Most readers of this Blog appreciate the differences in the health of the elderly between the Asian society and the American society. I would ask one to just look at the nursing homes in the US to recognize the deficiencies in health of our elderly. Then look at the vibrant nature of the elderly in Asia. I am not saying that all the elderly in Asian countries, such as China, are healthy and active. What I am saying is that, compared to the elderly in the US, there are much more that can be characterized this way.  There are many reasons for this.

          I feel the most recognizable reason is the cultural differences between the two societies. One aspect of any culture is the food we eat and how it is prepared. When the average American grows up eating food that are high in sodium nitrites such as hot dogs, bacon and luncheon meats. Commonsense tells you if you eat such foods for many years, it can only have negative effects on both your physical and mental health.

         Before going on, I am not going to discuss the scientific reasoning behind any of these points in this Blog. I just want to highlight the distinct differences concerning the overly general wellbeing of the elderly in these two societies-for the most part.

         For the most part, food indigenous to a country like China are prepared in a way that better preserves the nutrient value in the meat, vegetables and fruit that they eat. That alone makes a huge difference to health of a person when he ages. In addition, there are studies that show pesticides and artificial chemicals used in foods, in the US, is higher.

         Again, I am over generalizing for the purpose of forcing the reader to appreciate how the basics elements of a society impacts the stature of its elderly. Diet certainly has a big impact…