***Longevity Hotspots and Blue Zones: Secrets to Living a Long, Healthy, Happy Life

“If I had known I was going to live so long, I’d have taken better care of myself”. (Eubie Blake, celebrated ragtime pianist, 1883-1983)

Are you interested in living a longer, healthier, happier life? Would you like to avoid chronic diseases, feel better and stay younger for longer? According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, one in three Americans will die from cardiovascular disease in the United States and one in three will develop cancer. One in three adults are obese. More than one third of adults do not get enough physical activity and many get none at all. Less than a quarter of the population eats the basic minimum of five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. There are experts who believe that this new generation will be the first in history to have a shorter lifespan than their parents.

What are the reasons for this epidemic? It primarily has to do with what we are eating and doing, or NOT doing. Current studies show that at a minimum, eighty percent of all chronic disease that afflicts people in the United States is actually caused by diet and other lifestyle factors. This means that we have the power to prevent the early onset of disease and death with a few changes in our diets and lifestyle.

What better way to discover the best possible health practices to adopt than to study the world’s healthiest and longest living people? The “Akea” project studied health and longevity markers among the Sardinian people. The research team was headed by professor Luca Deiana, of the Biochemistry Clinic, in collaboration with the Max Plank Institute for Demographic Research and Duke University. The word “Akea” is a Sardinian greeting for meaning “may you live well for 100 years!”. The Okinawian Centenarian Study has been ongoing since 1975. It is a population-based study of centenarians and other selected elderly in the Japanese area of Okinawa. Its purpose was to identify the genetic and lifestyle factors responsible for the people in Okinawa enjoying this successful aging phenomenon and to improve the healthy life expectancy in all populations of the world.There are places in the world called Longevity Hotspots and Blue Zones (Dan Buettner’s The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From People Who Live the Longest”) Blue Zones are areas with the highest concentration of male centenarians. People who live in these ‘hotspots’ experience exceptionally low rates of chronic disease. Cancer is almost unheard of. People regularly live well into their 90s, 100s and over without suffering from ANY illness and do not visit doctors. These people are enjoying healthy, happy, productive lives and are in top mental and physical shape well into old age. Eight of well over thirty Longevity Hotspots include Okinawa, Japan; Bama, China; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Loma Linda, California; Sardinia, Italy; Campodimele, Italy; Symi, Greecemmon; and Hunza, Pakistan.

The inhabitants of Symi have been found by epidemiologists to have the best health records and highest life expectancy for the region. In northeastern Pakistan in the town of Hunza, the people are believed to have exceptionally high life expectancy rates. They have been found by western doctors to have extremely low incidences of chronic disease such as coronary heart disease and cancer. In Nicoya, Costa Rica it has the lowest middle-age mortality rate in the world. Bama, China was named an official “Hometown of Longevity” by the World Health Organization. There are 34 centenarians per 100,000 people in an average year, the same as the Okinawian figures. Only ten percent of 90¬+ year olds suffer from heart disease in one study. Loma Linda, California is a center of activity for the Seventh Day Adventist Church where they enjoy the highest life expectancies than any other well-described natural population. Campodimele, Italy is known as Europe’s “Village of Eternal Youth”. A World Health Organization study found that 80 year-olds in Campodimele have no incidence of high blood pressure and other researchers found the adult cholesterol levels are equivalent to those of infants.

What is it about these people who live in these longevity hotspots that help them to maintain their youth and delay their morality? Five principles have been identified that these people had in common: nutrition, movement, purpose, connection and relaxation.

The centenarians are people who work in the countryside, usually as shepherds or farmers. They are simple people who loved to live simply. They eat natural foods-fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, fish, some organic dairy and meat with absolutely NO junk food. They get plenty of exercise and fresh air. They have a sense of belonging and have a loving, supportive family and friends. They are active in many ways and have a purpose in life. They have a strong spiritual faith.

Their food is natural and compatible with our bodies. They eat 2-4 pieces of fruit daily. They eat up to eight servings of vegetable daily (each serving equivalent to half to one cup). Their vegetables are boiled, steamed, roasted, baked, stir fried, raw, casseroled, and in soups. They eat whole grains daily or most days. They eat proteins with every meal and snack. Protein foods include red meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy (yogurt), beans (e.g. kidney beans, black beans, tofu from soy beans, etc.)., lentils, peas (e.g. chickpeas), nuts and seeds. Meats are only eaten occasionally-rarely and for special occasions. Milk and cheese are only eaten in small quantities and usually come from goats and sheep. Monosaturated fats are eaten daily or most days including extra virgin olive oil, avocados, and nuts. These are eaten raw or hydrated minimally to prevent the formation of free radicals. Omega 3 and Omega 6 essential fatty acids are consumed daily. Omega 3 sources include oily fish (e.g. salmon, mackerel, herring, anchovies, tuna (it contains less omega 3 than the others and is high in mercury so is not the best source), krill, flax seed and flax oil, hemp seed and hemp oil, walnuts. Sources of omega 6 consumed are nuts and seeds, flax seeds and flax oil, hemp seed and hemp oil. Several glasses of water are drank daily, along with green tea and herbal teas. They drink a lot of tumeric tea in Okinawa which is anti-inflammatory. They eat whole grains daily or most days. They drink a lot of tumeric tea in Okinawa which is anti-inflammatory. Organic red wine or rice wine is drunk in the hot spots, in small quantities and always with a meal. Coffee is not drunk other than in Nicoya, where one cup is drunk daily. Even more important than what Okinawians eat is the amount of food they consume. Their caloric consumption is significantly lower than what is consumed in the United States.

People keep moving all day long in the Longevity Hot Spots by shepherding, walking up the hill to get somewhere, practicing martial arts, dancing, gardening, swimming, rowing, fishing, playing polo. They have a long working life, working up to 80 years or so.

Equally as important as what the centenarians eat is their mental state. People in the Hot Spots have a sense of purpose and a reason to get out of bed in the morning.

They are looking after their family, tending the vegetables, catching fish, doing the chores. Everyone has something to do and they must do it in order to survive, thus giving them a sense of purpose.. They enjoy their work. Older people are respected and continue to work long past ‘retirement age’. They also have a strong spiritual faith which adds to a wider sense of purpose and meaning in life. They tend to live in large extended families. They have a sense of belonging and of being loved and cherished. They live in close-knit communities. Their community life and family structures are strong and enlarged with their siblings, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, almost three generations coming together. The elderly are never alone and continue to be of great significance in within the community. They are happy people and feel that it is worth living even if they are weak. They relish the affection of children, grandchildren and friends. Crime rates are low or non-existent. There is a culture of reciprocity-in Okinawa, people leave meals on their doorstep for others if they need it. People are not stressed. They know bow to rest and to take time out. Some may even have a siesta in the middle of the day.

In conclusion, it appears that people living in Longevity Hot Spots live simpler, happier lives. Their lifestyle choices are healthier and more natural than is usually found in the traditional, modern world. If we want to achieve optimal health, perhaps we should consider adopting some the habits of the world’s healthiest and longest living people. Best wishes for living a long, healthy, productive life. Akent’annos.