Traditional Japanese food, with rice, fish and seafood, fresh and fermented vegetables, soy, miso, and green tea as main ingredients, is good for health. This has been shown in several studies, and it is also obvious to anyone who visits the country. Many of our visiting customers and friends have been surprised that it is so rare to see overweight Japanese people in the city. The vast majority simply eat healthier food than is generally done in the Western world.

Now, a recent study, which was published in the journal Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences in June, has shown that Japanese food, or washoku as it is called in Japanese, can also be good for our mental health. Between 2018 and 2021, researchers studied 12,500 employees at five major companies in Japan, of whom 88% were men with an average age of 42.5 years. Of the total number, 30.9% reported that they were depressed and suffered from symptoms such as low mood or a feeling of despondency. Participants were divided into groups according to their eating habits, and it was found that those who ate the most traditional Japanese food were 17% to 20% less likely to exhibit symptoms of depression compared to those who ate the least of this diet. The researchers had statistically adjusted the data to minimize the impact of other factors such as alcohol consumption, smoking, exercise, sleep, and obesity.

Some foods that are pointed out as particularly influential are seaweed, soy products, and vegetables that contain folate, a substance known to contribute to the production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. Antioxidants, which are found in colorful vegetables, green tea, natto, and miso, can also help reduce oxidative stress in the brain.

"Food is medicine" is an old saying, and it may therefore apply extra much in Japan, at least if you don't go to McDonalds all the time.