Japanse women have the lowest obesity rate in the world at just 3% and the highest life expectancy at 85 years. So, what’s the secret? Authors Naomi Moriyama (a native of Tokyo) and her husband William Doyle explore how a wholesome, simplistic Japanese diet can prolong your life and better your health in their new book, Japanese Women Don’t Get Old or Fat. Japanese cooking is often built on what is called “seven pillars,” in which dishes often consist of at least one of the following: fish, vegetables, rice, soy, noodles, tea, or fruit. Most dishes are easy and familiar to make, with plenty of cooking tips as well as eating tips in general (eat until you are 80% full, etc.). But this isn’t just another didactic health book, Moriyama personalizes the cuisine experience by sharing accounts of her mother Chizuko’s best non-Western cooking practices as well as explaining what her 6′x12′ Tokyo kitchen consisted of, from pantry ingredients like bonito (fish) flakes and daikon (radish) to cooking tools such as the rice cooker and wok. Readers not only get cooking recipes and tips, they get an entire cultural experience and an answer to living better and living longer.

Read what Japundit.com has to say about this book here.