Welcome to the last part of our 4 part series on how to live to 100! Over the past three weeks, we’ve traveled to the mountain villages of Sardinia (read here), the warm coastal waters of Okinawa, Japan (read here), then stopped by Loma Lina, California (read here). This week we sum up what we’ve learned from studying the lives of the long living in the 3 featured Blue Zones. Hopefully, you can implement some of these tips into your own life, to live healthier and longer.

Blue zone’ has quickly become the buzz word for areas where people live significantly healthier and longer lives. Popularized by New York Times bestselling author and National Geographic fellow Dan Buetter, the study of blue zones gives us a glimpse into the mindset & lifestyle of the long living.

Our ‘Blue Zone‘ series:

  • Part 1. Mountain villages of Sardinia, Italy (read here)
  • Part 2. Pacific Island of Okinawa, Japan (read here)
  • Part 3. The Adventists of Loma Linda, California (read here)
  • Part 4. How you can live to 100. What do they all have in common?

Live longer in a Blue Zone

People that live in Blue Zone areas are 10x likelier to make it to 100 years old. With those kinds of odds, it’s worth looking into how these centenarians do it. Not to mention, those 100 years are often healthier than the average elderly North American. Individuals from the Blue Zones have lower instances of diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and even dementia. So those 100 years are often years of quality.

If you haven’t read the other 3 Blue Zone profiles don’t fret. We have summarized the top fewf similarities between them:

What do Blue Zones all have in common?

  1. Active Lifestyle. This will come as no surprise, but just in case you didn’t know, ‘exercise is good for you.’ But this message still must be engrained in everyone’s psyche. A common misconception is that exercise has to be hard and sweaty. However, you don’t need to run 15 km or barbell squat 200 lbs. to enjoy the physiological, emotional, psychological and even spiritual benefits of exercise.In Sardinia, activity comes from walking the hills shepherding your sheep, splitting some wood, and milking your goats. In Okinawa, Japan, activity is stretching on the beach, walking to a friend’s home, and tending the garden. These are just active parts of their day, not excessive exercise. In fact, household chores can burn quite a lot of calories. Reader’s digest counted how many calories these daily chores burn:
    • Gardening: 250 calories per hour
    • Painting or Staining: 290 calories per hour
    • Cooking: 150 calories per hour
    • Mowing the lawn: 325 calories per hour
    • Sweeping: 240 calories
  2. Eat Locally. Another “no duh?” tip, but hear us out. Individuals from Blue Zones largely get their food from the land. Either growing it for themselves or purchasing it from a local vendor. We won’t speak to how more vegetables and less sugar extends your life because that shouldn’t be news. However, where your veggies and fruit were grown, as well as the freshness, can have a major impact on your health.A lot of the produce you find in the grocery stores was picked before it was ripe, so it lasts longer on the shelf. It’s a good thing in that we now get a lot of variety in the form of fruits and vegetables that don’t grow locally (thank goodness, otherwise, us Canadians would never know what a banana tastes like). However, the major drawback to this variety is that many of the vitamins, minerals, & other nutrients haven’t fully formed yet because the plant was picked too early. So that head of broccoli not only tastes worse because it’s not as fresh, but it also has dramatically less nutritional content than the same broccoli would if ripe.
  3. Purpose. ‘A knet’annos,’ ‘ikigai,’ and faith. Purpose is everything, it motivates us, reinforces our healthy habits. It just feels good to wake up in the morning and have something you want to achieve. Purpose could be anything. For the Seventh-day Adventists, their purpose comes from their faith. In Okinawa, Japan, after a certain age, health and longevity often become the purpose.
  4. Valuing Elders. Ageism is showing prejudice against someone because of their age. It is a fascinating form of discrimination in that it’s a group we are all hopeful to eventually join. Discrimination against seniors comes in many forms, whether it be baby talk, making fun of memory loss, employment, and much more. In the Blue Zones, the elderly command respect. Families feel it would be a huge dishonor to put family members in a home, while villagers take great pride in the longevity of its population.This ties into our 3rd point – purpose. Feeling useful and independent provide purpose. It’s especially important, since slight physical and mental declines can be expected with age, and so purpose is a major motivation.

Steps to Implement these healthy tips:

  1. Plan (SMART goals)
    • You’ve probably heard the acronym SMART for setting goals. If you want to accomplish a task, SMART is the way to do it. It stands for:
      • S = specific
      • M = measurable
      • A = attainable
      • R = realistic
      • T = time-based
    • Example: Within a month, I’m going to start going to the local farmer market on Fridays. There I’m going to get my week’s worth of local produce.
  2. Baby Steps
    • The little steps add up. Don’t be afraid to start small with your goals. For instance, maybe before going to the farmer’s market and eating only locally, make a list of what you’d like. And before spending your whole paycheck on local food, try a few of your favorites. There is no need to go all in from the get-go, especially since that tactic can sometimes overwhelm. Starting too large could have you accomplishing less than you would if you had taken baby steps.
  3. Review
    • Go over your progress at the end of every week, month, or time-based goal. See what worked and what didn’t. Maybe there are better and more enjoyable ways to get active, or start eating locally.

There you have it! That’s the last of the blue zones articles. What are your tips for a long and healthy life? Please share! As always, it was a pleasure!

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