1/ Okinawan diet – Japan So much so that Japan has the lowest obesity rates and third longest life expectancy of any developed country. The Okinawan diet is centred around fish, seafood, tofu, and other nutrient-rich ingredients. It's also extremely low in processed foods.
1. Almonds. There you have it — the humble almond can be considered the most nutrient-dense food on the planet. Used to the spotlight by now, almonds have been at the center of multiple studies on heart health and diabetes-related benefits.
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The world's healthiest people eat plenty of carbohydrates, but not as processed foods. While we're inclined to overindulge in white bread, biscuits and sugary cereal, they consume lots of fibre and protein-rich carbs and legumes, such as beans and lentils.
1/ Okinawan diet – Japan
So much so that Japan has the lowest obesity rates and third longest life expectancy of any developed country. The Okinawan diet is centred around fish, seafood, tofu, and other nutrient-rich ingredients. It's also extremely low in processed foods.
A peanut butter and jelly sandwich (PB&J) adds about 33 minutes to your healthy lifespan per serving, according to a University of Michigan study that measured life expectancy impacts of over 5,850 foods using the Health Nutritional Index (HNI). This sandwich tops the list for adding time, with nuts and seeds also being highly beneficial (around 25 mins) and processed items like hot dogs subtracting time.
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Some research suggests that African American/blacks and Latinos have a higher prevalence of disability compared to whites, whereas Asian/Pacific Islanders have a lower prevalence of disability compared to whites,8, 11-13 although these differences have been found to vary as a function of socioeconomic characteristics, ...
The five countries with the unhealthiest diet:
There's no single "number 1" unhealthy food, but ultra-processed items like sugary drinks, processed meats (bacon, hot dogs), deep-fried foods (fries), and refined snacks (donuts, chips, sugary cereals) consistently top lists due to high sugar, salt, unhealthy fats, and additives linked to obesity, heart disease, and diabetes. These items offer little nutritional value while increasing risks for chronic diseases.
Dark green, leafy vegetables may all be considered superfoods, but many think kale wins the prize for its high levels of vitamins C and K – needed for normal bone function and blood clotting. Kale also contains lutein and zeaxanthin, two nutrients thought to be important for eye health.
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Among all the leading nations, Croatia is the country that eats the most vegetables per person. On the other hand, on a per capita basis, Chad eats the least vegetables in the world. The annual per capita vegetable consumption in Chad stood at a mere 4.94 kg in 2020.
In multiple clinical trials, the Mediterranean diet has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke. A study of nearly 26,000 women showed that those who followed a Mediterranean diet had 25% lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease over the course of 12 years.
Key Takeaways. Hispanic, Black, and AIAN people fare worse than White people across the majority of examined measures of health and health care and social determinants of health (Figure 1).
Asian Americans enjoy the longest life expectancy of any racial or ethnic group (87.3 years) in the U.S. today. Latinos enjoy the 2nd longest life expectancy of any racial or ethnic groups in the U.S. today.
Hispanic and Black people are underrepresented as doctors. The trend: Hispanic and Black people are underrepresented in the clinician workforce compared to the broader US population, according to a KFF analysis of 2023 industry data (the most recent year of publicly available information).
We found that white participants born outside of the U.S. were the most physically active, and non-white (including Black, Indigenous and mixed race) Latinos born outside of the U.S. were the least physically active of all the subgroups we examined.
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According to a nutrition-themed study, every soft drink you consume shaves 12 minutes off your life, while each hot dog reduces your life expectancy by 36 minutes. Other processed foods that can cost you valuable time include pizza and mac and cheese, while the toll for a piece of bacon is six minutes.
The 2-2-2 food rule is a simple guideline for leftover safety: get cooked food into the fridge within 2 hours, eat it within 2 days, or freeze it for up to 2 months to prevent bacteria growth, keeping it out of the temperature "danger zone" (40-140°F or 5-60°C).