“What are the most popular health foods in Japan?”
“Which of the popular health foods in Japan is right for me?”
If you are reading this article, you probably have the same problem.
There are many highly popular health foods sold in Japan. In this article, we have selected and introduced 7 products from among these popular health foods that are likely to be of interest to those who are health and beauty conscious.
All of the health foods mentioned above can be purchased at online stores such as Amazon.
Clicking on the health food name will take you to the chapter that explains that product, so if there is a health food that interests you, please check it out.
- Popular health food in Japan 1: “GABA” of DHC
- Popular health food in Japan 2: “Glycine 3000 Happy Morning” of Fine
- Popular health food in Japan 3: “Liver Extract + Ornithine” of DHC
- Popular health food in Japan 4: “(New) Inner fat support” of FANCL
- Popular health food in Japan 5: “Metabarrier Premium EX” of Fujifilm
- Popular health food in Japan 6: “DEFENCERA” of ORBIS
- Popular health food in Japan 7: “HELiOWHITE” of Rohto Pharmaceutical
- Notices when consuming Japanese health foods
Popular health food in Japan 1: “GABA” of DHC
The first popular health food in Japan is “GABA” of DHC. It boasts the No. 1 market share among health foods that relieve stress and support sleep (reference: DHC official website “GABA 30 days“).
This health food contains 200mg of GABA, an ingredient that has the effect of relieving stress and relaxing, per daily recommended intake.This “GABA” of DHC can satisfy the recommended daily amount of 30mg to 100mg of GABA.
I think that many of the people reading this article have come to Japan from other countries. Living in a foreign country like Japan, you may feel stress due to differences in culture and customs. DHC’s “GABA” is recommended for those who live such a stressful life.
Popular health food in Japan 2: “Glycine 3000 Happy Morning” of Fine
The second popular Japanese health food is Fine’s Glycine 3000 Happy Morning. It is one of Fine’s glycine health food series, which boasts cumulative sales of 3 million units as of the end of January 2022 (Reference: Fine’s Official Online shop “Glycine Premium 30 sticks“).
One stick per day contains 3,000 mg of glycine, an ingredient that helps improve sleep quality.You can take the recommended daily amount of glycine 3,000mg with Fine’s “Glycine 3000 Happy Morning”.
In addition, it is a lemon-flavored powder type, so it is easy to take even for those who are not good at capsule-type health foods.
If you are stressed, you may not be able to sleep wellor feel refreshed when you wake up in the morning. For such people, FINE’s “Glycine 3000 Happy Morning” is a recommended health food.
Popular health food in Japan 3: “Liver Extract + Ornithine” of DHC
The third popular health food in Japan is DHC’s “Liver Extract + Ornithine”. It boasts the No. 1 market share among health foods that improve liver function (reference: DHC official website “Liver Extract + Ornithine 30 Days“).
DHC’s “liver extract + ornithine” contains the following three ingredients that support the health of those who often drink alcohol.
- “Pork liver extract” with excellent digestive and absorption effects
- “Zinc” that decomposes alcohol
- “Ornithine” with efficacy as a stamina component
It is a health food recommended for those who like alcohol but want to be careful about their health.
Popular health food in Japan 4: “(New) Inner fat support” of FANCL
The fourth popular health food in Japan is FANCL’s “(New) Inner fat support”.
This is a renewed version of “Inner fat support”, a health food product that FANCL has been selling for a long time and helps reduce belly fat. It is a popular product that had the following results before the renewal.
- Ranked No. 1 in sales of foods with functional claims and lifestyle supplements from 2018 to 2019
- Cumulative sales from June 2017 to the end of August 2021: 7 million bags
- FY2020 (April 2020 to the end of March 2021) No. 1 in FANCL supplement sales
※Reference: FANCL official online shop “Inner fat Support Special Site”
After the renewal, new ingredients that support fat burning have been added.
| Before renewal | After renewal |
|---|---|
| Contains functional ingredients “bifidobacteria” and “N-acetylglucosamine”, which help regulate the intestinal environment and reduce belly fat. | In addition to “Bifidobacterium” and “N-Acetylglucosamine”, it has added a new functional ingredient “Black Ginger” that helps reduce visceral fat. |
FANCL’s “(New) Inner fat support” is a health food recommended for those who are worried about belly fat or are overweight and want to maintain a lean and healthy body.
Popular health food in Japan 5: “Metabarrier Premium EX” of Fujifilm
The fifth popular health food in Japan is Fujifilm’s Metabarrier Premium EX, which has the following track record.
- No. 1 sales of health foods including Salacia in 2020
- From March 2021 to February 2022, the subscription rate for subscription services for Fujifilm’s health food / Metabarrier series was 95%.
※Reference: Fujifilm Healthcare official website “Metabarrier Premium EX“
“Metabarrier Premium EX” is a health food that contains the following two functional ingredients and supports a healthy body by suppressing the absorption of sugar and fat.
- Salacinol, which suppresses the absorption of sugar and regulates the intestinal environment
- Phlorotannin, which suppresses the absorption of fat
Fujifilm’s “Metabarrier Premium EX” is a health food recommended for people who often eat sweet and fatty foods on a daily basis and want to improve their health.
Popular health food in Japan 6: “DEFENCERA” of ORBIS
The sixth popular health food in Japan is ORBIS DEFENCERA. It is a health food that won first place in the inner beauty category in 2019 at the “Best Cosmetics Award” held annually by the cosmetics and beauty information site @cosme (reference: ORBIS official website “ORBIS DEFENCERA”).
ORBIS DEFENCERA contains glucosylceramide, a type of ceramide that supports and moisturizes the skin from within.
There is ceramide on the surface of human skin that moisturizes the skin, but as we age, the amount decreases and our skin becomes more prone to dryness.The glucosylceramide contained in ORBIS DEFENCERA provides moisture to the skin from within the body, so you can aim for skin that is less prone to dryness.
Also, since it is a powder type, you can easily take it even if you don’t like capsule-type health foods. Another appealing feature is that you can choose your favorite from three flavors: peach, muscat, and yuzu.
ORBIS DEFENCERA is a health food recommended for people who want to keep their skin moist and beautiful even as they age.
Popular health food in Japan 7: “HELiOWHITE” of Rohto Pharmaceutical
The seventh popular health food in Japan is Rohto Pharmaceutical’s “HELiOWHITE”, which is sold in 66 countries around the world.
The biggest feature of Rohto Pharmaceutical’s “HELiOWHITE” is that it contains an ingredient called “Fern Block”.
Fernblock is an ingredient owned by Spanish healthcare manufacturer Cantabria Labs, and is extracted from a plant called fern.It is known to have the effect of preventing spots and wrinkles caused by sunburn caused by ultraviolet rays.
In addition to this fern block, “HELiOWHITE” contains vitamin B6, vitamin B2, and pearl barley extract as ingredients that support beauty.
In recent years, in Japan, every summer has been extremely hot with temperatures exceeding 35 degrees Celsius, and opportunities for exposure to ultraviolet rays have increased. This is a health food recommended for those who want to protect their skin from UV rays and maintain beautiful skin.
Notices when consuming Japanese health foods
So far, we have introduced some of Japan’s most popular health foods, but when actually consuming them, there are three things to keep in mind:
If you are taking medication, consult your doctor or pharmacist
If you are taking medication, consult your doctor or pharmacist.
This is because the ingredients in the medicine and the ingredients in the health food may not be compatible with each other, and the ingredients in the health food may be inhibited by the ingredients of the medicine.
If you are taking medicines prescribed by a hospital or over-the-counter medicines, we recommend that you check with your doctor or pharmacist in advance about compatibility with the health food you are going to take.
Follow the recommended intake amount
Let’s follow the recommended amount of intake determined by health foods.
This is because some of the ingredients contained in health foods have adverse effects on the body if taken in excess, although this is rare.
For example, vitamin B6 contained in Rohto Pharmaceutical “HELiOWHITE” mentioned above is applicable. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has mentioned that there is a risk of heartburn and nausea if you take too much vitamin B6 (Reference: Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare eJIM) .
There are only a limited number of ingredients that can cause discomfort if taken in excess, but caution is required when consuming health foods.
If you follow the recommended intake amount of healthy foods, you can avoid overdosing. We recommend that you check the recommended intake amount, which is always listed on the packaging of health foods.
Stop taking if you feel discomfort
If you feel uncomfortable after consuming health foods, stop consuming them.
Health foods are not medicines, so side effects are less likely to occur, but they may not suit your constitution.
If you feel that your physical condition is different from your usual one after taking a health food, we recommend that you do not continue to drink it, but try other health foods or try other ways to maintain a healthy body.
Summary
In this article, we have introduced 7 popular Japanese health foods that may be of particular interest to overseas visitors.
- DHC “GABA”
- Fine “Glycine 3000 Happy Morning”
- DHC “Liver Extract + Ornithine”
- FANCL “(New) Inner Fat Support”
- Fujifilm “Metabarrier Premium EX”
- Orbis “Defencera”
- Rohto Pharmaceutical “HELiOWHITE”
I hope that the health foods I have introduced can help you achieve the physical problems you are currently facing and the things you want to achieve.
If there is a health food that you are interested in, please try it while keeping in mind the precautions when taking health food.
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