Tokyo Weekender - November 2017

As eating disorders become more
prevalent in Japan, health coach
Yumi Idomoto looks at the reasons,
the lack of support, and what’s being
done about it
In December 2016, a photograph released by the Imperial
Household Agency shocked the country. It featured Princess
Aiko, the daughter of Crown Prince Naruhito, smiling in
celebration of her 15th birthday, but also looking like a
different person to the Aiko we’ve come to know – she had
evidently lost a great deal of weight and looked thin and frail.
Although the royal family described Aiko as simply being “temporarily
ill,” the media aggressively reported her to be anorexic.
In September this year, model, actress and former AKB48
member Mitsumune Kaoru announced on Twitter that she
would be taking a break from work due to her long-term suffering
from eating disorders. While Aiko and Kaoru are not the
first public figures to come under the spotlight for weight loss
and associated illnesses, to many it might still come as a surprise
that Japan – known for its healthy diets, low obesity, and
long lifespans (according to the WHO, as of 2016, Japan is still
the country with the longest life expectancy) – has not escaped
this particular disease.
Often called a homogenous society, Japan is known for
conformity, and its people are not highly diverse (at least on
the surface). The general physique is smaller than in Western
countries, and there are guidelines on appearance at all levels
within society. At schools, for example, students wear uniforms,
and although they are not supposed to dye their hair, some feel
forced to color their hair black if their natural color is lighter
(i.e. different). Naturally, there is also a substantial pressure
to remain as thin as those around you. For adults between the
ages of 45 and 74, there is even a government policy called
Metabo Law, which stipulates what your waist measurements
should be (33.5 inches for men and 35.4 inches for women), and
is monitored through annual company health checks. In such
an environment, it’s no wonder people are feeling pressured to
lose weight, and look the same as everyone else. In fact, when
you Google “anorexia” in Japanese, one of the related keywords
that pops up is “anorexia, want to be.”
Mami Suzuki, a registered dietitian who has experienced
anorexia herself, says she has been getting an increasing number
of consultations from Japanese people with eating disorders.
“Generally, people who are perfectionists and so-called goodstudent
types tend to suffer from eating disorders. The main
cause is diet, but this is not always the reason.” Suzuki became
anorexic after casually putting herself on diets when she was in
high school. She notes: “In Japan, regardless of sex, people tend
to be made fun of or joked about for being chubbier.”
36 | NOVEMBER 2017 | TOKYO WEEKENDER