I used to think that there were only a handful of people over the age of 100 in the world . How wrong was I ! The Japanese island of Okinawa alone there are about 457 of them . It is considered to be the healthiest place in the world , where the average life expectancy of an Okinawan girl was 86 , and the man was 78 . They not only do I live long lives , they live very healthy and happy ones too . A good example is 96 -year-old martial artist Seikichi Uehara , who , at his age , defeated thirty - something ex - boxing champion . And also Nabi Kinjo , the 105 -year-old woman who hunted down a poisonous snake and killed it with a fly swatter .
The secret Okinawans ' , I came to understand , lies in two things - their food , and their attitude towards life . As a fun group of people , the elderly seem not etched in their faces worry , there seem to be foreign concepts to their stress . A 88 - year -old farmer who still works 11 - hour days in the field , saying , " I do not usually get angry . I enjoy life because I'm happy to work and I think this drug for a long life . " Completely agree , and I 'd like to look at life the way it brilliant man ...
Most of the over- 85 -years note I ever met seemed elderly waiting to die , sick of dealing with their physical pains and struggling to live on small pensions , but not the Okinawans . They were a child - like enthusiasm towards life , wanting to live more . Even a 100 - year -old woman says she wants to live a few more years to spend with her grandchildren . As goes the old Okinawan saying , " At 70 you are still a child , a person 80 or girl . 90 And if someone invites you from Heaven over , say to him : ' Go only away , and come back when I'm 100 . ' " I think that the perfect describe their philosophy of life .
The Okinawan eating habits is definitely worth a mention as well . Their regular diet is not based on red meat , but mainly rice , fish and vegetables . One of their famous food , Mimiga , is made from pig ears - low in fat and high in calcium . They also eat a lot of tofu , and vegetables such as bitter gourd ( Goiya ) and sweet potatoes are a staple . The Okinawan sweet potatoes are very beneficial - one medium sized baked potato is said to contain more than 20,000 IU of beta carotene and vitamin A. Sounds like an incredibly healthy diet but some of them do indulge in a cup filled with a locally brewed rice wine called Awamori , per night .
Doing research on high life expectancy of Okinawa has been very motivating for me, it is good to know there are people in the world who has figured out the secret to a long and happy life . Unfortunately, the secret compiled by adults is not being imbibed with much enthusiasm by the present generation Okinawans . As in many other countries , Western fast food joints invaded the island , where the youth prefer traditional foods . One youngster chomping down a burger says : " . Want thick , fatty foods " " Goya is bitter , " says another, " I would not so much " The degradation of healthy habits food has taken its toll . the island , greatly reducing life expectancy . The rates of obesity and lung cancer is higher in Okinawa than compared to anywhere else in Japan. It appears that when the western world is awakening to the benefits of living life like the Okinawans , their very own young people are leaving it behind . It is really sad , but the truth is that healthy people of Okinawa is nothing but life remains were lost in just a few years during which the secret of a truly healthy life .. .