Japanese diet may help in fight against depression, study shows
The rate of depressive symptoms was lower among working-age people who consume a Japanese-style diet including rice, miso soup and fish, the first study of its kind recently showed.
The Japan Institute for Health Security assessed the benefits of a traditional "Japanese-style diet" comprising of soy products, cooked vegetables, mushrooms, fish, seaweed, and green tea, along with a modified version that added fruit, fresh vegetables and dairy products.
While there are few studies on the Japanese diet's impact on mental health, such assessments of the Mediterranean diet -- which consists of vegetables, whole grains, olive oil and fish -- and depression have previously been conducted, the institute said.
"Further research is required, but we hope the evidence shown among Japanese people can be used for public health measures in workplaces and areas concerning the prevention of depression," it said in a press release.
The self-reported study was conducted among 12,499 employees from five companies, of whom 88 percent were male with an average age of 42.5 years.
A total of 30.9 percent of the cohort exhibited depressive symptoms, but those who followed a typical Japanese diet were found to be less likely to do so. The researchers made efforts to isolate other potential factors that could influence the results.
The institute said certain foods in the diet could be linked to improved well-being. Seaweed, soy products and the folic acid in vegetables assist in releasing neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine, while oily fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids has anti-inflammatory effects.
© KYODO
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NHK
5 hours ago
- NHK
Weekly whooping cough cases in Japan hit record high
Weekly cases of whooping cough have hit a record high in Japan. Whooping cough is an infectious bacterial disease characterized by severe, persistent coughing. It can be fatal for infants up to six months old. The Japan Institute for Health Security says 3,211 cases were reported by medical institutions across the country in the week through June 22. The figure is up 241 from the previous week and the highest since the current method of recordkeeping began in 2018. By prefecture, Tokyo had 234 cases, followed by 204 in Saitama and 147 in Hyogo. Niigata had 136 cases and Chiba 130. The number of cases this year stands at 35,810. There have been reports this season of infants dying or becoming seriously ill. Four aged between less than one month and four months died in at least four prefectures by the end of June. There are also reports of infections involving drug-resistant bacteria. Pediatricians are urging parents to immediately vaccinate infants who have turned two months old.
Asahi Shimbun
8 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Researchers find a cause of ALS, raising hopes for new treatments
A Japanese research team has discovered a cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive, terminal disease that gradually weakens muscles throughout the body. The researchers found that when a gene that maintains protein quality stops functioning, motor neurons become damaged, leading to familial ALS—a form of the disease that runs in families. The discovery by the joint team, led by associate professor Toru Yamashita and professor Hiroyuki Ishiura from the Medical School at Okayama University, raises hopes for the development of new treatments. The results of their study were published on July 1 in the international scientific journal Acta Neuropathologica. ALS is a rare disease in which the motor neurons responsible for controlling muscle movement degenerate and decrease. As signals from the brain telling the body to move fail to reach the muscles, muscles begin to atrophy, eventually impairing even breathing. In Japan, it is estimated that there are more than 10,000 ALS patients. About 10 percent of these patients also have a family history of the disease, classified as familial ALS. The research team analyzed the genes of three patients with familial ALS. All three were found to have mutations in a gene known as DNAJC7. The functions of this gene are to repair damaged proteins and to prevent abnormal proteins from accumulating. Previous studies have confirmed that many ALS cases involve abnormal accumulation of a protein called TDP-43 in the cytoplasm of neurons in the cerebral cortex. The patients in this study were also found to have TDP-43 accumulations. Further experiments using cultured cells confirmed that when DNAJC7 does not function properly, abnormal aggregation of TDP-43 increases—while enhancing the function of DNAJC7 reduced the accumulation of TDP-43. 'We have now discovered that when the DNAJC7 gene does not function correctly, the abnormal aggregation of TDP-43 increases, leading to familial ALS,' Yamashita said. 'Because boosting the functions of DNAJC7 reduced the aggregation, our findings could lead to future treatments.'
Japan Today
15 hours ago
- Japan Today
Japanese diet may help in fight against depression, study shows
File photo taken in November 2024 shows a set meal with fish roe and local fish in Shikabe, Hokkaido. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo The rate of depressive symptoms was lower among working-age people who consume a Japanese-style diet including rice, miso soup and fish, the first study of its kind recently showed. The Japan Institute for Health Security assessed the benefits of a traditional "Japanese-style diet" comprising of soy products, cooked vegetables, mushrooms, fish, seaweed, and green tea, along with a modified version that added fruit, fresh vegetables and dairy products. While there are few studies on the Japanese diet's impact on mental health, such assessments of the Mediterranean diet -- which consists of vegetables, whole grains, olive oil and fish -- and depression have previously been conducted, the institute said. "Further research is required, but we hope the evidence shown among Japanese people can be used for public health measures in workplaces and areas concerning the prevention of depression," it said in a press release. The self-reported study was conducted among 12,499 employees from five companies, of whom 88 percent were male with an average age of 42.5 years. A total of 30.9 percent of the cohort exhibited depressive symptoms, but those who followed a typical Japanese diet were found to be less likely to do so. The researchers made efforts to isolate other potential factors that could influence the results. The institute said certain foods in the diet could be linked to improved well-being. Seaweed, soy products and the folic acid in vegetables assist in releasing neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine, while oily fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids has anti-inflammatory effects. © KYODO
