The Ancient Japanese Secret for Staying Trim

Japan has 30 percent fewer obese people than the United States - how do they do it? There are plenty of tricks and healthy eating habits that we can learn from the Japanese. The idea of tiny portions of lots of different foods is one that the Japanese adopt for every meal. In fact, the standard nutritional advice in Japan is to eat 30 different foods per day! Such a varied diet seems to ward off cravings and achieves a balance of nutritious foods.

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It may sound like a LOT of food, but a portion size in Japan only consists of two or three bites. A typical dinner may be a couple of bites of chicken or fish, a few veggie-based sides, a relish or pickle-based side, rice and miso soup with a few cubes of tofu, scallions or chopped clams. Another thing about those servings is that they're pretty. Piling a ton of food on every square inch of the plate is frowned upon. Japanese arrange the food artfully and with space between each dish. They add height and color instead of heft and coverage to their plates.