Tag: Meiji restoration

The National Diet building in Tokyo was completed in 1936, but the story behind its name, the National Diet, began centuries earlier in Europe. This unusual name for a legislative body is not related to nutrition but is a direct reflection of historical political transfers and linguistic evolution.

Though meat consumption in Japanese households surpassed fresh fish for the first time only in 2007, the long-standing misconception that the Japanese historically never ate meat is not entirely accurate. This question arises from a centuries-long period when meat was taboo, driven by religious and pragmatic factors that dramatically shaped the nation's culinary landscape.

An estimated 70-90% of East Asians, including Japanese people, have some degree of lactose intolerance, a key reason for historically lower dairy consumption. While the traditional diet was almost entirely dairy-free, modern Japanese cuisine has integrated milk and other dairy products in surprising ways.