Effect of Ageing Population in Japan

Japan has the oldest life expectancy in the world. That means people in Japan live a really really long time. Men live to 79 years old. Women live a little over 86 years old. What in the world causes Japanese people to live so long?
After WWII, Japan had one of the lowest life expectancies in the world, which suggests it’s not genetics that keeps them alive for so long (the guy in the picture above just turned 113). It’s not even that Japanese people visit doctors 12+ times a year. The answer is something else, and it’s something you can do as well to increase your own life expectancy (and get healthier, too)
The Japanese Diet
I’m no diet expert, but I can tell you that the things Japanese people eat are a lot healthier than the things Americans tend to eat. It’s not just their diet in general, though. We can break it up into several parts. If you want to live a long time, avoid heart disease, and feel healthy, perhaps a Japanese style diet is for you. Overall, it’s just way healthier. Here’s why:
Fish Vs. Red Meats: Japanese people don’t eat nearly as much red meat. Red meat has a lot more cholesterol than fish, which causes you in your later years to have a much higher chance for heart disease, heart attack, stroke, and other fun things. In Japan, fish is the primary “meat” to eat, which means not only do they keep their cholesterol lower, but they also get healthy fish oils, too. Now, there’s probably something to be said about the nasty stuff that can come with fish (i.e. mercury), but no matter what you eat you’re going to be getting something “fun.”
Less Milk, Butter, Dairy: Most Japanese people are lactose intolerant. In fact, people who can drink milk after becoming an “adult” are mutants anyways. People aren’t really meant to do dairy their whole life. Although non-fat milk is pretty healthy, a lot of people drink 1% and 2% milk. The amount of fat and cholesterol in those is pretty astounding and will kill you slowly. Japanese people don’t really do dairy...