Blue Zones - BELONG
Senior Smarts: How Education Helps You Live Longer
Written by Kathryn Savage
When James Smith, a health economist at the RAND Corporation, decided to research the prevailing factors that determine longevity, he had the notion of cause and effect at the front of his mind. A skeptic of the age old wisdom of good diet and exercise, Dr. Smith may have uncovered a new truth to aging well, something that transcends class and diet.
What James Smith discovered is that education is a vital factor in the longevity equation. A New York Times report describing Dr. Smith’s findings explains: "A few extra years of school are associated with extra years of life and vastly improved health decades later, in old age."
Numerous studies support the notion that education, both in adolescence and continuing into old age, is a vital part of living a long, happy and healthy life.
One of the possible benefits of staying in school is that social networks are created. In addition, a sense of purpose can come from throwing yourself at an area that interests you, in which you have no formal knowledge or training.
How to Stay Smart?
Daisey’s Wisdom: To Forgive is to Live!
Written by Kathryn Savage
Last week a Michigan woman, Daisey Bailey, celebrated her 113th birthday. Securing her rank as the oldest person in Michigan is a major milestone. Celebrating her 113th birthday surrounded by family and friends is an even greater achievement.
It is believed Daisey was born on March 30th, 1895. In her lifetime, she has witnessed the women’s suffrage victory, the civil rights movement, the 20th Century World Wars, the invention of Spam lunch meat, the moon launch, and the internet. She has outlived 4 of her children as well as a couple of husbands.
So what are Daisey’s longevity secrets?
Does she drink a glass of red wine with every day? Does she eat well? Exercise?
As numerous reporters questioned Daisey about her long life and her recipe for longevity, she answered simply. Daisey says prayer, love, forgiveness and eating your vegetables are her secret to a long life.
FEATURE: You don’t have to be a nun to get into the habit!
Written by Kathryn Savage
George Michael said it best: “You've got to have, faith, faith, faith.” Now, according to statistical data and years of field research, centenarians living across the globe have got to have faith, too.
Sardinians and Nicoyans tend to be Catholic. Okinawans believe in ancestral worship. Centenarians in Loma Linda, California are Seventh Day Adventists and attend regular religious ceremonies. The simple act of regularly attending a religious service or ceremony seems to be a common thread among cultures with the longest life spans. It doesn’t matter what your faith practice is - attending a religious service - even once a month, seems to have positive effects on overall health and happiness.
Friendship Linked to Longer Life
Written by Kathryn Savage
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Two Costa Rican elders we met on our BlueZones |
Friendship is a wonderful part of life at any age, and having friends by your side, especially in old age, may help you live longer!
Ok, a nursing home or retirement community is not the golden age answer to the college dorm experience. There are no keggers and hot hookups. I mean, retirement is not a time we generally associate with loads of fun, with social bonding.
But there is something about the nature of community living that we can all get behind. Studies suggest that community building and bonding with friends, especially in old age, may lead to a longer life.
Nature, Nurture, or Neither?
Written by Dan Buettner
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| Photo from my visit to Okinawa (2005). Life expectancy in Okinawa is the highest in Japan, and since the Japanese life span is the longest in the world, it follows that Okinawans are the world's longest living people. |
In a typical Western population, only one in 100 people reach the age of 90. The incidence of siblings in the same family reaching age 90 is perhaps 10 times rarer and may be explained by genes that favor longevity.
While the study is not complete, so far no special genes have been identified. According to one researcher, who interviewed over 100 pairs of 90+ brothers and sisters in Greece, a few factors seem to be associated with hitting the 90 year old mark.
- They have low stress
- They grow and eat their own food
- They drink wine
- They don’t smoke
- Live away from the city
- The live away from noise.
- Most live in the mountains—many of them live in the last house on the hill.
FEATURE: Can Meaningful Relationships Fight Obesity?
Written by Kathryn Savage
"What drives people to overeat?". That's the question Dr. Barry E. Levin asks in an article on the psychology of eating, overeating and appetite published in The New York Times. (For the full article follow this link: http://www.nytimes.com ).
I am reminded of a time in my life when food satisfied more than my appetite. After quitting smoking, I started eating more carelessly. I lived in New York City, a big pedestrian city full of small markets, convenient stores, coffee shops and restaurants. But I was lonely. A a new New Yorker, I didn't yet have any meaningful friendships, and I turned to food without realizing it. Anytime I felt a strong emotion I didn't like, I associated it with hunger. "I should eat," I'd think, and I would. And in a sense it was hunger I was feeling, hunger for love, attention, laughs, good times.
Of course, I gained weight. But beyond that, gained a sense of fear; fear of food. Fear of myself around food. I can't really explain why food went from, well, food, into something more, but it did.
Chatty Kathys are probably healthier
Written by Michelle Albert
You are confronted with a stressful situation, so what do you do? Fight or flight, right? Not if you're a woman, according to new research. Women’s bodies, when under stress, release a hormone (oxytocin) that seems to encourage them to nurture friendships and family. Men don’t receive the same positive effects, mainly because of how the testosterone in their bodies. (It’s more complicated than this, of course.) The scientists coined a term for this -- the “friend and befriend” response -- and they suggest it has important relevance for women’s health. Why? Studies show that friendships foster long life by lowering blood pressure, cholesterol, and heart rate. So don’t feel bad the next time a stressful situation sends you to a friend for camaraderie. In fact, seek friends out when times get tough.
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What is 'Belong'?
Belonging to the right group of healthy-minded, supportive people might be the most powerful thing you can do to change lifestyle for the better. Read more...
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