由 home-healthhaven 
Eating in Japan is deeply rooted in centuries-old traditions where every detail has significance. Japanese cuisine teaches us how to rejuvenate and strengthen our bodies through the right food choices. Here’s how adopting a Japanese diet can benefit you:
– Increase your stamina
– Improve your health
– Help you feel young
Despite a growing interest in European cuisine, the Japanese still predominantly favor their traditional dishes, which usually include rice, vegetables, and seafood.
Unlike Western diets, Japanese cuisine is generally low in calories and rich in plant-based proteins, with most animal proteins coming from fish.
**Key Eating Rules in Japan:**
1. **Small Portions:**
Eating quickly can lead to overeating because you don’t realize how much you’ve eaten or when you’re full. To avoid this, the Japanese serve food in small portions. Start by reducing your portion sizes by 1/5 in the first week and by 1/4 in the second week. Over 3-4 weeks, you’ll naturally adjust to smaller portions without much effort.
2. **Eat Fresh, Seasonal Products:**
The Japanese emphasize eating the freshest foods available in each season. For instance, they’ll consume young green tea, bamboo shoots, and salmon in spring, whereas mackerel and matsutake mushrooms are popular in autumn. Rarely would they buy out-of-season greenhouse strawberries, as they’re neither as tasty nor as nutritious.
While fast food has made its mark on Japanese cuisine in recent decades, traditionalists resist this trend. This is why unique flavors like seaweed-flavored potato chips, cod roe-flavored spaghetti, and green tea ice cream have become popular.
3. **Preserve the Food’s Natural State:**
Japanese chefs aim to keep food as close to its original state as possible, particularly fish and vegetables, to make it seem almost untouched after preparation.
4. **Retain Vitamins and Minerals:**
The Japanese cooking methods are designed to preserve the nutrients in food. They use specific cooking temperatures and cutting techniques, mainly diagonal and circular, to maintain vitamins and minerals. The less time spent cutting and cooking, the better. Japanese cuisine includes a wide variety of vegetables, wild plants, roots, grasses, and algae, all rich in essential nutrients.
By adopting some of these principles, you can enjoy a healthier, more balanced diet that’s in harmony with nature, like the Japanese.