I almost fell off my chair when I read Raymond Gutierrez’ tweet: “@mondgutierrez being fat is now illegal in Japan: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1hqHo6lyUU&feature=share”
Fat is out. No, this is a campaign tagline. It’s the law — Japan law.
Japan’s Metabo Law
In 2008, Japan’s Ministry of Health passed the ‘metabo’ law and declared war against obesity by measuring the country’s waistline. Their intent is to curb the rise of metabolic syndrome, a number of factors that lead to diabetes and cardiovascular disease including obesity, high blood pressure, high glucose levels and cholesterol. By keeping metabolic syndrome in check, the government hopes to stall the ballooning health care costs of their aging population.
In recent decades, concerns over rising rates of obesity and related metabolic diseases in developing countries have increased. Many of these countries are witnessing a growing aging population with decreasing birth rates, foreshadowing a costly future for health systems faced with supporting the declining elderly without the backing of a youthful workforce. Management of chronic disease such as diabetes, hypertension and other metabolic syndromes will compound these costs. Globally, current health policy is being re-examined and interventions to reduce the incidence of metabolic disease in the coming years are being implemented, but none are more radical than Japan’s ‘metabo law’, a law that requires men to maintain a waist line less than 33.5 inches and women less than 35.4 inches.
I’m perplexed.
Your thoughts?
Comments 5
healthful..yes. for a good cause..yes. but how about those who are really born bigger? does the government also offer the citizens help to maintain their waistline? why waistline btw? some people who are slender also suffer from those metabolic diseases..
This is unbelievable!!! Walang awa naman ito :
How about people who are predisposed to being on the plump side due to genetics?!! So banished from Japan na?
by the way, typo ata ito: “No, this is a campaign tagline. It’s the law ..” — you mean: this is NOT a campaign? … 🙂
I have mixed feelings about this. I know that its a drastic way to make people stay in shape.. but if it works — its an advantage for you. You not only stay slim and healthy but you get to live longer too! Still to “punish” you for being overweight is a hard pill to swallow. Perhaps positive reinforcement would have been better.
Still it makes me wonder, if I was in Japan today and the law applied to me, I’d probably stay in shape and conquer the long battle of extreme diets and exercises that I’ve been through.
What about their Sumo wrestler?
why are men required to maintain a smaller waistline than women? aren’t men much bigger in frame than women naturally?