If you believe everything you read about the health-giving properties of the traditional Japanese diet — and if you were to eat traditionally every day — you might expect to live to at least 150, in rude health.
Maybe one day, and maybe soon — I'm sure the first person to live to 200 has already been born — but it hasn't happened yet. The oldest living Japanese citizen whose age can be verified is 113-year-old Kama Chinen of Okinawa, though Guinness World Records lists Japan's oldest-ever man as Shigechiyo Izumi, who died in February 1986 at the age of 120.
The fact that Japan consistently ranks top in the world longevity tables suggests that there is some truth in claims made for the traditional diet. It's sorting out the truth from the hype that is tricky.
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