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Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

bbc.com

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Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#31

Post by kelipso »

Aaargh20318 wrote: post #21

Every time I read an article about people trying to solve the 'loneliness epidemic' I can't help but wonder if we're not trying to solve the wrong problem. Maybe the solution should not be sought in trying to increase social connections but in eliminating our need for social contact. This dependence on other humans has always felt like a flaw to me. Note that I'm not saying that human contact is bad, just that our pa…

This is the kind of detached from humanity viewpoint that I come to hacker news for. Keep it up.

Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#32

Post by gramie »

tokyobreakfast wrote: post #16

Japanese have lactose intolerance, almost universally. They don't eat yogurt or dairy in general.

The annual consumption of ice cream in Japan was 6.7 litres per person in 2021 (compared to 10 litres/person in Canada and 20 litres/person in the U.S.). For all dairy, Japanese people each ate 94 kg in 2022.

They eat less dairy, but hardly none. I have heard people say that a scoop of ice cream or a glass of milk each day is not a problem, but more can be. Intolerance also seems to increase with age, so younger people can consume more dairy.

A 1975 study in Japan puts intolerance (unable to drink 200ml of milk comfortably) at 19% of the population. I would suspect that massive exposure over the past 50 years has lowered that percentage significantly.

Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#34

Post by tokai »

tokyobreakfast wrote: post #16

Japanese have lactose intolerance, almost universally. They don't eat yogurt or dairy in general.

How come Yakult is a nearly 100 years old Japanese company?

Most yogurt cultures reduces lactose content of the milk base during fermentation. Some cultures like the one Yakult uses supports increased lactose digestion in humans. At the same time lactose intolerance is not binary but a spectrum.

Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#35

Post by Aaargh20318 »

onlyrealcuzzo wrote: post #22
Aaargh20318 wrote: post #21

Every time I read an article about people trying to solve the 'loneliness epidemic' I can't help but wonder if we're not trying to solve the wrong problem. Maybe the solution should not be sought in trying to increase social connections but in eliminating our need for social contact. This dependence on other humans has always felt like a flaw to me. Note that I'm not saying that human contact is bad, just that our pa…

Then, like, what's the point of even being a human instead of a robot?

To learn, to create, to grow? None of these things necessarily involve other humans.

Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#36

Post by MattGaiser »

sa-code wrote: post #27
Aaargh20318 wrote: post #21

Every time I read an article about people trying to solve the 'loneliness epidemic' I can't help but wonder if we're not trying to solve the wrong problem. Maybe the solution should not be sought in trying to increase social connections but in eliminating our need for social contact. This dependence on other humans has always felt like a flaw to me. Note that I'm not saying that human contact is bad, just that our pa…

What’s there to live for otherwise? Can you flesh this idea out more?

It would be up to you. These people who are lonely otherwise have lives.

Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#37

Post by fsckboy »

Aaargh20318 wrote: post #21

Every time I read an article about people trying to solve the 'loneliness epidemic' I can't help but wonder if we're not trying to solve the wrong problem. Maybe the solution should not be sought in trying to increase social connections but in eliminating our need for social contact. This dependence on other humans has always felt like a flaw to me. Note that I'm not saying that human contact is bad, just that our pa…

>Every time I read an article about people trying to solve the 'loneliness epidemic...

you're reading the title wrong, they aren't "trying to solve the loneliness epidemic," they are trying to sell yogurt at a profit. In so doing, their sales force is ameliorating some of the loneliness their clients feel as a side effect. You could say that they are monetizing loneliness if that's the reason people are buying their products, for the visits and not for the yogurt.

Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#38

Post by nephihaha »

rounce wrote: post #14
cubefox wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I thought the BBC was state funded and didn't have to rely on undisclosed sponsorships.

The BBC is not state funded, it's a public broadcaster primarily funded by the general public, via the (admittedly outdated) TV licence fee system. Although the media output for the UK is non-commercial, it does have commercial operations and interactions though and they are mostly centred around the content produced for overseas consumption. As this post is on the .com domain where the international content exists (…

The BBC is a state broadcaster which claims to be autonomous, but that doesn't apply when it comes to foreign policy or the royal family.

Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#39

Post by Aaargh20318 »

sa-code wrote: post #27
Aaargh20318 wrote: post #21

Every time I read an article about people trying to solve the 'loneliness epidemic' I can't help but wonder if we're not trying to solve the wrong problem. Maybe the solution should not be sought in trying to increase social connections but in eliminating our need for social contact. This dependence on other humans has always felt like a flaw to me. Note that I'm not saying that human contact is bad, just that our pa…

What’s there to live for otherwise? Can you flesh this idea out more?

There are plenty of things to live for, but that’s not even the point. There is a difference between choosing to be social and having to be social because you will get depressed if you aren’t.

I think this need for social interaction is harmful. We did see this in action during the COVID pandemic. So many people who weren’t able to abide by a short lockdown. Lives were lost due to our pathological need for social interaction.

Imagine how many communicable deceases we could eliminate by simply having a 3 month lockdown every other year.

Re: Yoghurt delivery women combatting loneliness in Japan

#40

Post by School-Cotton »

rounce wrote: post #14
cubefox wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I thought the BBC was state funded and didn't have to rely on undisclosed sponsorships.

The BBC is not state funded, it's a public broadcaster primarily funded by the general public, via the (admittedly outdated) TV licence fee system. Although the media output for the UK is non-commercial, it does have commercial operations and interactions though and they are mostly centred around the content produced for overseas consumption. As this post is on the .com domain where the international content exists (…

> The BBC is not state funded, it's a public broadcaster primarily funded by the general public, via the (admittedly outdated) TV licence fee system.

How is that different from being state-funded? Everything state-funded is paid for by the general public, through taxes. That's part of what being a state is: an organization that forces people to pay taxes and directs them to various programs.

Are you claiming that the TV license fee isn't a tax? It's money that the state makes you pay so that it can fund something.

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