Okinawa diet
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The Okinawa diet is a nutrient-rich, low calorie diet [1] from the indiginous people of the Ryūkyū Islands. In addition, a commercially promoted weight-loss diet (which bears the same name) has also been made based on this standard diet of the Islanders.
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[edit] The diet of the indiginous Ryūkyū Islanders described
People from these Japanese islands of Ryūkyū (of which Okinawa is the largest) are reported to have the longest life expectancy in the world. This has in part been attributed to the local diet, but also to other variables such as genetic factors, lifestyle, and environmental factors.
The diet of the Islanders consist of 20% less calorie intake than the Japanese average, and respectively an intake of 200 and 300% of fish and green/yellow vegetables when compared to the Japanese average. In addition, the Okinawan diet has only respectively 25% and 75% of food intake for sugar and cereals when compared to the Japanese average.[2]
The typical Okinawan reaching 110 years of age has had a diet consistently averaging no more than one calorie per gram and has a BMI of 20.4.
[edit] The commercial weight loss diet described
The diet consists of a relatively low intake of calories, with fish and other types of marine foods as some of its main staples. The principal focus of the diet consists of knowing how many calories per gram each food item contains. They posit that there is a tight correlation between the high proportion of Okinawans over 110 years of age and the relatively low caloric density of their diet.[3]
The proponents of this diet divide food into 4 categories based on caloric density. The "featherweight" foods, less than or equal to .8 calories per gram which one can eat freely without major concern, the "lightweight" foods with a caloric density from 0.8 to 1.5 calories per gram which one should eat in moderation, the "middleweight" foods with a caloric density from 1.5 to 3.0 calories per gram which one should eat only while carefully monitoring portion size and the "heavyweight" foods from 3 to 9 calories per gram which one should eat only sparingly.[4]
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[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for Extending Your Healthy Years" by Roy Walford (page 27)
- ^ "The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for Extending Your Healthy Years" by Roy Walford (page 27)
- ^ The Okinawa Diet Plan, Bradley Wilcox, MD, D. Craig Wilcox, PhD and Makoto Suzuki, MD, copyright 2004.
- ^ The Okinawa Diet Plan, Bradley Wilcox, MD, D. Craig Wilcox, PhD and Makoto Suzuki, MD, copyright 2004.
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