{"id":5279,"date":"2026-03-05T05:43:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-05T05:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/velkeholky.org\/?p=5279"},"modified":"2026-03-02T19:42:27","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T19:42:27","slug":"proc-se-japonky-dozivaji-87-let-a-co-my","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/velkeholky.org\/en\/proc-se-japonky-dozivaji-87-let-a-co-my\/","title":{"rendered":"Why do Japanese women live to be 87 years old and what about us?"},"content":{"rendered":"

It's not genetics. It's not a coincidence. It's a way of life that we in the West are only just beginning to understand\u2014and some of it we can take away right now, today, with our morning coffee.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This discovery made me a little angry \u2013 and it might make you angry too!<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

When you first come across these numbers, it takes a while to sink in. Japanese women live an average of 87 years. Men, 81. And on the island of Okinawa <\/a>The largest percentage of people in the world live to be over a hundred years old. A hundred years, girls!!! Active, present, smiling people \u2013 not just survivors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And yet here in Europe we have doctors on every corner, wellness apps on our phones, fitness centers in every city... and yet the years pass by us differently. The answer is so simple that it hurts a little.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It's not about genes. It's about how you live every day.<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This is something scientists keep repeating over and over again \u2013 and we don't want to hear it,<\/strong> because it is more convenient to blame everything on heredity. But study after study shows the same thing: genetics provide the foundation, but lifestyle either develops it or slowly destroys it. The Japanese have a lifestyle that works. Not as a thirty-day fashion challenge \u2013 but as a way of being, passed down through generations, quietly and naturally. It is not enough to just eat well, it is not enough to just go for walks. It is a whole ecosystem \u2013 food, movement, community, meaning in life, inner peace. Everything together, intertwined like threads in a fabric.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Food that heals \u2013 and tastes good too<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Imagine a morning bowl of miso soup \u2013 warm, fragrant, full of fermented soy, tofu, seaweed. Simple. No frills. Japanese cuisine is like that \u2013 clean, seasonal, varied and yet non-violent. The basis is fish and seafood several times a week, full of omega-3, which protect the heart and brain. And seaweed \u2013 did you know that Japan consumes around a hundred thousand tons of it annually? Fermented foods like miso, natto or tempeh take care of the intestines, our \u201esecond head\u201c. And green tea every day \u2013 as a ritual, a moment for yourself, not just a drink.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In contrast, we in the West do the same thing over and over again. We have variety, but routine gets in the way and we leave it. Do you know that too? That can be changed \u2013 slowly, without drama, but it can be done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hara hachi bun me \u2013 the rule that will change more than any diet<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Hara hachi bun me<\/em> <\/strong>\u2013 stop eating when you are eighty percent full. Not when you say \u201eugh, that was too much.\u201c Something like ours, eat until half full!!! A little earlier, while there is still lightness in the body. The Japanese eat from small bowls, slowly, without rushing, with attention. Food is not a time filler or a reward for a hard day \u2013 it is taking care of the body, being at the table. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And this approach has a direct impact not only on weight, but on the entire digestive system, on energy levels, on sleep quality. We women over fifty somehow sense this \u2013 our body is telling us this more and more loudly. We just have to start listening to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Movement that is not hard work<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Japanese <\/a>They don't go to the gym every day and don't lift kettlebells with a self-tortured expression. Their movement is natural, embedded in everyday life \u2013 walking to the shops, taking public transport, taking the stairs instead of the lift, gardening, an evening walk. Simple things, repeated every day, throughout their lives. According to scientists, it is this daily, non-violent activity that has a greater impact on longevity than intense, high-impact exercise. The body doesn't need performance. It needs movement \u2013 regular, kind, conscious. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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And that's exactly how we feel after we turn fifty, right? That the body doesn't want to be punished. It wants to be guided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Community \u2013 the first thing we forget<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In Okinawa they have a concept called moai<\/em> <\/strong>\u2013 a group of people you are connected to throughout your life. Friends, neighbors, family \u2013 people who see you, ask how you are, and really wait for a response. This network of relationships is a proven factor in longevity. Loneliness, on the other hand, shortens life just like smoking \u2013 and that's not a metaphor, that's data.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We, over fifty, know this from our own experience. The children have grown up, the team has changed, someone has moved away... and suddenly we find ourselves in a silence we didn't expect. Japanese women don't experience it because they build community consciously, their whole lives. We have to find it again - and that should be an adventure, not a sadness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ikigai \u2013 the reason to get out of bed in the morning<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

And then here's the most beautiful thing. Ikigai<\/em> \u2013 Japanese expression for the meaning of life (see article: Ikigai: More than just morning coffee and the meaning of life!<\/a>) Not a big philosophical project. Just an answer to the question: Why do I get up in the morning?<\/em> What awaits me, what makes me happy, what gives shape to my day? For some, it's grandchildren. For others, a garden that smells like the whole world in the morning. Ceramics, writing, a neighbor you take shopping to and know is waiting for you. The Japanese believe that finding this reason \u2013 and nourishing it daily \u2013 brings health, peace and joy. And scientists agree with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We over 50 are in a wonderful position: we know enough, we have experienced enough. And we finally have time to find our own. ikigai<\/em> \u2013 without excuses, without rushing, in my own way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What to take away from this \u2013 without major revolutions<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

No one is forcing you to emigrate to Japan or cook miso soup every morning. But there are a few things you can do \u2013 quietly, gradually, at your own pace. Eat a little less and a little slower. Add more vegetables and seasonal items to your plate. Get moving every day \u2013 a half-hour walk is really enough. Call that friend you haven't called in a while. And find that one thing that makes you look forward to the day in the morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It's not a revolution. It's gentle, conscious care - of the body, of relationships, of the soul. Exactly how we, smart women over fifty, know how to do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Do you know ikigai or hara hachi bun me? Have you ever tried eating more consciously or changing something small in your day? Write to me in the comments - I'd love to read your story.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Blue Zones: The Secret to a Long and Healthy Life \ud83c\udf1f<\/a><\/blockquote>