What were the best-selling health books in 2020?
2021.01.01
Happy New Year!
2020 was a year that started and ended with the turmoil of the new Coronavirus.
Nissho (Nippon Publishing Sales Co., Ltd.) and Tohan, the major book distributors, have
announced their annual bestsellers to see what kind of books were sold in 2020.
The top bestsellers of the year are “Kimetsu no Yaiba” and “ACNH”
Looking at both the daily sales and Tohan rankings, the books related to “Kimetsu no Yaiba
(Demon Slayer)” and “Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Atsumori ACNH) ” are ranked high. Both
are logical because they have become a social trend across generations. On the other hand,
books on health care and health are sparsely listed among the top 20 bestsellers of the year in
2020.
It was a year when the epidemic of the new coronavirus attracted attention to things like
immunity and infectious diseases, but maybe because there were special reports on the new
coronavirus every day on TV, there may have been few people wanting to buy books and collect
information.
That said, when it comes to health books that sold in 2020, the following three were ranked in
the top 10 in the “Practical Books” category by NIPPAN and Tohan.
・ “Master It on DVD! Long Breath Living Up to 120 Years Of Age ”(Gentosha)
・ “Lower your blood sugar level sharply! 7-second squat ”(Bunkyosha)
・ “Hunger is the Strongest Medicine”
Three health books sold well in 2020
“Master It on DVD! Long Breath Living Up to 120 Years Of Age” is the book written by actor
Ryosuke Miki, who caused a sensation with the long breath diet. It’s a method for longevity.
This book was released in November 2019 and, as it says, one can “live to 120 years of age”,
not only via diet but also by “training to keep walking energetically for a lifetime” and “building a
longevity-capable body by long breath exercises” are introduced.
“Lower your blood sugar level sharply! 7-second squat” was written by Keiji Usami, a doctor who
has participated in bodybuilding competitions. There are many people who are concerned about
their blood sugar levels, such as those who are being treated for diabetes and those who have
been diagnosed with high blood sugar levels during their health examinations. This book
teaches such people how to train their thigh muscles, increase basal metabolism, and make it
easier to process glucose in the blood (make it harder for blood sugar to rise).
Another, “Hunger is the Strongest Medicine” was released in January 2019 and has become a
long-selling product. Atsushi Aoki, a doctor who suffered from tongue cancer at the age of 40,
continued his research on the theme of how to prevent the recurrence of cancer and the onset
of new cancer. The method was to induce autophagy by scheduled fasting (hunger time) for
about 16 hours a day.
(By the way, autophagy is a recycling system that regenerates old cells in the body).
Books that sold more during the stay-at-home period
Other than health books, cookbooks such as “The fastest and most delicious quick meal in the
world! 100 Lazy Recipes” and “Fujii Bento: One great pattern for easy-to-make lunch,” sold well.
It may have been read more often as time spent at home increased and families stayed at home
more.
What kind of year will 2021 be?
It’s also a good idea to look for a new book from the perspective of what kind of year you want
to have.