American Food Culture

I have never been heavy, but since I was diagnosed with cancer, I have put on a few pounds. Actually, I’ve gained more than a few. I am 5 foot 10 inches tall and for most of my adult life, while living in Japan, I weighed less than 140 pounds. That’s pretty skinny.

I started gaining weight when we moved back from Japan in 1998. When I was diagnosed with cancer in 2007 I weighed about 150 lbs. During chemo and radiation treatment I lost a few pounds but since then I have continually gained weight. As of this writing I weigh 165 pounds and rising.

So why am I gaining weight? Well, one reason is my metabolism has slowed. It used to be that I could eat like a horse, drink like a fish, and not gain an ounce. Lately I have to watch what I eat and drink.

The main reason for my weight gain is what I put in my mouth. We eat and drink a lot of sweet things in this country and, as Yoko will tell you, I love sweet things, like pies, cookies, ice cream, and candy. When I lived in Japan I did not consume as much sweets as I do here. At work in Japan we would drink unsweetened hot green tea. Here I drink coffee with sugar and cream throughout the day. There is no question that hot green tea is better for you and less fattening.

A third reason for my weight gain has to do with the amount of exercise I get. I get in my car and drive to and from work. In fact, I drive everywhere. I’m walking the dog or riding my bike in the morning before work as a way to purposely get some exercise, but, obviously it is not enough. Fattening foods and the convenience of living a middle-class American lifestyle lends itself to weight gain.

In contrast, my daily routine in Japan was embedded with good eating and exercise. I typically walked 15 minutes to the train station in the morning and home again in the evening. During the day I would walk to and from the subway station and up and down stairs and then walk to appointments.

I easily walked two or three miles a day as well as up and down 10 to 15 stories of stairs. In short, I lead a pretty healthy lifestyle that allowed me to stay trim.

Of course, I ate a lot of fish and rice in Japan as well as steamed vegetables. The Japanese don’t use much butter or oil in their cooking and bread is not served with a Japanese meal. The only really bad thing the Japanese use regularly as an ingredient is soy sauce, which is high in sodium. Generally the Japanese don’t fry a lot of food in oil or eat a lot of meat. They boil things in water, steam-cook foods, grill, or prepare foods raw (like sushi or sashimi). Japanese cuisine is often described as “delicate.” Some might say “bland.” Meals are generally light and prepared in numerous small dishes. Steamed white rice is the staple. Japanese food culture offers a wide variety in tastes and textures.

Both Yoko and I bemoan America’s food culture and our unhealthy eating habits. We both think Americans generally lack education about good food and healthy eating. We find it hard to believe, for example, that children are allowed to choose what they eat at school. Do we really expect kids to make healthy food choices? It is little wonder that there is a growing obesity crisis in this country.

School lunch in Japan is determined by a committee of parents who collectively decide on what their kids will eat each day. Maybe that’s what we should do too. Are you listening school board?