When good health is the default
The healthiest period of Jason Beckfield’s life wasn’t when he was training for a marathon, luxuriating at a wellness retreat or following a strict diet. Rather, it was the summer he lived near a chemical plant in Germany that his weight and resting heart rate were lowest. Why? In part because the country’s setup promotes walking — to one store to buy meats, one to buy produce and another to purchase bread, says Beckfield, a sociology professor at Harvard University. “The idea of the huge supermarket that has everything is really foreign there,” he says. Such cultural norms “hugely” influence health, he says. Here’s what they look like across the globe:
1. Australia: Where Pain Isn’t Gain
Harder, faster, stronger — such terms may well be the mottos of gyms across America, where high-intensity programming dominates. But in Australia, wellness goes beyond strength, cardiovascular health and flexibility to include coordination, says Sonja Johansson, an Australian-turned-New Yorker who’s certified in the Feldenkrais method, a type of movement education. “Australians understand that being healthy is more than just pushing yourself into overload,” she says. That philosophy even trickles down to Australian babies, many of whom enroll in Gymbaroo, a program that encourages brain and body development through seemingly simple games, songs and toys, Johansson says. “Along with the movement exploration,” she adds, “it really encourages bonding between caregiver and child.”
2. France: Where Each Bite Is Savored
In the U.S., we scarf dollar pizza slices while walking, devour French fries without unclipping our seatbelts and toss back buttered popcorn while glued to a movie. Not so in France, where “there’s a culture of enjoying your food and experiencing your food and not rushing through it,” Beckfield says. It pays off: Research suggests that eating mindfully — or with complete attention to your food and your body’s hunger and fullness cues — can help prevent Type 2 diabetes, keep you slim and reduce overeating. Such patterns, plus an emphasis on unprocessed foods and portion control, are “part of why [the French] health profile is so much better,” Beckfield says.
Iceland: Where Pools Unite People
You’d be hard-pressed to find a town in Iceland that doesn’t have at least one public swimming pool. “They’re everywhere,” says Beckfield, who’s visited the country several times for research. And while swimming is a great full-body, cardiovascular workout, the prevalence of pools in Iceland does more for people’s health than simply encouraging them to swim: It fosters a “we’re all in this together” attitude, Beckfield says. “The social solidarity runs pretty deep [in Iceland], and the pools are a major factor,” he says. Indeed, research has linked strong, satisfying social connections with happier, healthier and longer lives.
4. India: Where Barefoot Is Better
If you visit someone’s home in India, ditch your shoes at the door — it’s a sign of respect, says Vandana Sheth, a registered dietitian near Los Angeles who grew up in India. But the practice of walking barefoot on different surfaces does more than secure you another invite; it’s also believed to promote health and well-being, Sheth says. “When we walk on different surfaces, the nerve endings found in the soles of our feet are massaged,” she explains. While people with diabetes and nerve pain should be cautious about going sock- and shoe-free, Sheth says, others might benefit from its positive effect on inflammation and the immune system, research suggests.
5. Japan: Where Bathing Isn’t a Luxury
In Japan, you don’t have to wait for a spa day or a breakup to treat yourself to a warm bath; there, the habit is as regular as brushing your teeth. “We take a bath almost every day,” says Tomoko Iwai, a Tokyo-based international ambassador of IDEA Health and Fitness Association, a global organization for fitness professionals. On their days off, people in Japan also flock to hot springs, adds Iwai, editor-in-chief of a magazine for fitness professionals. In effect, their metabolism, muscles and stress levels improve, he says. One study even showed that balneotherapy — or bathing in mineral springs, usually at a spa — treated anxiety better than a prescription medication.
6. Pakistan: Where Prayer Promotes Health
Muslims pray five times a day, and the practice — “an intense form of meditation combined with yoga postures” — may do as much for their health as it does for their spirits, says Dr. Farha Abbasi, assistant professor of psychiatry at Michigan State University who moved from Pakistan, where the Islam religion dominates, more than 10 years ago. “It helps regularize sleep, decrease distress and [provides] an experience of deep relaxation,” she says. It’s no surprise, then, that research has linked prayer with a range of health benefits, including an increase in dopamine (a hormone associated with happiness), a higher pain tolerance among migraine sufferers, lower blood pressure and a longer life.
7. Sweden: Where Seasons Dictate the Menu
Sweden is known for its starkly different seasons: cold, dark winters contrasting with bright, warm summers. When Elizabeth Palmer Starnes Califano moved to the country for a semester, she learned the Swedish eating patterns follow suit. “It simply wouldn’t be practical to eat a raw tomato salad when the snow piles up and the temperature hovers around zero,” she says. “And you’ll never find strawberries in the market in February.” Swedes’ emphasis on foods with only fleeting availability encourages them to celebrate, not feel guilty about, eating, says Califano, a chef and food writer in San Francisco. “Simply eating locally and seasonally transforms eating habits for the better,” she says.
8. The U.K.: Where Dining In Dominates
When Califano visited her extended family in London, something struck her about the kitchens: “Fridges … are tiny by American standards,” she says. That turned out to be a good thing, since it encouraged her family to shop often for fresh foods and rarely for bulk, processed ingredients. The need to shop frequently doesn’t stop the Brits from cooking either, says Jonny Andrews, owner of Forge Fitness Personal Training in Bath, England. “Home cooking seems more commonplace in the U.K. in comparison to the ‘dine out’ culture in the U.S.,” he says. That pattern has health benefits: Research suggests regular home chefs eat healthier and consume fewer calories than people who cook less.
More from U.S. News
9 Things That Are Surprisingly Good for Your Health
8 Ways Meditation Can Improve Your Life
Here’s How People in 8 Other Countries Stay Healthy originally appeared on usnews.com
