Okinawa stuff

[Guest guest]

Kaleyna,

Sure - here are the ten "foods" mentioned in the book "The Okinawa Program":

1)Turmeric-they even have turmeric based tea here..

2)Goya(bitter melon)-must be the #1 favorite for health here. Very bitter but good once you get used to it. My parents SWEAR by it. When my father was growing it in the yard (before one of the recent typhoons destroyed the garden) we had it every day as juice or in strifry.

3)Hechima (vegetable sponge)

4)Mugwort (huchiba)

5)Tofu (note: it is made DAILY here and eaten on the same day).

6)Sweet Potato (Imo)- this was a staple after the war. My parents are alive today because of sweet potatos..

7)Jasmine tea (Sanpin) - Green tea isn't king here.. Jasmine tea is (although green tea is also common).

8)Arrowroot (Kudzu)

9)Konnyaku

10)Seaweed (various types)

Micky,

I agree 100%. Not everything on Okinawa is good - we need to focus on the centenarians vs. just everyone. For instance most men here drink a LOT of alcohol - quite unhealthy. Smoking is rampant. The traditional diet is being replaced by western style fatty and fried foods. Traffic accidents are the highest in Japan. The sun here is strong and skin/eye problems are common. Before many people were farmers and got lots of exercise but now people don't do that anymore.

When the book "The Okinawa Program" makes Okinawa sound like some perfect place it makes me chuckle.

(Then again the lovely beaches and palm trees and general niceness of people is hard to beat) (grin)

Ed