but since there are so many health complications from being overweight or obese,

但因為過胖或是肥胖所引發的併發症，

it's safe to say that Japan with an obesity rate of 3.5%

可以說肥胖在日本佔了 3.5 的百分比，

is generally healthier than America with an obesity rate of 30%.

簡單來說比美國 30% 的肥胖百分比更來得健康許多。

Japan isn't perfect, it has found itself on the 2012 top 50 list for cancer rates,

不過日本也不是完美的，因為在 2012 年日本人得癌症率排名為前 50 名，

but it comes in near the bottom of the list at rank #48 while America is at rank #6.

但是排倒數第 48 名，而美國則排名第 6 名

I'm contrasting Japan with America

我對比日本和美國

simply because these are the two countries I've lived in.

就只是因為我住過這兩個國家

Last time, I argued that convenient access to reasonably healthy food in Japan

上一次，我提到在日本就可以在便利商店買到健康又划算的食物

helps people stay thin.

讓日本人可以保持纖細的身材

But what else contributes to health?

但還有什麼因素讓他們如此地健康呢？

In my last video, a lot of comments pointed out that in Tokyo you end up walking everywhere,

在上一個影片，很多人說你最終會一直走路到東京的任何地方 ，

which is true and should help people stay lean.

這是真的，而且這也讓他們維持著纖細的身材

Also, walking while eating is generally frowned upon, so more walking means less snacking.

除此之外，邊吃邊走普遍而言是不被大眾接受的，所以多多走路就會少吃零食

Public transportation here is impressively convenient and reliable.

公共交通是非常地方便和準時

If you're traveling around Tokyo,

如果你在東京旅遊，

your destination is almost always within a 20 minute walk from that area's train, subway or bus station.

你的目的地大概都只要從車站、地下鐵、或是公車走 20 分鐘的距離而已

However, this is just Tokyo.

不過，這指的是在東京地區

Such a population dense part of Japan with highly organized public transportation

日本這樣密集的人口有著高度組織化的公共交通

unsurprisingly has the lowest rate of car ownership in Japan.

無疑的是買車的機率是佔日本最低的

What's interesting is that average body mass index doesn't change too drastically prefecture to prefecture,

而有趣的事情是，縣與縣之間的平均 BMI 質並沒有太多的變化，

and higher car ownership doesn't particularly correlate to higher body mass index.

而且擁有車子的人也不會因此有較高的 BMI 質

That said, more walking surely helps people stay leaner and healthier,

我們可以說，多走路一定可以讓人們保持纖細和健康的身材，

but it's just one piece of a bigger puzzle.

但這只是一個小小的解讀方式而已

Next, the portion sizes in Japan are definitely smaller.

下一個，日本的食物相對下也一定小許多

Here's what some typical lunches look like.

這裡你可以看到大部分的午餐菜色

When I first came to live in Japan in 2010,

2010 年是我住在日本的第一年，

I remember always being a little disappointed with the size of the meals.

我記得我常常因為午餐的菜色而感到有些許的失望

Of course bigger portions and even all you can eat places are available,

當然還是有地方可以讓你吃到大份的餐點以及吃到飽，

but since food is more expensive here, I had to just get used to eating less food.

但也因為日本食物比較貴一點，所以我也就習慣吃少一點

In 2014, people spent on average about 13.5% of their income on food,

在 2014 年，人們平均花收入中的百分之 13.5 來買食物，

which is more than twice what people in America spent.

這個花費比率是美國人的兩倍

In 2013, 3682 calories were consumed per person per day in America,

在 2013 年，一位美國人每天會攝取 3682 的熱量，

but it was only 2726 calories per day in Japan.

但日本人一天就只會攝取到 2726 的熱量

So Japanese people typically spend more money for less calories.

所以也就是說日本人花較多的錢攝取到較少的熱量

Although, cheap calories from the sugar in soda is probably a factor here as Americans

在 2011 年，大概是因為便宜的汽水讓美國人

consumed more than 5 times the amount of soda Japan did in 2011.

攝取的糖分比起日本人多出 5 倍

Next, the type of food being eaten over here is of course different.

下一個，飲食習慣當然也不一樣

You may have noticed in the clips I just showed that everything comes with rice.

你可能也早就注意到我所剪的影片中，每一次的餐點中都有米飯

The Japanese diet is by no means low carb,

日本人的飲食習慣不外乎的就是低熱量，

but while Japan and America eat about the same amount of the two grains Wheat and Rice combined,

雖然日本和美國攝取相同穀麥和米飯的量

Japan eats about half as much wheat as America.

但日本人和美國人一樣大概都吃一半的麥量

Cutting out wheat or gluten is usually suspected to be only a fad,

不吃麥和麩質被認為只是一時的熱潮，

but gluten, found in wheat and not rice,

但麩質可在麥裡面發現，米則沒有，

has been shown to have some unique properties.

在這裡可以發現麥有一些特別的營養程度

This 2012 Brazilian rodent study for example,

在 2012 年，巴西人的鼠類研究中，

found that putting just 4.5% wheat gluten in the diet

指出攝取只加入 4.5 百分比的小麥

increases body fat, inflammation, and insulin resistance.

可以增加身體的脂肪、發炎、和胰島素

Work by Dr. Alessio Fasano and his team has shown that the gliadin protein of gluten,

Alessio Fasano 博士和他的團隊指出因為解連蛋白一種蛋白質的加入

through the stimulation of a protein called Zonulin,

而產生麥膠蛋白麩質，

opens up the spaces between the epithelial cells in your gut.

擴大了你的內臟上皮細胞

This allows gliadin fragments to leak through the gut into the bloodstream,

而讓麥膠蛋白的微小物質從內臟流入血管，

provoking an immune response and inflammation.

刺激了免疫系統的反應以及發炎

However, since the reaction to gluten differs person to person and the science is relatively new and complex,

不過，不同人會有不一樣的麩質反應，而且這個研究還既新又複雜，

it's hard to say by what degree wheat is worse than rice or how much wheat is too much.

很難說麥比起米有多不好或是麥要多少才算是過量

Next is the regular consumption of fermented foods in Japan.

下一個，日本會規律的攝取發酵的食物

Élie Metchnikoff, winner of the 1908 Nobel Prize in Medicine, was the first to propose

在 1908 年贏得諾貝爾醫學獎的 Élie Metchnikoff 是第一位提出

the theory that lactic acid bacteria are beneficial to human health.

乳酸對人類健康是有益的理論

He suggested that "oral administration of cultures of fermentative bacteria

他指出「嘴巴有著發酵性的細菌

would implant the beneficial bacteria in the intestinal tract."

會在腸子收縮作用中產生出有益的細菌」

As research on the gut microbiome develops,

當內臟微生物的研究越來越多時，

the health effects of certain gut microbes and bacteria are becoming clearer.

影響健康的幾個內臟微生物和細菌則更加完整

A transplant of the microbes from one overweight woman to another woman

從一個過胖的女生移植一個微生物到另一個女生，

caused the receiving woman to become obese,

會造成接受移植的女生變得肥胖，

and it's been found that transplanting microbes from a confident mouse

並且也發現從一隻自信的老鼠移植微生物

to an anxious mouse will make that anxious mouse more confident.

到另一個緊張兮兮的老鼠，會使得這隻神經兮兮的老鼠變得自信許多

It's estimated that there are 500 to 1000 species of bacteria just in your gut,

報告指出人的內臟中有 500 至 1000種的細菌，

and it's important to take care of the right species of these bacteria.

所以要怎麼來照顧這些有益的細菌是很重要的

There's even research showing that certain microbes produce certain neurotransmitters.

甚至有研究指出特定的微生物會產生出特定的神經介質

And, fermented foods are supposed to support the microbes that we do want to have.

而且發酵的食物理論上也會提供我們所需的微生物

Plenty of fermented foods have been part of the Japanese diet for a very long time.

日本的飲食中一直以來都有很多種類的發酵食物

There's Natto, soy sauce, miso, fermented fish and tsukemono which is pickled vegetables.

有納豆、醬油、味噌、發酵的魚、和漬物也就是醃製過的蔬菜

Kimuchi, a fermented food traditionally from Korea, is also widely available in Japan.

一個韓國傳統發酵的食物：泡菜，也是在日本處處可得的一種食材

Fermented foods like these are very easy to find at the supermarket,

發酵過的食物，像是這些，都可以在超級市場買到，

and it's common to get a side of Japanese pickles with your meal.

而且在你的餐點中，也可以看到一邊會放著日本的醬菜

The next point is balanced meat consumption.

下一點是均衡攝取肉類

In 2017, total meat consumption in the U.S. per capita was 98.4 kg

在 2017 年，美國每一個人的肉類消耗量是 98.4 公斤，

where 51.4kg of meat per capita were consumed in Japan.

而日本一個人則是攝取了 51.4 公斤的肉

American people per capita ate only 7 kilograms of seafood in 2015,

在 2015 年，每一個美國人只吃 7 公斤的海鮮，

while Japanese people ate 27.3 kilograms of fish and fish products in 2014.

而 2014 年，日本人則吃 27.3公斤的魚以及魚的產品

If the meat everyone was eating was antibiotic free grass fed meat,

如果每個人都是吃無毒的肉，

high meat consumption might not be a bad thing,

那攝取很多肉類也不是件壞事，

but in any case we can agree that a higher fish intake is generally good for you.

但不管是哪個情況下，我們都可以同意：攝取較多的魚基本上還是對你比較好的

And I don't think it would surprise you to hear that it's really easy to get fish wherever you are in Japan.

而且我不知道你聽到這個會不會很驚訝，不管你去日本哪邊都可以吃到魚，

But there's another kind of balance that might be a factor.

但另一個均衡可能會是另一個因素

It's the muscle meat to organ meat ratio.

就是攝取肌肉和器官肉的比率

Organ meats have not usually been much of a component of the American diet.

器官肉並不會是美國飲食的必要食材

During World War 2, people were encouraged to eat organ meats as part of the food rationing effort.

在世界大戰二的時候，因為食物的配給，人們被鼓舞攝取器官肉

Articles like this one in this 1943 issue of Time Magazine

文章像是在 1943 年的這篇，出版在時代雜誌，

sold organ meats as highly nutritious and explained how to cook them.

指出器官肉含有較高的營養，並且教導如何料理他們

The effort had some success in changing people's views on organ meats,

這樣的方式成功地改變了人們對器官肉的觀念，

but the effect, didn't last much longer than the war itself.

但這樣的影響力並沒有比戰爭時間還要久

This is unfortunate because, as the time magazine issue shows,

這是件不好的消息，因為時代雜誌指出，

organ meats are rich in certain vitamins that muscle meat is not.

器官肉比起肌肉含有特定豐富的維他命外

And, glycine, an amino acid found in skin, cartilage and connective tissue

甘氨酸一種可以在皮膚和結締組織上發現的氨基酸，

has several important health benefits from being an anti-inflammatory to improving skin elasticity,

有很多重要的營養價值，像是抗發炎來改善皮膚的彈性、

improving insulin response,

改善胰島素、

and it has been shown to ameliorate oxidative stress and lower blood pressure.

而且也有報告指出可以改善氧化壓力（偵測自由基與抗氧化物之間的平衡狀態）和血壓

This study found that you could get a 30% increase in lifespan in rodents by restricting methionine,

這個研究指出，降低甲硫氨酸，你可能因此可提高百分之 30 的壽命，

an amino acid found in muscle meat, or you could get a 30% increase in lifespan by supplementing glycine.

氨基酸可以在肌肉中發現，或者補足甘氨酸，你可能可以提高百分之 30 的壽命

Glycine supplementation also reduced fasting blood sugar, fasting insulin and even triglycerides.

補足甘氨酸也可以降低飄高的血糖、胰島素、甚至是三酸甘油酯

So it looks like the potential negative effects from eating too much muscle meat

所以這樣看來吃肌肉帶來的負面影響

can be counteracted by simply consuming more of things like skin, cartilage, connective tissue, and bone broth.

只要吃更多的東西，像是皮、軟骨、結締組織、和骨頭就可以抵銷掉

Now in America you can surely find organ meats at some supermarkets,

現在在美國你可以在一些超市裡找到器官肉，

but in my 20 years in America, organ meats were rarely on the menu, though chicken skin is easy enough to find.

但我住在美國 20 年之久，器官肉在餐單上還是很少見，雖然雞皮很常見

Over in Japan, organ meats aren't eaten every day of course, but they are more common.

在日本，當然也不是天天吃器官肉，但他們還是很常見

You can find them at the supermarket, or at Barbeque places and HorumonYaki places

你可以在超級市場、或是燒烤店、和烤內臟店、

specialize in organ meats,

或是專門烤器官肉的店看到他們，

you can also get them on skewers at Yakitori places.

你也可以在串燒店吃到串好的牠們

Pork is a big part of Okinawan cuisine and they don't waste much of the animal.

豬肉在沖繩料理中扮演很重要的角色，而且他們會好好運用動物的每一部分

Another thing is green tea consumption.

另一件事情是攝取綠茶

Green tea has been found to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-cancer effects

因為有兒茶素，綠茶可以抗發炎、抗氧化、以及預防癌症的功用，

as well as blood sugar lowering effects thanks to the catechins in it.

還有降低血糖

Though, I'm betting green tea being healthy isn't new information to you.

我敢說綠茶早就是眾所皆知的健康食品

Back when I lived in the states, the reason drinking it didn't become a habit was that

在我還住在美國的時候，喝茶不是我的習慣，因為

it was simply annoying to have to buy it at the supermarket and then come home and make it.

很麻煩的是我從超市買回家後，還要自己煮，

Here, pretty much any restaurant serves it, sometimes for free, and you can always buy it

像這樣，每個餐廳都會提供這一杯，有時候是免費，而且你也可以從

from one of the many many vending machines prevalent throughout the country.

販賣機買到，在這個世界上最多最多販賣機的城市

What might be an even bigger benefit from regularly drinking green tea and other teas

喝茶或其他茶類還有什樣的最大優勢：

is that it keeps people from drinking sugary sodas.

就是預防人們喝甜的汽水

Here, I rarely see people here drinking soda with their meal,

住在日本，我很少看到有人邊吃飯邊吃汽水，

but I see people drinking tea all the time.

不過常常看到他們喝茶

One last point is the food being served to young children.

最後一點是有關給小孩吃的食物

In Japan, school meals are planned out by a nutritionist, cooked mostly from scratch from local ingredients,

在日本，學校餐點是由營養師所安排的，大部分都是當地食材所烘煮出來，

then served in the classroom by the students and eating manners are taught by the teacher.

然後學生在教室享用餐點，而餐桌禮儀是由老師教導

The only drink allowed is milk, so students can't be drinking juice or other sweet drinks.

唯一可以喝的飲料是：牛奶。所以學生不可以喝果汁或是其他甜的飲料

The meals aren't always perfect, but they're a lot better than what I remember

餐點不是每次都很好，不過比起我在美國小學餐廳

getting from the cafeteria in grade school in the states.

好得太多了

There's plenty more things about Japan I haven't mentioned here,

還有很多有關日本的事情我還沒提到，

some that I even expect would be bigger determinants of health like

有一個就是我是我認為影響健康最大的因素

the consumption of Processed Foods, Sugar and processed corn, seed and soy oils.

為加工食品、糖、玉米罐頭、種子和醬油

In short, it seems that people in Japan eat a lot more food rather than food like products.

總而言之，日本人似乎吃的是食物的原味而不是已經加工過的食物

Japan's food culture has contributed a lot to health over here,

說到這邊，日本的食物文化對於健康有很大的貢獻，

and I expect a lot more could be learned from looking at other countries' food environments.

而且我也期待可以從其他國家的食物中學到更多

This video was sponsored by Audible which is something I use almost every day.

這影片是由 audible.com 贊助，是我每天都會上的一個網頁

I've gotten a lot comments before asking about my research process.

我收到很多意見，而不是先問我的研究進度

And, honestly most of it is just reading all the time and taking notes.

而且老實說，大部分我都是在閱讀和作筆記

Most of my reading is actually listening to non-fiction books on Audible.

在 audible.com ，大多我的閱讀都是在聽非小說故事

I usually set the playback speed to twice as fast and when I come across a bit that sounds important,

我都會用兩倍快的速度來聽故事。如果我聽到重點時，

I use the bookmark function to leave a note so I can come back to that point later.

我會用書籤功能來做筆記，所以我之後可以再讀一次那重點

Of course Audible isn't just for non-fiction, they have an unmatched

當然 Audible.com 不是只有非小說故事，他們還有很多

selection of all kinds of audiobooks, original audio shows, news, comedy, and more.

不同種類的有聲書、原創的有聲劇、新聞、喜劇、以及其他的

I particularly enjoyed the book "Missing Microbes" by Dr. Martin Blaser.

我最喜歡讀的書是博士的「消失的微生物」

The book really came in handy while working on my last video on the Microbiome,

在我最後一部有關微生物的影片，這本書真的很派得上用場，

and it was just a really interesting and enjoyable listen about the repercussions of using antibiotics too much.

而且這本書有趣地描述使用過量的抗生素會有什麼影響

If you'd like to check it out, go to www.audible.com/whativelearned

如果你也想要看看這個影片，就去 www.audible.com/whativelearned ，

or text "whativelearned" to 500-500 to get an exclusive 30 day free trial and one free book.

或是傳「whativelearned」到 500-500 就可以有 30 天免費試用和一本書