There's no cure for growing old, but you can slow down the aging process in a fairly painless manner. On this week's edition of the medical variety show "Shujii ga Mitsukaru Shinyojo (The Clinic Where You Can Find a Family Doctor) (TV Tokyo, Monday, 7 p.m.), guest physicians explain how rejuvenation starts from within the mouth.
About 70 percent of Japanese people over the age of 55 suffer from some form of gum disease, which can make it difficult to chew food properly. When one properly chews food, the facial muscles get a workout and the kind of sagging look that characterizes older countenances can be avoided. The guest doctors on the show explain how viewers can determine whether or not they have gum disease. They also demonstrate facial exercises that can produce more saliva, which is one of the body's natural disinfectants. They will explain how breathing through the nose rather than through the mouth can make you look younger, since breathing with your mouth closed prevents a lax-looking jaw line.
L ast week, the government passed a law that allowed people suffering from gender identity disorder (GID) to officially change their gender designation on official documents. This week, "Za Sekai Gyoten News (The World's Surprising News)" (Nihon TV, Wednesday, 9 p.m.) profiles a woman named Ayana Tsubaki who was born a male.