Changes in Dietary Fiber Intake in Japan

Abstract

Many data on the dietary fiber intake of the Japanese population have been reported. However, some of them are especially meager because of incompletion in dietary fiber tables. Recently the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan -Dietary Fiberwas published by the Science and Technology Agency. Utilizing the Standard Tables and data from the National Surveys of Nutrition, I have estimated the dietary fiber intake of the Japanese population. I have compared my results with other estimations of the dietary fiber intake in the literature and also discussed the chronological changes in the intake in Japan and the basic descriptive data on the intake. My estimation demonstrates that until the early to mid-1960s, the intake of the Japanese population was over the recommended intake of dietary fiber (20-25g/day as an adult). However, thereafter the intake has gradually decreased and reached to approximately 16g/day/capita in 1990s. The intake correlated well with age and in younger generations the intake was very low, approximately half of the recommended intake.