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Japan's high life expectancy linked to diet, study finds

The high life expectancy enjoyed in Japan is largely due to the nation's healthy diet, according to a new study. The population of the island nation, which has one of the lowest mortality rates in the world, eat diets high in certain carbohydrates, vegetables, fruits as well as fish and meat. Such foods make for a diet low in saturated fats, processed foods and high in carbohydrates gained from both rice and vegetables. 

The Japanese government outlined a recommended food guide for the nation in 2005. Around a decade later, researchers at the National Centre for Global Health and Medicine in Tokyo investigated how following the food guide affected the country’s mortality rate. The team analysed food and lifestyle questionnaires completed by 36,624 men and 42,920 women aged between 45 and 75, who had no history of cancer, stroke, heart or chronic liver diseases. The participants were tracked for 15 years. Researchers found that participants who closely followed the food guide had a 15 per cent lower mortality rate. Such participants were less likely to have cerebrovascular vascular disease: a term used to describe conditions caused by problem with blood supply to the brain. 

The study concluded: “Our findings suggest that balanced consumption of energy, grains, vegetables, fruits, meat, fish, eggs, soy products, dairy products, confectionaries, and alcoholic beverages can contribute to longevity by decreasing the risk of death, predominantly from cardiovascular disease, in the Japanese population.” 

James DiNicolantonio, a cardiovascular research scientist at St. Luke’s Mid America Heart Institute who was not involved in the study,said : “We can learn a lot about how to be healthy from the Japanese, and it really comes down to ‘eat real food’ and ‘exercise.” He added that the combination of high quality foods low in saturated fats was particularly important. 

Question 1 (2 points) Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.

a. Most Japanese people follow a vegetarian diet.

b. The people who followed thr food guide suffered less brain disease.

c. Those involved in the study had to answer some questions about their eating habits.

d. If you want to stay healthy, you shouldn’t drink any alcohol.

Question 2 (2 points) Answer the following questions in your own words.

a. What has the Japanese government done to keep the mortality rate low?

b. What kind of things can you consume to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease?

Question 3 (1.5 points) Find words or phrases in the text that correspond in meaning to the words and definitions given.

a. treat (par.1)                   b. word  (par.2)                               c. lasting a long time (par.2)

d. sweets (par.3)               e. reduce (par.3)

Question 4 (1.5 points) Complete the following sentences without changing the meaning.

a “We can learn a lot about how to be healthy from the Japanese, and it really comes down to ‘eat real food’ and ‘exercise.”

James Dinicolantonio said that ………………………………

b. Your risk of death is higher if your consumption of alcohol is not balanced.

If your consumption ……………………………………….         

c. Japanese people enjoy a high life expectancy due to their healthy diet.

Japanese people enjoy a high life expectancy because …………………..

           

Question 5 (3 points) Write a short essay (120-150 words) on the following topic:

                Is it possible to have a healthy life in modern world?

Chocolate makes you smarter, study suggests

Eating chocolate is good for your heart, reduces the risk of strokes and even helps protect your skin from the sun. Now, another apparent benefit has been added to the list of chocolate's nutritional qualities: it makes you smarter. A study, published recently in the journal Appetite, indicated that people who eat chocolate at least once a week saw their memory and abstract thinking improve.

            “It's significant as it touches a number of cognitive domains,” psychologist Merrill Elias, one of the leaders of the study, told the Washington Post. Mr Elias began studying the cognitive abilities of more than 1,000 people in the state of New York in the 1970s, initially looking at the relationship between people's blood pressure and brain performance.

            About 15 years ago, he decided to ask participants what they were eating, adding a new set of questions about dietary habits. Leading the analysis of the study was Georgina Crichton, a nutrition researcher at the University of South Australia. Ms Crichton recognised the study presented a unique opportunity to examine the effects of chocolate on the brain, using a large sample size.

            Examining the scores on cognitive tests of participants who ate chocolate less than once a week and those who ate it at least once a week, the researchers found eating chocolate was strongly linked to superior brain function. The benefits would mean you would be better at daily tasks "such as remembering a phone number, or your shopping list, or being able to do two things at once, like talking and driving at the same time".

            "Our study definitely indicates that the direction is not that cognitive ability affects chocolate consumption, but that chocolate consumption affects cognitive ability". They found cognitive ability does not predict whether you a chocolate eater or not.

            Why this is the case remains uncertain. However, previous studies have shown that food containing nutrients called flavanols, such as chocolate, improves brain function.In 2009, another research found mental arithmetic became easier and chocolate has also been found to help ward off memory loss, even in the elderly.

           

            However, Mr Elias stressed they weren't suggesting people stuffed their faces with chocolate bars all week. "I think what we can say for now is that you can eat small amounts of chocolate without guilt if you don't substitute chocolate for a normal balanced healthy diet," he added.

Question 1 (2 points) Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.

a. Diet was a key factor in the study at first.

b. The number of participants in the study offered favourable circumstances to the researchers.

c. It's not only chocolate that helps make your brain function better.

d. The study recommends eating much more chocolate.

Question 2 (2 points) Answer the following questions in your own words.

a. What are some of the benefits of eating chocolate mentioned in the text?

b. What is Mr Ellias last recommendation?

Question 3 (1.5 points) Find words or phrases in the text that correspond in meaning to the words and definitions given.

a. marks p.3                                       b. exceptional p.3                   c. chores p.4

d. to protect against p.6                     e. fault, blame p.7

Question 4 (1.5 points) Complete the following sentences without changing the meaning.

a. Georgina Crichton is a nutrition researcher. Ms Crichton recognised the study presented a unique opportunity.

            Georgina Crichton...

b.   Examining the scores on cognitive tests, the researchers found eating chocolate was strongly linked to superior brain function.

            If the researchers...

c. Chocolate has also been found to help ward off memory loss.

            Researchers...

Question 5 (3 points) Write a short essay (120-150 words) on the following topic:

“Eating recommendations are constantly changing”. What do you think?

Japan's high life expectancy linked to diet, study finds

Question 1

a.     False. “The population of the island nation, which has one of the lowest mortality rates in the world, eat diets high in certain carbohydrates, vegetables, fruits as well as fish and meat”

b.    True. “researchers at the National Centre for Global Health and Medicine in Tokyo investigated how following the food guide …….. Such participants were less likely to have cerebrovascular vascular disease: a term used to describe conditions caused by problem with blood supply to the brain. “

c.     True. “The team analysed food and lifestyle questionnaires completed by 36,624 men and 42,920 women.”

d.    False. “Our findings suggest that balanced consumption of energy, grains, vegetables, fruits, meat, fish, eggs, soy products, dairy products, confectionaries, and alcoholic beverages can contribute to longevity by decreasing the risk of death, predominantly from cardiovascular disease, in the Japanese population.” 

Question 2

a.  In 2005 the government in Japan designed a guide for people to follow in order to lead a healthy life. Ten years later they asked the people who had followed the guide lines and found out that they lived longer.

b. According to the text, you can consume all sorts of things provided they are real food, not processed and with a very low percentage of saturated fats.

Question 3

a. Processed / to process

b.  Term

c. Chronic

d. Confectionaries

e.Decreasing / to decrease

Question 4

a. James Dinicolantonio said that we could learn a lot about how to be healthy from the Japanese, and it really came down to “eat real food” and “exercise”.

b.  If your consumption of alcohol were balanced, your risk of death wouldn’t be so high.

c.  Japanese people enjoy a high life expectancy because they have a healthy diet.

Chocolate makes you smarter, study suggests

Question 1

            a) FALSE “initially looking at the relationship between people's blood pressure and brain performance”

            b) TRUE “the study presented a unique opportunity to examine the effects of chocolate on the brain, using a large sample size”

            c) TRUE ”studies have shown that food containing nutrients called flavanols, such as chocolate, improves brain function”

            d) FALSE ”Mr Elias stressed they weren't suggesting people stuffed their faces with chocolate bars all week”

Question 2

            a) Eating chocolate protect our hearts as it lowers the risk of suffering a heart attack. In addition, our skin is protected from the sun radiation. This last study suggests that our memory and thinking are also improved. It also helps us in our daily activities.

            b) Mr Ellias advices us not to eat too much chocolate to improve our brain function and to follow a healthy diet at any time.

Question 3

a)    scores

b)    unique

c)    tasks

            d)  to ward off

            e)  guilty

Question 4

a)    Reseachers have also found that eating chocolate helps ward off memory loss.

b)    Georgina Crichton, who is a nutrition researcher, recognised the study presented a unique opportunity.

c)    If the researchers hadn't examined the scores on cognitive tests, they wouldn't have found  that eating chocolate was strongly linked to superior brain function.