any fresh fruits (Zinczenko 392). Zinczenko’s point is that the food industry’s unwillingness to promote more healthier foods is most likely the cause of the unhealthy diets of western societies. Another part of the problem is the pricing of healthier options, such as whole foods, fresh fruits, and low calorie snacks; all these foods are ridiculously overpriced compared to their unhealthy counterparts. One would think the food that is made to help prolong your life would be more accessible, instead it is the foods that are high on calories, fats and sugars that are cheap and available. Fast food companies go by the motto that cheaper is better, and it is how they compete with each other. Almost all fast food companies followed in McDonald 's footstep by creating a dollar menu, because they saw the drastic increase of McDonald 's revenue. When consumers see all these cheap meals for a dollar they readily buy their food from the dollar menus, rather than buying a single granola bar for the same price. In a society where most of the population is the working class, these dollar
Generally, most healthy foods are more expensive than less healthy food. “Poor people are easy to identify because so many are obese. (Peck)” said by Anna Soubry, the Tory public health minister. The food prices have a significant impact on people who want to balance good nutrition. According to Geographic Differences in the Relative Price of Healthy Foods, the price of whole grains is 23 percent higher than that of refined grains in San Francisco, while 60 present higher in Pennsylvania and New York (Todd, Leibtag and Penberthy). Also, the price of fresh green vegetables is 20 to 80 percent higher than that of starchy vegetables in all markets across the United States (Todd, Leibtag and Penberthy). Due to the higher price of healthy food, a lot of people choose to eat unhealthy food, such as McDonald’s, especially for people who don’t want to...
According to Marge Dwyer, “The researchers found that healthier diet patterns—for example, diets rich in fruits, vegetables, fish, and nuts—cost significantly more than unhealthy diets (for example, those rich in processed foods, meats, and refined grains). On average, a day’s worth of the most healthy diet patterns cost about $1.50 more per day than the least healthy ones. The researchers suggested that unhealthy diets may cost less because food policies have focused on the production of “inexpensive, high volume” commodities” (hsph.harvard.edu). This shows that why people choose to eat fast food instead of buying all the ingredient when you have no time and cost more. People do not care what food they eat since it is cheap and