＜prologue＞
I started a blog called “The Baby Boomer Generation’s Miscellaneous Blog”（Dankai-sedai no garakutatyou:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳） in July 2018, about a year before I fully retired. More than six years have passed since then, and the number of articles has increased considerably.
So, in order to make them accessible to people who don’t understand Japanese, I decided to translate my past articles into English and publish them.
It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I would like to make this my life’s work.
It should be noted that haiku and waka （Japanese short fixed form poems） are quite difficult to translate into English, so some parts are written in Japanese.
If you are interested in haiku or waka and would like to know more, please read introductory or specialized books on haiku or waka written in English.
I also write many articles about the Japanese language. I would be happy if these inspire more people to want to learn Japanese.
my blog’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳 | 団塊世代が雑学や面白い話を発信しています
my X’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多帳（@historia49）さん / X
The “diet boom” has been going on in Japan for a long time, but it seems that adopting a “simple diet” or “fasting” based on amateur judgment can be dangerous.
Many people reduce the amount of food they eat, eat a “simple diet” mainly consisting of vegetables, or even skip certain meals in order to lose weight.
However, experts say that this also carries the risk of shortening your lifespan.
1. The Problem with “Simple Diets” and “Fasting” for Dieting
Extremely simple diets and fasting can lead to nutritional deficiencies and various health problems.
Vegetables are certainly rich in vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber, and at first glance appear healthy. However, they alone are completely deficient in nutrients.
To survive, humans require at least 1,800 to 2,000 kcal of energy per day. If energy isn’t supplied from the outside through food, the body will try to make up for the deficiency with internal sources.
It would be ideal if the body could burn fat to make up for the deficiency, but in reality, this doesn’t work. The human body has a mechanism called “gluconeogenesis” (body protein breakdown) that breaks down protein to produce sugar.
The first target is the muscles, which consume a large amount of energy. By suppressing their function, the body redirects the energy it lost to the brain and internal organs, which are essential for life.
Muscles need minerals such as calcium to move, but if they don’t get these from their diet, their bodies will start breaking down bones to compensate (leading to a decrease in bone density).
Fasting also has the disadvantage of making you more susceptible to rebound weight gain.
2. A Western-style diet extends lifespan more than traditional Japanese food.
A research team from the National Center for Global Health and Medicine has published some interesting findings.
In this study, they divided diets into three patterns: “healthy,” “traditional (Japanese) food,” and “Western,” and examined the mortality risk for each.
– Healthy diet: Vegetables, fruits, potatoes, soy products, mushrooms, fish, green tea, etc.
– Traditional diet: Rice, miso soup, pickles, seafood, etc.
– Western-style diet: Meat, bread, dairy products, fruit juice, coffee, etc.
Among these diets, the “healthy” diet had the lowest risk of death, followed by the “Western” diet, while the “traditional” diet had the highest risk of death.
Doctor and author Minoru Kamata and Shoji Shinkai, deputy director of the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology and Gerontology, have said things like, “Eating simple foods and fasting shortens your lifespan,” “Once you turn 50, you should be more concerned about malnutrition than metabolic syndrome,” “Take in protein within 30 minutes of exercising,” and “Don’t be fooled by health methods that involve not eating (meat, eggs, etc.).”
3. A balanced intake of the five major nutrients is important.
Ultimately, it’s important to consume a balanced intake of the five major nutrients: protein, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins, and minerals.