JAPAN: Girdle Sales For Men At An All-time High

Editorial Comment Japanese men going belly up TOKYO (The Japan Times), October 27, 2007: Japanese men are suddenly overweight. The latest criticism of health, diet and fitness "metabolic syndrome" is aimed at men and their bulging waistlines. According to some reports, metabolic syndrome is found in a larger and larger proportion of middle-aged and young people, especially men. Their expanding waistlines reveal the possibility of heart disease, strokes and diabetes. Frightening as the results might be, there is reason to take this latest "syndrome" with some skepticism. Some of the criteria for establishing metabolic syndrome are excessively strict; others are based purely on measurements around the stomach and belt line. Any true evaluation of health must take into account a variety of factors. What's more, a blanket condemnation only raises anxiety, hardly a good first step to overall health, and may even provoke one to "give up." Metabolic syndrome, too, seems focused on the exterior appearance of health rather than on serious internal realities. As a result, girdle sales for men are at an all-time high. There is plenty of profit to be made from any public health problem. You can be sure the latest exercise video makers and diet-regimen companies see yen signs when another article on metabolic syndrome comes out. Encouraging regular checkups and easier access to public exercise facilities would be better than throwing around new buzzwords. The government should focus attention, and budgets, on improving and building exercise facilities. Until they do, though, more and more private exercise centers and sports clubs will take up the slack. Some element of the Japanese lifestyle must be contributing to Japanese longevity, which remains the highest in the world. That said, overall health is not necessarily improving. Obesity, lifestyle diseases and preventable illnesses are all on the rise. Metabolic syndrome is one symptom of a general decline in health, but it is not the single most pressing problem. Everyone wants a good-looking abdomen, but the reality of health demands much more than a waistline that fits some abstract standard. People should improve their overall diet, as well as their exercise routines and lifestyle, without being hounded by crazes. Bulging bellies are not the only warning. General public awareness, a solid program of health education in the schools, and a shift in public attitude are all needed. (C) The Japan Times