From: Navindra Umanee <navindra@...>
Date: 2005-04-03T03:11:47+09:00
Subject: Re: Respect and Disappointment

Francis Hwang <sera@fhwang.net> wrote:
> > was chosen because it was cheap and easy to obtain in bulk.  Rice +
> > sugar is essentially a formula leading to an overdose of carbohydrate.
> > At least in my culture, this combination seems to have been wrecking
> > havoc over generations.
> 
> And yet, Japan is one of the healthiest populations in the world:
> 
> http://www3.who.int/whosis/hale/hale.cfm?language=en
> 
> I've read a number of theories about how this is related to its diet, 
> which tends to emphasize fresh ingredients and be low in salt. Also, I 
> think it helps that East Asian cuisines don't traditionally include 
> dairy at all.

Here's another theory that seems to think it's not to do with the rice
at all:

http://www.mercola.com/2002/aug/17/life_expectancy.htm

And in any case, I can only speak for myself.  When airport security
insists I look closer to 19 than 29, and that I certainly don't look
anything like my passport photo taken 5 years ago, maybe I'm doing
something right. :-)

> (I travelled to Taiwan last year and was astounded by the grad students 
> who took us to lunch and dinner, diving into 6-course meals with gusto 
> but who were all quite skinny themselves.)

Interesting.  I do certainly eat my fill and more as well, but I am
certainly not indiscriminate about what I eat.

Not that we don't all grow old, suffer and die anyway...  the
inevitability that the Buddha so wisely pointed out.  :-)

Cheers,
Navin.