I recently watched an interesting lecture with Dan Buettner, about something called the Blue Zones. Have you heard of it?
Blue Zones are regions, in the world where people live much longer than average. Some people live above 100 years of age.
Dan Buettner and his team of researchers spend years studying this and they found 5 longevity hotspot regions around the world.
The five regions are:
Sardinia(Italy), Icaria (Greece), The islands of Okinawa (Japan), Loma Linda (California US) and the Nicoya Peninsula (Costa Rica),
In Sardinia in Italy there is a village called Seulo, located in the Barbagia of Seulo that holds the record of 20 centenarians from 1996 to 2016, that confirms it is "the place where people live the longest in the world".
In Loma Linda, California: Researchers studied a group of Seventh-day Adventists who rank among North America's longest-lived people.
In Icaria, Greece - An April 2009 study uncovered that this location had the highest percentage of 90-year-olds on the planet, where nearly 1 out of 3 people make it to their 90s.
Icarians also have about 20 percent lower rates of cancer, 50 percent lower rates of heart disease and almost no dementia.
Residents of all these places produce a high rate of centenarians, and they only suffer a fraction of the diseases that commonly kill people in other parts of the developed world, and enjoy more years of good health.
What do these regions have in common that makes people live longer healthier lives than the rest of the world?
The people inhabiting Blue Zones share common lifestyle characteristics that contribute to their longevity.
Dan Buettner and his Blue Zones team of medical researchers, anthropologists, demographers, and epidemiologists, found that the common denominators of all the Blue Zones regions, called the power 9 are:
Daily natural movement. Moving throughout the day, walking, gardening, doing housework. This is a core part of the Blue Zones lifestyle. (No need to go to the gym – Yay!)
Plant-based diet. Beans are the cornerstone of most centenarian diets. Vegetables, fruit, and whole grains are making out most of their diet and meat is eaten in small amounts on occasion.
80% Rule. People in Blue Zones areas, stop eating when their stomachs are 80% full and eat their smallest meal in the early evening.
A little bit of Wine. Moderate but regular consumption of wine with friends and with food is part of the Blue Zones lifestyle.
Life Purpose. The Okinawans call it ikigai and the Nicoyans call it plan de vida. Knowing why you wake up in the morning makes you healthier, happier, and adds up to seven years of extra life expectancy according to Dan Buettner
Daily stress-relieving rituals. Stress is part of life, but Blue Zones centenarians have stress-relieving rituals built into their daily routines. The Adventists in Loma Linda, pray and go for daily walks, Icarians nap, and Sardinians do happy hour.
Faith - Being part of a faith-based community adds 4 to 14 years to life expectancy.
Loved Ones First. Having close and strong family connections (with spouses, parents, grandparents, and grandchildren) is common with Blue Zones centenarians.
Social life. The world’s longest lived people have close friends and strong social networks.
These regions were discovered in 2004, since then The Blue Zones have been reverse-engineered and more Blue Zone areas have been developed through the Blue Zone Project in and around the US.
Currently there are more than 42 Blue Zone cities in the US. You can read more on https://www.bluezonesproject.com/ or in the book; The Blue Zones: Lessons For Living Longer From the People Who’ve lived the Longest.
How cool is this? I just love the whole concept and it has done wonders to people's lives as well as the US health care system, it would be amazing to see this method being adopted in more countries and cities across the world.
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