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feisty-red · Joined: 28 Nov 2006 Posts: 29

I'll try anything when it comes to food, I'm not picky. But for everyday eating I read labels and try to eat healthy. If something has loads of sugar, salt, or preservatives I won't eat much of it. There are health reasons for this. Namely I get headaches and mood swings. It's not pretty. Confused

In America food has labels by law stating the ingredients, is this so in Japan?

Anyone else into eating healthy, have tips? Cool

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Yes, Japanese packaged food has the ingredients and nutritional information on the label, however it is of course in Japanese. If you don't read Japanese, I am willing to bet that if you Google there is a webpage out there that provides translations of food label words such as salt, sugar, soy, gluten, pork fat etc- the ones that people are likely to be concerned about.

As for eating healthy in Japan- find an organic grocer and eat organic veges in paticular if you can afford it- a Japanese grower who also grows veges in NZ for the Japanese market told me that Japanese growers use more pesticides and chemical fertilizers than many countries.

Organic @roduce can be expensive- locally grown stuff in season is the cheapest, so look out for that.

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

The Japanese unfortunately put sugar into EVERYTHING... It's bloody ridiculous sometimes -- and amazing where you will find they've put sugar.

/doesn't like his scrambled eggs sweetened, thank you.

Canuck2112 · Joined: 13 Jun 2003 Posts: 239

Most products here list nutritional content

On the label, The first number is calories. Second is protein, third is fat, fourth is carbohydrate. Occasionally dietary fiber is listed 5th, followed by "Natorium" (salt). It may be the same order in other countries...I forget.

Lets look at an empty can of Enjuku Happoshu (IMO the best Happoshu ever made in this country)

Enarugi (Energy): 235kcal
Tanpaku$hitsu (Protein): 1-1.5g
Shi$hitsu (Fat): 0g
Tou$hitsu (carbs): 15.5g
Shokumotsuseni (Fiber): 0-0.5g
Natorium (salt): 0mg

This nutrient ordering is typical for all Japanese foods. Be sure to look at the fat content of things, particularily in the conbini. The chocolate here is absolutely crammed full of fat, as are the sandwiches.

6810 · Joined: 16 Nov 2003 Posts: 309

Dipso · Joined: 28 Apr 2004 Posts: 194 Location: England

I have noticed that items such as pre-packaged cakes don't have calorific values printed on the packaging, although other nutritional information is generally provided. This often puts me off buying the item in question as the amount of calories must be ridiculously high for it to be intentionally omitted! Kobe melon pan, anyone?

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

bshabu · Joined: 03 Apr 2003 Posts: 200 Location: Kumagaya

Jim

I searched Amazon Japan. Came up zilch. But Amazon.com has them. They are pretty good about shipping stuff to Japan. I used them many time in the past...still do. Hope that helps.

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

Thanks.... That sounds like a good plan -- I too have used amazon.com to ship to Japan when amazon.co.jp didn't have the good I wanted.

Sweetsee · Joined: 11 Jun 2004 Posts: 2302 Location: ) is everything

Lifestyle changes--right on! And the booze?

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

To quote Charleton Heston, "...from my cold, dead hands."

FWIW, I'm Czech. My mom, dad, entire family.. As far back as I can trace it. And proud of it. We compete with the Germans for most per-capita beer consumption world-wide. It's not about the alcohol -- it's about the taste! Half my family also comes from Moravia who are known for their wine... In Canada I used to even brew my own beer and make my own wine. It was great fun -- and even my wife, who isn't much of a beer drinker, enjoyed my creations quite a bit!

There's nothing about drinking in moderation that's incompatible with a healthy lifestyle. I don't make it a habit to go out and get drunk.

feisty-red · Joined: 28 Nov 2006 Posts: 29

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

They sure do.. Especially if it's tamagoyaki. You're right -- America is no different -- normal diets in BOTH countries are essentially a diabetic nightmare.

I also can't go to places like Hokka Hokka Tei anymore. It scares me to think that one meal is actually 1,000 kcal (OR MORE)... And their lowest-calorie item on the menu is over 650. Even their Goo-Cups (which aren't even that big or filling) are about the 800kcal mark. Jeez, for someone like me, 1,000 kcal is nearly HALF my daily calorie intake in one blow. Then, if I eat two more meals like that (especially that involve rice) it's no wonder I can't get fit....

But all of that has changed now. I really do feel good having changed my diet. Instead of 3 meals a day, I eat 6 -- but only 400kcal at each sitting. End result? I'm never hungry. Diets make me ravenously hungry and after two weeks I just about go out of my skull! But this way, I'm continually causing myself to NOT be hungry, while maintaining a high metabolic rate. 400kcal x 6 meals = 2,400 kcal. (My maintenance level is 2,800 kcal BTW). So then I supplement my -400 kcal deficit with 45 minutes of cardio at the gym (with my heart rate at the appropriate level) 6 days a week, as well as some strength training...

It's great... I don't even have to punish myself if I do eat more sometimes... Last week I had TWO Thanksgiving suppers (one on Thursday and one on Friday) -- complete with all the fixins', but my weigh-in this week still had me drop some weight from fat. (Dropping fat and dropping weight are not the same thing)... It's just that if I DO have a larger meal, I just need to be mindful of it...

One thing I had to adjust was my carb:protein:fat ratios. I've been tweaking that back and forth because my body doesn't quite follow the optimal recommended ratio (9-7-1.5) -- and at first I was eating too few carbs... But now, I think I've gotten a good balance where I've optimized my fat loss and my LBM gain.

Sweetsee · Joined: 11 Jun 2004 Posts: 2302 Location: ) is everything

No Jim, I am sure you don't. But I find it hard to believe that you don't consume more than one or two ounces of alcohol a day. That, and for someone who is counting calories the way you are, one beer would certainly throw a spanner into the works. How many empty calories are there in a beer anyway?

Zzonkmiles · Joined: 05 Apr 2003 Posts: 309

For those of you who have allergies, are vegetarian, or cannot eat certain foods for special reasons (religion, etc.), this is a good incentive to study Japanese. A lot of ingredients are written in katakana. You should also learn the kanji for specific words that are likely to appear on a list of ingredients, such as chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, egg, salt, and types of vegetables. Even if you can't read the entire list of ingredients, being able to quickly scan the list for the one food that's off limits to you will save you (and your stomach) a lot of trouble.