The life expectancy of Japanese men jumped by over four months to 78.07 years, the first time the expected life span for Japanese men has exceeded 78 years, according to new data released by the Japanese Health and Welfare Ministry. The Ministry released new figures from 2001 this week.
Life expectancy for Japanese females increased from 84.60 years to 84.93 years, the highest life expectancy in the world. The difference between the sexes decreased by 0.02 years in the past year.
Officials said a decrease in cancer-related deaths in men and a drop in deaths due to stroke in women contributed to the lengthened lifespans.
In comparison to figures from 1990, life expectancy for females increased 3.03 years over the past decade, while the life expectancy for males increased by one year.
According to Ministry figures, the closest country to Japan is Hong Kong, where life expectancy is 78.0 years for males and 83.9 years for females.
Japan Today August 1, 2002
Some may use the long lifespan of the Japanese to promote the lowfat diet, failing to mention that the Swiss live almost as long on one of the highest fat diets in the world. Tied for third in the longevity stakes are Austria and Greece-both with high-fat diets.
The key here is the type of fat the Japanese are consuming. They eat plenty of rice, which absolutely devastates insulin levels, so for longevity purposes it appears their fat optimization may have more influence than carbohydrate limitation.
One of the major reasons the Japanese live so long, I believe, is that their omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is about 3:1, due in part to a high fish diet. In America the omega-6 to 3 ratio is 15:1. Ideally it should be about 1:1 or less, which is what most experts believe it was during Paleolithic times.
However, these are results based on consumption of fish beginning well over 50 years ago, when it was still healthy for you. Now, fish are highly contaminated with mercury, as evidenced by a story I ran recently on how a small fraction of a teaspoon of whale liver harvested in Japan had more mercury than an adult should consume in an entire week.
Fortunately, we can reap the same longevity rewards the Japanese are experiencing by consuming high-quality fish oils and reducing our omega-6 ratio.
Balancing of the omega-3 fats involves virtually eliminating all omega-6 fats. This will seem counter-intuitive to many interested in health, as some of omega-6 foods seem healthy. For instance, all seeds and nuts should be avoided (except walnuts and flaxseeds, which have substantial amounts of omega-3 fats, though omega-3 from fish oil is still far better for its high levels of EPA and DHA). Nearly all other seeds and nuts have significant quantities of omega-6 fats and should be eliminated from the diet (even if they are organic), including:
In short, to escalate your chances of a longer, and healthier, life, pay attention to the omega-6 levels in your food and eliminate those high in the fat. And consume more omega-3 fats, particularly those found in fish oil (I recommend Carlson's fish oil products for their purity, and intend to make them available on Mercola.com soon).