Blue Zones Eaternal Paradises

Five specific regions around the world have been identified as having the highest concentrations of 100-year-old people. And a regional slow-food diet plays a big role in their longevity

- JULIAN MANNING

WHAT ARE BLUE ZONES?

For well over a decade, longevity researcher Dan Buettner (also a National Geographic Fellow) has underscored the lifestyle of Blue Zones, a term he and his research team coined, referring to five specific areas across the globe where there are exceptionally high rates of centenarians. These areas are Icaria (Greece), Ogliastra, Barbagia, Seulo of Sardinia (Italy), Okinawa (Japan), the Nicoya Peninsula (Costa Rica), and the community of Seventh-day Adventists in Loma Linda, California (U.S.A.). There are nine overarching factors, known as the 'Power of Nine,' Buettner's team identified as evinced reasons for significantly increased longevity in these areas.

The common denominators include, ‘Moving Naturally' (daily walking or gardening); 'Purpose' (motivation to get up in the morning); 'Down Shift' (activities like prayer, meditation, naps, and early evening tipples with friends are ways different Blue Zone communities shed stress); “The 80% Rule' (which means eat only until you are 80 percent full); 'Plant Slant' ( significant portions of beans and greens in each region's diet, and if meat is eaten, it is done in small, spaced out portions); 'Wine @ 5' (moderate drinking is common in four of the Blue Zones, the wines of Ikaria and Sardinia being particularly salubrious when portioned adequately); 'Belong' (the team's research indicates that the vast majority of Blue Zone citizens are part of some form of faith-based community); ‘Loved Ones First' (close family ties); 'Right Tribe' (strong social circles).