Green tea plays a part in the recipe for long life[GETTY]That is what helps Japanese women live much longer than others.
People could add years to their life and protect against heart disease, and other chronic diseases including cancer and dementia by following the same food rules.
New figures show Japanese women live on average to 86.4. British women live only to 82.7 and even Italians, whose Mediterranean diet makes them super-healthy, manage only 84.4 years.
The Office for National Statistics yesterday said that there is no reason why British women should not catch up by drinking green tea, eating raw fish, and shunning bread and dairy products.
The key secret of the Japanese diet is less – but better – food. They consume about 25 per cent fewer calories than the average Westerner.
Everyday food is simple and is based on sweet potatoes, leafy greens and whole grains, along with fish, rice, pork and soya – all rich in anti-cancer and anti-ageing antioxidants.
Total consumption is 1,500 calories a day and they tend to eat only what they need.
New figures show Japanese women live on average to 86.4 while British women live only to 82.7
They also have the lowest levels of heart disease and stroke in the world.
He said: “They eat three servings of fish a week, on eat only what they need."
Craig Wilcox, a leading gerontologist, has spent years investigating longevity in the Okinawa region of Japan, a group of 161 coral islands in the East China Sea which is home to some of the longestliving people on earth.
"They also have the lowest levels of heart disease and stroke in the world.
He said: “They eat three servings of fish a week, on expect average, plenty of whole grains, vegetables and soy products too, more tofu and more konbu seaweed than anyone else in the world, as well as squid and octopus, which are rich in taurine that could lower cholesterol and blood pressure.”
The way they eat could also have an impact with most Japanese tending to eat small, dainty amounts on small plates, using chopsticks which slows down eating.
Japanese men do not fare so well as women, with average life expectancy of 79.9 years, coming behind Iceland, Sweden and Switzerland.
But that may be due to a drinking culture similar to Britain and long working hours.
British men are expected to live until 78.9.
The figures are contained in an international compendium of data published by the ONS comparing figures on population, employment and the economy across the world.
Japan, which has twice the population of Britain, has four times as many people aged 100 or older – a total of 51,000.
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