Have you ever heard of “Blue Zones”?
These parts of the world are known for having populations that live extremely long and healthy lives.
Some of these locations may look familiar.
Okinawa Prefecture (the birthplace of Mr. Miyagi from Karate Kid!). Sardinia, Italy. Costa Rica, Nicoya Peninsula. Ikaria, Greece.
These regions have a diet centered on local, natural foods, high vegetable intake, low incidence of disease, rich social interactions, low stress, and high physical activity. A higher proportion of people live longer.
Books, documentaries, and countless news articles have championed these societies, and millions of health-conscious people have modeled their lifestyles after these people.
There is just one The problem with this wonderful story.
That’s actually not true.
1st Ig Nobel Prize in Demography
Last month, Dr. Saul Justin Newman was awarded the first Ig Nobel Prize in the field of demography.
These awards are given annually for scientific research that “makes people laugh and make them think.”
With this special award, Newman was recognized for debunking nearly all of the research findings on the Blue Zones.
Here’s what Dr. Newman discovered:
“The highest rates of extreme old age are predicted by higher poverty rates, lack of birth certificates, and fewer 90-year-olds.
Pressures on poverty and pension fraud were shown to be good indicators of reaching the age of 100 in a manner “contrary to reasonable expectations”. ”
It turns out that most “very old and healthy” people in these blue zones were simply suffering from symptoms such as: Very poor records, pension fraud and outright lies.
Let’s take a look at what’s really happening in Okinawa:
“Despite vegetables and sweet potatoes being promoted as important components of Okinawa’s ‘Blue Zone’ diet, Okinawans have the lowest intake of vegetables and sweet potatoes in Japan and the highest BMI, according to the Japanese government. .”
Ooooh. So what should we do!
Beware of anecdotes that make dramatic promises
If you spend enough time on social media, people will tell you that they only eat meat, eliminate carbohydrates completely, that “this one supplement saved my life,” or that doing XYZ cured your illness. You will meet someone who is.
These anecdotes are incredibly powerful, especially when they have villains, victims, and heroic stories of overcoming adversity. It is also often used to sell solutions in tablet or powder form.
The good news is that data is constantly being improved by science.
I don’t actually You don’t need to know what people in Okinawa eat, or study the daily habits of a particular community in Costa Rica.
Don’t get me wrong. I also love whimsical stories about the customs of distant lands, but I still keep coming back to reality and science.
and we can remember that we need to do our best tailored to our particular circumstances. It may include: treatmentmay include weight loss drugswhich may include focusing on sleep for now.
It’s our decision, and we can do so with confidence. Not because that’s what’s happening in Costa Rica or Greece, but simply because it’s what’s best for us.
Here are some ways we can positively impact longevity and healthspan.
Yes, some of these are part of the “Blue Zones Diet”…just without the sensationalism and pension fraud.
And many of them may be outside of our control.
for example, social determinants of health (economic stability, access to health care, education, neighborhood) are strongly correlated with all-cause mortality, and many of these may be inaccessible to large portions of the population.
life is a mess
I’m not telling you this story to tell you to avoid blue zone diets.
You can do much worse than eating a Mediterranean diet. of course If you eat mainly fresh fish, whole foods, and vegetables, you’re more likely to lose weight and be healthier.
I bring this up to remind you that life is messy.
A long, healthy life is a combination of dozens of interconnected things (like those listed above) and thousands of decisions made over a lifetime. plus Genetics, society, luck, etc. What works for one person may not work for another, and there is no “one diet fits all” solution to our problems.
Tomorrow we could get hit by a bus, receive a cancer diagnosis despite “doing everything right,” or experience something like this: An unexpected accident that changes everything next week.
So instead of chasing immortality through sensational anecdotes or getting caught up in the latest social media trends…
We can stay focused on the things we believe will make our lives better tomorrow than they are today.
Like the list above! Excuse me, I’m going to do some push-ups, eat some veggies, and go for a little walk while calling a friend.
-Steve
P.S. Hats off to my friend Jodi Ettenberg. His heartbreaking and powerful story of acceptance is linked above. it was her newsletter That’s what led me to this article!
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