IT-Japan bilateral meeting

Italy-Japan Symposium on “Foods and Health: past, present and future”
October 22th, 23th 2009, イタリア文化会館, Tokyo, Japan

Italian and Japanese people are amongst the most longeval in the world (Female, more than 85 years and male, more than 80 years). There are many common features between two populations contributing to their longevity. Among them, one of the most important factors should be, apart from their excellent national sanitary system, traditional foods. Eating Italian and Japanese traditional foods has widely been considered as an excellent way of maintaining physical and mental health. Indeed, Italian and Japanese foods have often been considered as an elixir of long life. However, at the first instance, Mediterranean and Japanese foods, that are generally very tasty, seem to have few in common either in the first materials or in the mode of their cooking. Indeed, distinct use of main foods in two countries such as pasta versus rice, olive oil versus soy sauce, basilico versus shiso, mozzarella versus tofu, gorgonzola versus miso, wine versus sake and water versus green tea strengthens the consideration that foods and cooking in Italy and Japan have little in common. Regarding fishes frequently eaten in both countries, eating raw fishes in Italy has not been so popular as in Japan. The same is inversely true for row ham or row meats.
The word “antioxidants” is becoming very popular in both countries as a synonymous of healthy foods without a correct scientific meaning of this word. There are indeed a number of foods containing antioxidants such as polyphenols. They include colored vegetables and fruits. It is well documented that both Italian and Japanese cooking make a frequent use of them. However, the precise understanding on what biological action these compounds really exert in the body has been elusive.
This consideration has led us to organize Italy-Japan meeting on “Foods and Health, past, present and future” or “Foods as a first medicine: yesterday, today and tomorrow” mainly aimed to try to answer the following questions:
1) Are there some common features linking apparently so different foods and the way of cooking them between Italy and Japan?
2) Are there foods compounds with remarkable biological action contributing to physical and mental health?
Internationally recognized academic researchers in the fields coming from Italy and Japan will present their most recent study touching the question above pointed out. Furthermore, since this Symposium will be open to public, together with academic sessions, special session aimed to promote direct contact with public will be organized.
Another relevant aspect of this event will be the exposition of typical food products from both countries. This event will not only give an opportunity for participants to be aware of high quality of foods products but also will offer a suitable place for commercial exchange between directly interested persons from both countries.
Representative pictures of the School of painting of Verona, directed by Prof. Gianni Lollis, the President of Academy of Beauty Arts of Verona, Italy, will be presented in harmony with foods exposition.
As a satellite event, a small joint meeting, together with an exhibition of pictures of Verona’s painters, will be held at Miyazaki just before or after Italy-Japan meeting at Tokyo.
For those who want to enjoy Italian foods, an Italian dinner party will be prepared to taste healthy Italian foods