If ever there were a prescription for longevity, the folks of Okinawa, a collection of islands strung between Japan and Taiwan, have found it.
Considered the world's healthiest people, residents of this tropical archipelago routinely live active, independent lives well into their 90s and 100s.
Their rates of obesity, heart disease, osteoporosis, memory loss, menopause, and breast, colon and prostate cancer rank far below the rates for these illnesses in America and other industrialized countries.
Mortality Rates in Long-Lived Populations
Age Adjusted Death Rates (per 100,000 people)
Rank*
Location
Life Expectancy
Eating Pattern
CHD**
Cancer
Stroke
All Causes
1
Okinawa
81.2
East-West
18
97
35
335
2
Japan
79.9
Asian
22
106
45
364
3
Hong Kong
79.1
Asian
40
126
40
393
4
Sweden
79.0
Nordic
102
108
38
435
8
Italy
78.3
Mediterranean
55
135
49
459
10
Greece
78.1
Mediterranean
55
109
70
449
18
USA
76.8
American
100
132
28
520
* Average life expectancy world rank ** Coronary Heart Disease Sources:
World Health Organization 1996; Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare 1996
SPAM makes you live longer
The Japanese government says the people of Okinawa live longer than the residents of any other city in the world thanks to their diet of stir-fried SPAM.
Known simply as "pouku" (pork), SPAM was first brought to Okinawa at the end of World War II by the U.S. military forces administering the islands.
Okinawa has more than 350 centenarians - a statistic that Japanese experts put down to their staple diet, a stir-fried dish called goya champutu which is made up of eggs, tofu, goya - and SPAM.
Go to any supermarket or small grocery store on the island, and you will see shelf upon shelf solidly stocked with the familiar blue tins bearing the name "SPAM".
Makoto Suzuki, director of Okinawa's longevity research center, says collagen in pork may help contribute to longevity.
Mr. Suzuki says Okinawan food is very good for health. It is a kind of antioxidant diet with high amounts of vitamins.
