Snow Man Meguro Ren will appear on the special program “I want to tell you ~We are living in an era of infectious diseases~” scheduled to be broadcast.

■“I would be happy if it would be an opportunity for you to find information that you believe in and face your own body.” (Snow Man Ren Meguro)

It has been decided that the special program “Tsutaeta~We are living in an era of infectious diseases~”, in which Snow Man’s Ren Meguro will serve as the program navigator, will be broadcast on Fuji TV from 4pm on November 10th.

This program is a documentary program that offers hope for the future and provides an opportunity to think about infectious disease countermeasures. Koyuki will be in charge of narration.

In 2020, the new coronavirus that suddenly appeared in Japanese society became a rage, and a state of emergency was declared nationwide. A deserted Shibuya scramble intersection, a series of masks running out of stock, and rampant self-restraint police. What should each of us do to ensure that we never repeat the era that took precious lives and divided people?

Four years ago, Meguro debuted as Snow Man the week after the first coronavirus infection was confirmed in Japan. Faced with an unprecedented situation, the group’s activities were greatly affected. Feeling such frustration, Meguro went on location for two days as the program’s navigator, interviewing research institutions and experts on the front lines fighting infectious diseases. While learning about the importance of preventive medicine and autoimmunity that are useful in daily life, we will think about the measures we should take in the future as we live in the “age of infectious diseases.”

■Meguro takes a special class with the children. Thinking about “immunity”
Meguro visited Fuso Town, Aichi Prefecture. Fuso Town, which aims to create a town where people are naturally conscious of their health, says that as part of its activities, it continues to hold special classes for children to learn about “immune care.” When Meguro enters the “Fuso Higashi After School Children’s Club Hall” to take such a class, he finds children full of energy. Meguro joins the children and learns about preventive medicine. First, the teacher asked a simple question: “What do you think immunity is?” This question seems to contain hints for surviving the age of infectious diseases, and after taking the course, Meguro said, “The way I understand ‘immunity’ has changed.” So what did we learn?

■Meguro talks with the deputy director at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases. Looking back on the coronavirus pandemic
Next in Meguro was Japan’s top infectious disease research institute, the National Institute of Infectious Diseases. Guided by Deputy Director Tetsuro Matano, they will tour various facilities within the institute and hear the voices of researchers fighting infectious diseases. The images of the new coronavirus that have been repeatedly reported on the news in Japan since then were taken at this laboratory. This time, Meguro used its electron microscope to actually observe the inactivated new coronavirus. Meguro then said, “It’s a completely different feeling than when I was watching the news on TV,” and the conversation between Meguro and Deputy Director Matano then turned to the year 2020. We will think about what we need to do to ensure that we never repeat the era that divided people.

■Snow Man Meguro Ren Comment
Q. What are your honest thoughts after filming?
Over the course of two days, I actually heard a lot of different stories, and although it may be just a little, the way I view “immunity” has changed before and after these two days. Now that I’ve finished recording, I was able to realize, “Oh, this is what it is”, and it also gave me an opportunity to re-examine my own body.
Q. What was particularly impressive?
In the special class, I asked the children a simple but thought-provoking question, “What do you think immunity is?” The teacher’s explanations were very easy to understand, and I learned a lot. Also, when I actually saw the virus with my own eyes at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, it felt completely different from when I watched it on TV news. I felt scared and felt that the virus was right in front of me. On the other hand, it is rare to have the opportunity to work at a research institute like this, and I felt grateful that I was able to survive thanks to the support of the researchers on a daily basis.
Q. Please give a message to the viewers.
It seems that various infectious diseases still exist somewhere in the world, not just in the news we see every day. Because we don’t know what the future holds, I think it’s important to have a sense of crisis and to raise our body’s natural immunity as much as possible on a daily basis. There is a lot of information out there, but I hope this will give you the opportunity to find the information you believe in and start facing your own body.

(C)Fuji Television