> 1) Japan is not built around cars. There are more trains. You get to walk more.
This is false. About half of the population lives outside big cities, where you'll need a car to survive. I don't see people's shape changes in the rural areas.
> 2) Food portions are smaller, making it harder to overeat.
I think you got this backward. Food portions are smaller in Japan because people's stomach is smaller. Junk foods are cheap, so it's still easy to overeat.
ahh, you beat me to it! Yes, good point about the smaller stomachs.
Wikipedia says that "Studies show that there is a correlation between small stature and a longer life expectancy. Individuals of small stature are also more likely to have lower blood pressure and are less likely to acquire cancer." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_height
That's true for Tokyo and some big cities, but not true in the rest of Japan, which is very much built around cars with crumbling public transport.
As for food - lots of fried stuff in Kyushu everywhere you go. I'm thinking it must be the metabolism rather than the diet. However, yes, food portions are small by default. You have to ask "omori" to get the bigger one, and there are even bigger sizes offered sometimes!
" Japan is not built around cars. There are more trains. You get to walk more."
I hear this a lot, but what does this really amount to? I live in a city without a car, and all my walking on my daily commute (during non-covid times) burns 125 calories or so. That's nothing. Eating two oreo cookies is more calories than that.
Moreover, consider that America is no more car centric than it was in 1970 or 1980, but people are much larger now than then.
I don't think any of this matters. Its clear if you spend a lot of time in the company of Japanese people they actually prioritise their health and most always opt for sensible choices and restrict themselves when necessary.
1) Japan is not built around cars. There are more trains. You get to walk more.
2) Food portions are smaller, making it harder to overeat.
3) Fish is more popular than meat. Fish section in supermarkets is larger. Most kitchens have fish cooking equipment.
4) They do not put cheese in goddamn everything.
I guess they get to eat more mercury (from fish) and arsenic (from rice).