No carb?

all I can comment is;

Which race has the longest life span again? Oh, the Japanese. What is the staple of their diet again? Oh, rice. 60% approx. of their diet is made up of carbs.

Just eat less, avoid crap (i.e. all the sugary stuff) and get lots of veggies and you'll shed the weight in a manageable, healthy way

Sick of carb haters, once Japanese are brought into the ring all I can say is 'your argument is invalid'

The Japanese also eat a LOT of fish and eggs. Rice is a daily thing, but it's not consumed in huge amounts all at once - snacking (or taking several small meals) is very common. People in Japan in general walk...a LOT - not that many cars per person as in North America. Longest life span has just as much to do with lifestyle as with diet. Okinawans, likely the Japanese you're referring to, have the lowest-stress/laid back local culture of all the Japanese islands....and honestly they're not really Japanese as they were a separate kingdom long before being claimed by Japan. Overall, the Japanese have a different lifestyle that impacts their health just as much if not more than their food intake.

Can't really compare diet unless you take lifestyle into account.

＋quoting above posts, I guess I really have to stop reading anything written in Australia, countless times they try to manipulate too much. My apologies for not doing further research. I am totally aware that stroke is a big issue and can imagine how diabetes is as well with all the candy. I by no means am advocating lots of refined carbs, rather that carbs aren't some evil monster to stay away from.

For sure Okinawans are not Japanese really at all traditionally - much of their culture comes from China. I live here in Japan and have studied the language etc for some time now and observe the eating and lifestyle habits which I myself have adopted.

Carbs are not seen as a monster here. People ride bicycles and walk everywhere. There are definite social issues (suicide and overworking) but their diet is phenomenally better than the West. That and portion sizes. Sizes my friends 'complain' about in restaurants back where I am from in Sydney are normal here. I myself was shocked at first, but once adjusted I realised that we really are inclined to simply eat far too much.

I think my whole point was not to let the OP be shocked about carbs. They are so important for your body, and of course complex and less refined is best - I tend to have red and brown rice these days, just white when I eat out

Just trying to help!

edit: yeah they eats so much fish and eggs! You should see the seafood sections here.. I get excited every time I do grocery shopping. Fish is almost always a daily staple. Standard breakfast is raw egg with fermented soybeans on rice... not digging the fermented soybeans (yet) but I watch my boyfriend eat it and I still am intrigued at how strange it is haha

edit2: snacking is not as big a thing here as you seem so think... it isn't standard procedure per se. They just have smaller meals than us in the West and their snacks (everyone snacks a little generally) are traditionally dried fish or an apple!