#okinawans

Introduction

On the southern tip of Japan lies Okinawa, a chain of islands renowned not just for its natural beauty and distinct culture, but also for something even more remarkable: the health and longevity of its people. Okinawans have long fascinated scientists, nutritionists, and longevity researchers. With some of the highest life expectancy rates in the world and a strikingly low incidence of chronic disease, the Okinawan population has earned a global reputation for health, balance, and vitality.

What’s the secret? The answer lies in a unique combination of diet, lifestyle, social connection, and philosophy that sets the Okinawan people apart — and offers valuable lessons for the rest of the world.

1. Longevity by the Numbers

Okinawa has historically had one of the highest concentrations of centenarians — people who live to be 100 or older — anywhere on Earth. According to demographic studies, Okinawan women, in particular, live longer than women anywhere else in the world.

More importantly, Okinawans don't just live long lives — they live healthy ones. The rates of heart disease, stroke, cancer, and dementia are significantly lower than in Western countries and even lower than the Japanese mainland.

2. The Okinawan Diet: “Food as Medicine”

One of the biggest contributors to Okinawan health is their traditional diet. Unlike the highly processed and calorie-dense diets common in much of the developed world, the Okinawan diet is based on plant-based, nutrient-rich foods that promote longevity:

Vegetables: Especially sweet potatoes, seaweed, bitter melon (goya), and green leafy vegetables.

Legumes: Such as soybeans, tofu, and miso.

Fish: Eaten in moderate amounts.

Minimal meat and dairy: These are consumed sparingly.

Low sugar and low salt: Their diet is naturally low in refined sugars and sodium.

Herbal teas: Like sanpin-cha (a jasmine green tea blend) are commonly consumed.

A guiding principle of the Okinawan diet is "Hara hachi bu", which means “eat until you're 80% full.” This practice prevents overeating and supports metabolic health.

3. Physical Activity as a Way of Life

Okinawans stay active well into their old age — not through formal exercise routines, but through natural movement. Daily life involves walking, gardening, farming, cooking, and social activities that keep people moving without strain.

Even in their 80s and 90s, many Okinawans continue to work in their gardens, practice traditional dance, or perform light physical tasks — all of which maintain mobility and muscle tone while reducing the risk of lifestyle diseases.

4. Strong Social Connections and Community Support

Okinawans enjoy a powerful sense of community and belonging. A key concept is the “moai” — a lifelong social group that provides emotional, financial, and spiritual support.

This strong social safety net reduces stress and loneliness, both of which are increasingly linked to chronic diseases and early mortality in other societies. Elders are respected and cared for, and intergenerational relationships are valued.

5. A Purposeful Life: The Power of “Ikigai”

Okinawans often cite "ikigai" — a reason for being or a sense of purpose — as a central component of their well-being. Whether it's tending a garden, caring for grandchildren, practicing traditional crafts, or contributing to the community, having a clear and meaningful role in society helps people stay mentally and emotionally healthy.

Studies show that having a strong sense of purpose is associated with lower risks of heart disease, stroke, and depression — all of which Okinawans experience at much lower rates than global averages.

6. A Culture of Resilience and Simplicity

Okinawa's history of hardship — including poverty, war, and natural disasters — has helped shape a culture of resilience, gratitude, and adaptability. Despite material scarcity, Okinawans have traditionally lived simple, resourceful lives closely tied to nature and seasonal rhythms.

This "less is more" philosophy contributes to low stress levels and a deep appreciation for small pleasures — both of which are linked to better overall health.

7. Lessons for the Modern World

While modern influences and Western diets are beginning to affect younger generations in Okinawa, the traditional lifestyle still offers powerful insights into what it means to live a long, healthy, and meaningful life.

Key takeaways for global health include:

Prioritizing whole, plant-based foods

Practicing mindful eating (hara hachi bu)

Staying active through daily movement

Building strong social ties

Maintaining a sense of purpose (ikigai)

Embracing simplicity and gratitude

Conclusion

The Okinawan way of life is not built on quick fixes or expensive health products. It’s a lifelong commitment to balance — of body, mind, and community. In a world overwhelmed by stress, chronic disease, and disconnection, Okinawa reminds us that longevity isn’t just about living longer — it’s about living better.

Kyoto University has remains drawn from the Momojyana burial place in Okinawa, Japan, where members of the royal household of the Ryukyu Kingdom are thought to be buried.

Yasukatsu Matushima

In the late 1920s and early ’30s, scientists from Kyoto Imperial University collected 200- to 600-year-old remains of a number of hundred individuals from burial collapse Okinawa, Japan’s southernmost prefecture, which has its own culture and language. Now, in an echo of demands from Indigenous individuals all over the world for repatriation of the remains of their forefathers, 5 Okinawans are requiring that Kyoto University return the bones and pay settlement.

The complainants state Kyoto University rebuffed demands to go over the concern, so in 2018 they took the matter to court. The case is gradually making its method through the legal system, additional postponed by the pandemic. To put pressure on the university, last month the complainants pleaded for worldwide assistance at a rundown for foreign reporters in Japan.

Holding the remains breaches the constitutional right to liberty of religious beliefs, since the Okinawans don’t have the chance to venerate their forefathers, states Yasukatsu Matsushima, a financial expert at Ryukoku University who is one of the complainants. He includes that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples calls for the repatriation of native human remains. The bones drawn from one of the websites, the Momojyana burial place, are thought to consist of those of members of the royal household of the Ryukyu Kingdom, which was based upon Okinawa Island. Japan taken in the kingdom into its empire in 1872 and liquified it 7 years later on.

Kyoto University just recently launched a declaration stating “the university does not consider that the bones were obtained illegally” which the remains are saved “in a manner appropriate to their preservation.” The scientists who collected the bones decades ago declared in their works to have actually gotten the approval of regional authorities. But Matsushima states remains were taken “without the agreement of families, relatives, or villagers.”

The anthropologists who took them to Kyoto wished to study bones to clarify resemblances and distinctions in between Japanese and Ryukyuans, Matsushima states. But today, they figure into long-running concerns about the origins of the Japanese individuals. Most scholars believe groups of Stone Age hunter-gatherers from northeastern Asia moved to the primary Japanese islands when land bridges linked them to the continent. Another theory holds that early Indo-Pacific mariners followed sea paths north, island hopping over Taiwan and Okinawa to reach Kyushu in southern Japan.

Whatever their origin, those early occupants were signed up with by later waves of migrants crossing into western Japan from the Korean Peninsula. It was long thought that the intermingling of these groups produced an unique, uniform Japanese population. However, current DNA research studies recommend “there is huge [genetic] diversity among Japanese,” states Mitzuho Ikeda, a cultural anthropologist at Osaka University. DNA analyses of the bones might clarify those early migration patterns, and Matsushima concerns Kyoto University is keeping the bones to extract DNA for analysis. For now, nevertheless, it appears that nobody is studying the remains.

Tsuyoshi Tamagushiku, a descendant of the Ryukyuan royal household and a celebration to the claim, states he was uninformed the bones had actually been gotten rid of from the Momojyana burial place till checking out news about the concern a number of years ago. It is still a custom, he states, for Okinawans to make expeditions to the burial place. “I feel extremely angry [to know] that I had prayed in front of the tomb when there were no ancestral bones within,” Tamagushiku states. He and the other complainants state Japan is out of action with the worldwide pattern of returning remains and artifacts to Indigenous groups.

The Japanese federal government, nevertheless, does not acknowledge the Okinawans as Indigenous. But from a cultural sociology point of view, “The Ryukyuans are an Indigenous people,” Ikeda states. For Tamagushiku it is more individual. He simply desires “to have my ancestors rest in peace in their own proper resting place.”

Kyoto University possesses remains taken from the Momojyana tomb in Okinawa, Japan, where members of the royal family of the Ryukyu Kingdom are believed to be buried.

Yasukatsu Matushima

In the late 1920s and early ’30s, researchers from Kyoto Imperial University collected 200- to 600-year-old remains of several hundred people from burial caves in Okinawa, Japan’s southernmost prefecture, which has its own culture and language. Now, in an echo of requests from Indigenous people around the world for repatriation of the remains of their ancestors, five Okinawans are demanding that Kyoto University return the bones and pay compensation.

The plaintiffs say Kyoto University rebuffed requests to discuss the issue, so in 2018 they took the matter to court. The case is slowly making its way through the legal system, further delayed by the pandemic. To put pressure on the university, last month the plaintiffs pleaded for international support at a briefing for foreign correspondents in Japan.

Holding the remains violates the constitutional right to freedom of religion, because the Okinawans don’t have the opportunity to venerate their ancestors, says Yasukatsu Matsushima, an economist at Ryukoku University who is one of the plaintiffs. He adds that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples calls for the repatriation of indigenous human remains. The bones taken from one of the sites, the Momojyana tomb, are believed to include those of members of the royal family of the Ryukyu Kingdom, which was based on Okinawa Island. Japan absorbed the kingdom into its empire in 1872 and dissolved it 7 years later.

Kyoto University recently released a statement saying “the university does not consider that the bones were obtained illegally” and that the remains are stored “in a manner appropriate to their preservation.” The researchers who collected the bones decades ago claimed in their writings to have gotten the permission of local authorities. But Matsushima says remains were taken “without the agreement of families, relatives, or villagers.”

The anthropologists who took them to Kyoto wanted to study bones to clarify similarities and differences between Japanese and Ryukyuans, Matsushima says. But today, they figure into long-running questions about the origins of the Japanese people. Most scholars think groups of Stone Age hunter-gatherers from northeastern Asia migrated to the main Japanese islands when land bridges connected them to the continent. Another theory holds that early Indo-Pacific mariners followed sea routes north, island hopping over Taiwan and Okinawa to reach Kyushu in southern Japan.

Whatever their origin, those early inhabitants were joined by later waves of migrants crossing into western Japan from the Korean Peninsula. It was long believed that the intermingling of these groups produced a distinctive, homogeneous Japanese population. However, recent DNA studies suggest “there is huge [genetic] diversity among Japanese,” says Mitzuho Ikeda, a cultural anthropologist at Osaka University. DNA analyses of the bones could shed light on those early migration patterns, and Matsushima worries Kyoto University is keeping the bones to extract DNA for analysis. For now, however, it appears that no one is studying the remains.

Tsuyoshi Tamagushiku, a descendant of the Ryukyuan royal family and a party to the lawsuit, says he was unaware the bones had been removed from the Momojyana tomb until reading news about the issue several years ago. It is still a tradition, he says, for Okinawans to make pilgrimages to the tomb. “I feel extremely angry [to know] that I had prayed in front of the tomb when there were no ancestral bones within,” Tamagushiku says. He and the other plaintiffs say Japan is out of step with the international trend of returning remains and artifacts to Indigenous groups.

The Japanese government, however, does not recognize the Okinawans as Indigenous. But from a cultural anthropology point of view, “The Ryukyuans are an Indigenous people,” Ikeda says. For Tamagushiku it is more personal. He just wants “to have my ancestors rest in peace in their own proper resting place.”

In less than a week, Iʻll be completing another spin around the sun. All I want for my birthday is for the Japanese government to respect the democratic will of #Shimanchu (#indigenous #Okinawans / #Ryukyuans).

A step in the right direction would be putting a stop to the excavation of WWII remains (including not only thousands of Okinawans but also American soldiers, Japanese soldiers, Koreans, etc) and the desecration of our ancestorsʻ bones to build yet another US military base in Okinawa.

So, the best way to wish me a happy birthday is to let Japan know that you support the wishes of the people of Okinawa.

Hereʻs one quick, easy way you can do just that: http://chng.it/FPM7F45bMM  ✍🏼 Please sign and share! 🙏🏼🙇🏻‍♀️

#dontkilltwice

Link is in bio. Petition is in 日本語 / Español / Português / English