Blue Zones: Living Longer & Living Better

In an attempt to uncover how to live better and live longer, National Geographic Fellow and Author, Dan Buettner began exploring pockets of the world where populations were living much longer and healthier lives than the rest of the globe.

In his now famous 2023 Netflix documentary, 'Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zone', Buettner searches for an explanation for the longevity of populations living in areas he terms, ‘Blue Zones’.

Coined by Buettner and his team, Blue Zones are areas in the world where people, on average, are living exceptionally longer lives. Unlike around the rest of the world, where 90- and 100-year-olds do exist, Blue Zones represent areas with such a high concentration of nonagenarians (90+) and centenarians (100+) that their entire populations are thought to be living longer.

Super Agers

More often than not, ageing is associated with deterioration. Generally speaking, with age we tend to become weaker, more frail and more susceptible to chronic diseases and disabilities. But in Blue Zones, this is not the case. Even though these populations are living longer lives, their quality of life remains high, so much so that they’re considered ‘super agers’.

In his research, Buettner cited The Danish Twin Study (1996), which found that genetics only account for about 20% of longevity. Rather, environmental influences, such as diet and lifestyle, play a much greater role in a person’s life span. So, what are these populations doing and eating that is having such an influence on their longevity?

The Power 9

In his effort to reverse engineer longevity, and following his exploration of these five Blue Zones, Buettner established nine lifestyle and diet habits of the world’s longest-living people. He calls them the Power 9.

Move Naturally Rather than running a 5k every day or spending hours lifting weights, Blue Zone populations take advantage of their natural environment. They have vegetable patches in their gardens, they live in walkable towns to fetch their groceries and they perform manual labour around the home.

Purpose They have a sense of purpose in life and wake each morning with a determination to fulfil their purpose. Buettner says in order to find your purpose, you must look within yourself and find your passion, what you’re good at, what would benefit your community and what fills your life with worth.

Down Shift Of course, Blue Zone populations still feel stress, just as we do. However, they have created a routine that aids stress relief and enables them to take moments in the day to be thankful, reflect and indulge in time for themselves. Journalling is a great way to reflect and be thankful.

80% Rule When it comes to eating, they do not eat until they’re completely full, stopping at about 80%. The other 20% could be the difference between gaining and losing weight. Eat slower and practice mindful eating. This helps you intuitively understand how full you actually are.

Eat Plants Adopting a plant-based diet is proven to be an effective way to prevent various chronic conditions, so it’s no surprise that the diets of all Blue Zones are largely plant-based. Meat is eaten, but very irregularly and is always a much smaller portion.

Wine at 5 Most of the Blue Zone populations regularly drink alcohol (yay!). Gathering with friends or family, they drink one or two glasses each day. Happy hour isn’t just a time for discounted drinks. It’s treated as a social experience.

Right Tribe Being in a social circle is very common. The commitment of a friendship promotes happiness and steers you away from loneliness. It’s not enough to stay connected with friends digitally. In-person contact offers much greater health benefits.

Loved Ones First Family always comes first. Blue Zone families live with, or near, their grandparents or parents and often commit to a life partner and invest time and care in their children.

Belong Many subscribe to a faith-based community, the denomination of which does not seem to matter. It could be that you join a sports team or a social club. What matters is that you feel a sense of belonging.

What To Eat: Diets of the Blue Zones

As you can see, there are many elements to the longevity of Blue Zone populations, and diet is a huge reason why Blue Zones have earned their title. It's easy to eat like the healthiest people in the world once you know how.

Reduce Your Fish You may be surprised at the lack of fish in the diets of the Blue Zones. If you do choose fish, pick those that are abundant — sardines, snapper and anchovies — they're inexpensive and are not exposed to higher levels of mercury.

Eat Beans Whether it's black beans, lentils, garbanzo, white beans, soybeans or any other, it's great to get a daily dose of legumes. They're a great source of protein, carbohydrates and fibre and have very little fat.

Eat Whole Foods A good way to think about ‘whole foods’ is to think of them as one ingredient that is raw, cooked, ground or fermented — they are not highly processed. This isn’t always easy in Cayman, so when buying foods, choose ones with few ingredients, all of which should be recognisable. Reduce artificial preservatives and additives.

Only Eat Sourdough Much of the bread available in Cayman and across the world starts with bleached flour and contains many preservatives. Blue Zone bread is either sourdough or whole grain, both of which are nutrient rich.

Go Nuts Eat a mixture of almonds, peanuts, Brazil nuts, cashews and walnuts, as they are each a source of various nutrients. Many of these nuts are also likely to lower your cholesterol. Try to consume a couple of handfuls of nuts per day.

Cut Sugar Avoiding sugar is difficult as it occurs naturally in fruits and vegetables, but the problem is added sugar. Hidden sugars appear in almost everything, including yoghurts, sauces, fruit juice, breakfast cereals, flavoured coffees and premade smoothies. Small amounts of added sugars are fine, but they can cause harm when eaten in large amounts or regularly.

Drink Mostly Water Give up drinking your favourite soft drink or soda, including the diet versions! Water is by far the most consumed beverage in the Blue Zones, but tea, coffee and wine all appear in the diets of the Blue Zones, with a few exceptions, and all are enjoyed in moderation.