Inside the Blue Zones: How Everyday Habits Add Years to Life
Did you know that researchers have discovered areas of the world where people live longer, healthier, more active lives, some well past 100 years of age? I’d like to share with who these people are, and 5 things they have in common. And I’ll leave you with ONE POWERFUL THING you can do today that will start you down the path of living a longer, healthier and more active life.
No…I haven’t really discovered the Fountain of Youth. I’m talking about Blue Zones…5 regions across the globe that have been studied for almost two decades because people who live there seem to have discovered the fountain of youth! Well maybe they’re not exactly immortal, but most live active and healthy lives well into their 90’s and many live beyond age 100.
These areas were identified and studied by a man named Dan Buettner. Not only has Dan spent his career learning about longevity, but he’s an accomplished author with two national best sellers, is a National Geographic’s Fellow and even dated supermodel Cheryl Tiegs for several years. Enough about Dan. Let’s look at what he and his team have learned.
There are five blue zone areas. The one people may be most familiar with is the island of Okanawa, Japan, where people live almost disease-free lives and remain physically active and socially engaged well into their 90’s. Retirement isn’t even a consideration for them, and many in their 80’s and 90’s live like people 30 years younger.
Two additional areas are in the Mediterranean: Sardinia Italy and Ikaria Greece. One is in Central America in the country of Costa Rica called Nicoya, and the last one is in southern California, called Loma Linda. Each of these areas are pretty different; some are mountainous, some are islands, some are farmland, some are grassy highlands, and some are suburbia. Some are 3rd world poor; some more working class; and some a bit more affluent. And while there are other important differences between these areas in terms of the built environment and even some of the lifestyles and habits of the people living there, it turns out there are a set of features they ALL seem to have in common. In future episodes I’ll share more about the details and how we can adapt some of the more powerful factors into our own lives. But let’s just talk about what these common factors are, and at the end I’ll leave you with a powerful recommendation of which one you can focus on TODAY to begin living a longer, healthier and more active life.
As I said, there are some very consistent factors that the people in these areas have in common. The first is that they are nearly constantly active and often outside. They don’t necessarily go to the gym or fitness classes or swim or bike. But they do things like work in their garden, or on their small farm, or look after younger members of their family, or play pickleball. Almost always, these activities involve moderate levels of exertion and a lot of walking and whole-body movement. They don’t sit around much.
The second factor is that they don’t tend to smoke. The third factor is that they are very socially engaged and have tight relationships with close friends and family; they tend to be people of faith who regularly gather with others to share their beliefs and rituals.
The fourth factor is their outlook on life. If you sat down and had a conversation with anyone from any of these areas, you’d probably come away thinking “wow, that person is really happy, seems relaxed and not worried about their future” and you’d be right. As a matter of fact, people who live in these Blue Zones tend to have a strong sense of purpose: why they are alive and what they are looking to get done that day, and not to be concerned about tomorrow or things they can’t control. This seems to also lead to lower levels of stress and depression in these groups.
The fifth factor is what they eat and drink, and even HOW they eat. For starters, these groups consume a very plant rich diet, with meat and dairy only making up about 5% of their daily calories. These diets contain a lot of fresh vegetables and whole grains, sometime a little fish. But they tend to also be very high in BEANS and NUT and SOY. Not all but some have a glass of red wine with their main meal. But no matter what they are eating, all tend to consume their meals without overeating. As a matter of fact, calorie restriction keeps them thinner than most Americans.
Well, I’m not suggesting you all pick up and move to Costa Rica or Italy, but of all the things that seem to have the most research and support, it looks like keeping your calories down is one of, if not THE most powerful. So, here is my recommendation for something you can begin doing today to live a longer, healthier and more active life. When you sit down to eat your next meal, take a few minutes to be thankful for your day, and for the food you are about to eat. If you are serving the food for yourself, put your meal on a small plate, because research has shown that we think we are fuller when our plate gets empty. And importantly, stop eating as soon as you feel about 80% full. We’ll talk more about this in future posts, but basically this allows your body time to tell your brain that you’ve had enough to eat.
If you’d like to learn more about Blue Zones, or even watch a documentary about them on Netflix, here’s a link to the trailer (Blue Zones – YouTube Trailer).