THE BLUE ZONES:Secrets for Living Longer
Living a long healthy life is a blessing. My great-great-grandmother was 103 years old when I was born and I also had a great-great-grandfather who lived pass the 100 year old mark. Currently my great-grandmother is 97 years old and is a great-great-grandmother herself. Who knows how long will I live but I will do my best to follow in their footsteps. This post is about that: learning about what it takes to live long and healthy lives from those who’ve lived them. For that purpose I will be writing a review on a great book I just read:The Blue Zones by Dan Buettner.
My copy of the Blue Zones
This book is about the author’s research of specific areas where the concentration of people living to be a 100 years old is much higher than the norm. He calls these areas: The Blue Zones. Buettner’s quest is to figure out patterns in people’s diets and lifestyles that can teach us how we too can prolong our lives. The first Blue Zone is located in Italy. Here are some lessons from the Sardinians:
SARDINIA’S BLUE ZONE:
-Eat a lean plant based diet accented with meat: the classic Sardinian diet consists of whole grains, garden vegetables, beans and fruits. They also eat pecorino cheese which is high in omega-3 fatty acids. Meat is consumed on Sundays and special occasions.
-Put family first: people who live in strong, healthy families suffer low rates of depression, suicide and stress.
-Drink goat’s milk: when compared to cow’s milk, goat’s milk delivers 13% more calcium, 25% more vitamin B6, 47% more vitamin A, 134% more potassium and 3 times more niacin.
-Celebrate elders: the support that grandparents can offer includes love, childcare, financial help, wisdom and motivation to succeed in life. Grandparents can be an incredibly positive influence in the lives of children, this I know from personal experience.
-Take a walk: Sardinian shepherds walk about five miles a day through rugged terrain, this provides a great cardiovascular boost as well as improving bone health.
-Drink a glass or two of red wine a day:moderation is the key, the flavonoids in wine can help lower levels of stress and clean the arterial walls.
-Laugh with friends: men in Sardinia are famous for their sardonic sense of humor. They gather to laugh with and at each other. Laughter reduces stress which is a major risk of cardiovascular disease.
Next up, let’s see what can we can learn from the centenarians in Okinawa, Japan.
I first learned about Okinawa through this film. There is so much more...
OKINAWA’S BLUE ZONE:
-Embrace an ikagai: this is the your life’s purpose. Older Okinawans can readily articulate the reason why the get up in the morning.
-Rely on a plant based diet: traditional Okinawans diets consist of stir-fried vegetables, sweet potatoes and tofu. Their meals are high in nutrients and low in calories. They also consume pork in infrequent basis and in small amounts.
-Get gardening: gardening is great source of physical activity that exercises the body through great range of motion and helps reduce stress. It is also a constant source of fresh vegetables.
-Eat more soy: soy has the ability to lower bad cholesterol (LDL) and it is a great source of protein and flavonoids which can protect against cancer.
-Maintain a moai: this refers to a close social network which offers emotional and financial support in times of need.
-Enjoy the sunshine: vitamin D is produced by the body when it is exposed to sunlight. Too much sun exposure can damage the skin but too little can produce a deficiency in vitamin D which is necessary for healthy bone metabolism and a strong immune system.
-Stay active: besides gardening and walking Okinawan houses have little furniture which means that people sit on mats on the floor. Okinawans are constantly getting up and down from the floor which helps build lower body strength and balance.
-Plant a medicinal garden: Okinawans live in a culture of prevention, they grow mugworth, ginger and turmeric which have proven medicinal qualities. Consuming these herbs every day might offers great protection against illness.
-Have an attitude: older Okinawans have gone through great hardships (World War II) but have been able to let the difficultyears remain in the past and now enjoy life’s little pleasures. Okinawans are likable people who surround themselves with younger people into their old age.
Now, it is back to the United States to the 7th Day Adventist Loma Linda Blue Zone in Southern California.
LOMA LINDA’S BLUE ZONE:
-Find a sanctuary in time: take a weekly break from the rigor’s of life. Adventists observe the Sabbath every Sunday which provides a time to focus on family, spirituality, camaraderie and nature.
-Maintain a healthy body mass index (BMI): a healthy BMI is associated with lower risk of cardiovascular disease.
-Get regular, moderate exercise: according to the Adventist Health Survey getting regular low-intensity exercise helps reduce chances of having heart disease and certain cancers.
-Spend time with like-minded friends: Adventists find well-being by sharing their values and habits with each other.
-Snack on nuts: several studies have confirmed that the consumption of nuts on regular basis can significantly lower risk of heart disease.’
-Give something back: helping others provides a sense of purpose and helps lower risk for depression.
-Eat meat in moderation: the Loma Lima Adventists eat very little meat and consume a diet rich in vegetables, fruits and whole grains.
-Eat an early light dinner: a light dinner avoids consuming too many calories during a period of inactivity. It also seems to promote better sleep and a lower BMI.
-Put more plants in your diet: eating 2 or more servings of fruit a day as well as legumes and tomatoes 3 or 4 times per week seems to reduce incidence of many cancers such as lung, cancer, ovarian and prostate.
-Drink plenty of water: keeping your body hydrated among other things can have a substantial reduction in the risk of a fatal heart attack.
A diet rich in fruits and vegetables is common to all Blue Zones
And finally, let travel to Nicoya,Costa Rica.
NICOYA’S BLUE ZONE:
-Have a “plan de vida”: translated to purpose in life. Successful centenarians have a strong sense of purpose, feel needed and want to contribute to a greater good.
-Drink water: the region of Nicoya in Costa Rica has the countries higher calcium content which could explain lower incidences of heart disease as well as stronger bones and less hip fractures.
-Keep focus on family: Latin-American put great emphasis on family life. This can provide greater support and sense f purpose in life.
-Eat a light dinner and fewer calories: there seems to be a pattern between eating less calories and living longer. The Costa Rican Blue Zone is another example of it.
-Maintain social networks: centenarians in Nicoya get frequent visits from neighbors. They also know how to listen, laugh, and appreciate what they have.
-Keep hard at work:centenarians in Nicoya have enjoyed physical work all their lives and joy in everyday chores.
-Get sensible sun: Nicoyans are regularly exposed to sunshine which ensures healthy levels of vitamin D.
-Embrace a common history: Nicoyans are descendants of the indigenous Chorotega and still consume a highly nutritional traditional diet of fortified maize and beans.
And that is it for the 4 Blue Zones. Now let’s recap the final chapter of the book which gives us guidelines about how we can build our own Blue Zone.
1.Be active: a combination of cardiovascular, strength and balance exercise in regular basis is necessary to keep your body healthy.
2.Cut down your calorie consumption: excess calories causes us to become overweight which increases risks for hearth diseases and cancers.
3.Avoid meat and process foods: you don’t have to became a vegetarian but the restriction of meat is common to all 4 Blue Zones. Another commonality is a diet free of process foods and rich in plant sources.
4.Drink red wine in moderation: wine contains antioxidants that might help fight heat disease. Since alcohol has the inverse effect the key here is moderation.
5.Live a life of purpose: Okinawans call it ikigai and Nicoyans call it plan de vida. No matter what you call it, finding a reason to wake up in the morning seems to be a trait that centenerains share.
6.Take time to relieve stress:Sardians gather daily at 5pm, Nicoyans take a break every afternoon to rest and socialize with friends, the Okinawans gather in their “moais” and Adventists celebrate the Sabbath. The best way to enjoy life’s ride isn’t by keeping your foot on the gas all the time, make sure you stop every once in a while to enjoy the scenary in good company.
7.Participate in a spiritual community: it does not matter what faith you practice, but it matters that you live a spiritual life. You can choose to explore many traditions,learn to master one or create your own. People who live spiritual lives seem to live longer and healthier physical lives as well.
8.Make family a priority:the most successful centenarians in the research put their families first. Older relatives who live with their families are less suceptible to disease, eat healthier diets, have lower levels of stress and have a much lower incidence of serious accidents.
9.Surround yourself by those who share heathy living values: we are affected by the poeple we spend time with. To live a long and healthy life it is important to surround ourselves with those who share the same goals. A strong support system facilitates sticking to our habits. What kind of habits is your suport system promoting?
If you enjoyed this post I recommend you dig deeper and read the Blue Zones. It is a great read, full of very interesting insights into the lives of people who are living long and healthy lives. I hope it inspires you to follow in theirs footsteps. Old age does not have to be a sad period at the end of our lives, if we make the right choices it can actually be an enjoyable period where we get to celebrate our lives surrounded by people we love.
Live healthy, live long,
Luis
I almost forgot, here is the link to the book: www.bluezones.com
