Live Like You Will Be 100 Years Old!
- Neuro-Behavioral Clinical Research
- May 6
- 7 min read
Get Into the Blue Zone - 9 Habits for a Long, Vibrant Healthspan
Aging is inevitable.
Aging well is the elusive prize we pursue.
How much control do we actually have over how well we age?
Preventative causes of illness and death—tobacco smoking, poor diet and physical inactivity—are responsible for nearly a million deaths annually; almost 40 percent of all deaths. You may be surprised to learn that 90 percent of healthcare costs treat people with chronic yet preventable diseases, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
What’s a body to do? The solution has been a quagmire of conflicting advice, expensive treatments, punishing diets, aggressive workouts and questionable biohacks that change daily.
Simple Health
What if the secret to vibrant longevity isn’t about obsessive trackings and treatments with MRI scans, genetic profiles, AI prognostications, customized supplements, intermittent fasting, ice plunges, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, IV vitamin drips, infrared light treatment, blood transfusions from teenagers or any other fancy ‘fixes’ from a relentless cascade of pricey promises from the longevity industry?
Our anxiety builds as we fret over what to eat, how long to sleep, and how much more we should work out, meditate and self-motivate to live longer, better, stronger…
Maybe we should get back to basics and simply follow tried-and-true wellness concepts. While not a quick fix, the nine pillars of Blue Zones communities exemplify best practices your grandparents would have called common sense. Here’s the good news: you don’t have to go solo on your Blue Zones journey. Your local community center may offer the structure and support you’re looking for.
Blue Zones
First, a refresher: The term ‘Blue Zones’ was coined by National Geographic writer Dan Buettner in 2004 when he traveled the globe to find places where concentrations of healthy, vigorous 100-year-olds lived. Although his research methods for confirming the ages of some individuals have recently come under scrutiny, the longest-living groups were found in five places from a variety of cultures and regions:
Sardinia, Italy (with the world’s highest concentration of male centenarians);
Ikaria, Greece (with one of the world’s lowest rates of middle-age mortality and the lowest rates of dementia);
Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica (site of the world’s lowest rates of middle age mortality and second-highest concentration of male centenarians);
Seventh Day Adventists in Loma Linda, California (who live 10 years longer than the rest of us in North America); and
Okinawa, Japan (where females over 70 are the longest-lived population in the world).
What started as a trek to explore the secrets of longevity became a career-defining mission to identify what characteristics these age defiers shared to not only live many years, but also disease-free, independent, joyful existences. Not just long lifespans but vibrant healthspans.
“The life expectancy of an American born today averages 78.2 years,” Buettner writes. “But this year, over 70,000 Americans have reached their 100th birthday. What are they doing that the average American isn’t? We knew most of the answers lied within their lifestyle and environment (The Danish Twin Study established that only about 20% of how long the average person lives is determined by genes).”
With his team of medical researchers, anthropologists, demographers and epidemiologists, Buettner eventually identified nine evidence-based common denominators among all the Blue Zones. Buettner calls them the Blue Zones Power 9: Lifestyle Habits of the World’s Healthiest, Longest-Lived People.
They are:
Move Naturally
Add ‘moving without thinking about it’ to your routines with gardening, housework and fewer automated conveniences
Know Your Purpose
The reason why you wake up every morning
Downshift
De-stress with calming routines
Apply the 80% Rule
Stop eating when you feel 80% full; the 20% gap between not being hungry and feeling full
Plant Slant
Eat less meat; more beans and veggies
Wine/Friends @ 5
Those who drink moderately with friends over a meal reportedly live longer than non drinkers and heavy drinkers
Belong
The longest-living people belong to faith-based communities; attending faith-based services four times monthly reportedly adds 4-14 years to life expectancy
Loved Ones First
Centenarians put their families first, commit to a life partner (adding up to three additional years of life expectancy), and invest in their children with time and love
Right Tribe
The world’s longest-lived people belong to social circles that support healthy behaviors. Okinawans create ‘moais’–groups of five friends—that commit to each other for life
Zoning In
Since we have control over 80% of our health and wellness outcomes, it’s up to each of us to integrate these principles for our own good. Even better is joining a community of like-minded folks who will help us to not only stay on track but offer joy along the journey. Many senior and fitness centers in Northeast Ohio provide programming that aligns with the Power 9 principles. One of special note is the Westlake Community Services Center.
On a frigid, icy February afternoon, patrons disregarded the weather and continued streaming into the Center for their afternoon plans to greet, gather and grow together. The welcoming front desk and sunny café provide a warm welcome, along with inviting aromas from chef-prepared soups, salads, sandwiches and a Friday hot special.
Plenty of comfortable seating encourages patrons to linger, visit with old friends and get to know new people. Beyond the café is a sprawling, sunlit array of dedicated spaces where 200 free or low-cost programs, classes, games, entertainment or activities are offered to keep people active, engaged, learning, doing and laughing. On our tour, we visited a painting class, a tax prep workshop and folks working out in a spacious weight room with pneumatic machines. Last year, the bustling community center attracted over 67,000 visits.
Director Lydia Gadd first got her patrons acquainted with the Blue Zones concept over a year ago by showing Buettner’s Netflix documentary in the center’s theater. After each episode, she led discussions about how to implement Blue Zones concepts into daily life.
“We don’t live in a Blue Zone here in Northeast Ohio,” she laughs. “So what can we do in our own lives to create our own personal Blue Zone? Even better, how can we build a Blue Zone atmosphere right here with our community at the center?”
Making it easier for people to integrate the Blue Zones lifestyle into daily living, the Center’s newsletter and calendar of events highlight programs in blue and with the Blue Zones logo if they support the Power 9 principles. These programs help “replicate some of the Blue Zone secrets to help us live our best, healthiest lives,” Gadd says.
Already, the center’s programs and services correlated well with the Power 9 principles, as Gadd describes:
Move Naturally – “We have miles of walking trails on our campus, and our center provides safe walkability, as the public space has a square-shaped circulation hallway. Our parking lot has no curbs; pedestrian walkways have benches and a heated sidewalk. Some of our activities encourage movement: chair volleyball, shuffleboard and Bocce, for example. All of the opportunities I just listed, by the way, are free.”
Know Your Purpose – “We have many volunteer opportunities here, from working the café, to helping at activities and events with check-in, serving, setting tables, clean-up, working in the food pantry, serving on our advisory board, refereeing chair volleyball, administrative jobs and program facilitation (ie. Photography Club, Songbirds, sing-a-long program, Wii Bowling and Bocce). Last year, we had 108 volunteers provide 3,355.25 hours of service.”
Downshift – “Some of our regular, ongoing programs that focus on stress management include meditation (twice a month) and Senior Strong (a monthly discussion program that focuses on education and prevention of different mental health topics that affect older adults). Again, these programs are free of charge.”
80% Rule – “Our café offerings are right-sized portions for our older adult population (not super-sized)—and are economically priced.”
Plant Slant – “There are always vegetarian options at our café, and they are not the typical macaroni & cheese/peanut butter options. We offer many grain salads (with quinoa, sweet potatoes, kale, etc.) and our soups are also adventurous: coconut curry, African peanut, for example, while always offering chicken noodle for those who choose to stay more traditional.”
Friends @ 5 – “Our Lunch Bunch meets twice per month. We set up a room so that this group is able to eat lunch together… all interested in having lunch with others, meeting and connecting with them. This is a very friendly, welcoming group.”
Belong – “This category captures the essence of our mission: to engage, enrich and empower. Our activities provide opportunities for socializing and belonging, but we go a step further for those who identify as lonely, and maybe need the extra encouragement to get back out in the world and make connections.”Gadd explains that the ETC (Engage, Thrive, Connect) program is a six-month plan with luncheons and activities twice monthly for up to 40 people who self-identify as lonely. Along with assistance from patrons who volunteer as ambassadors, they optimize successful social experiences.“Participants are encouraged, knowing that everyone else attending is in the same boat,” she says. “This eliminates that horrible feeling one can get when they walk into a room full of people and feel awkward about not knowing anyone; potentially feeling more lonely than if they had stayed home.
Loved Ones First – Since many patrons don’t have family nearby, Gadd says the community center has become a ‘chosen family’ for many. “We offer a support network here with follow-up phone calls and cards for our patrons who may be sick or recovering from surgery. We have an Are You Okay? program for resident seniors who live alone and wish to have a daily check-in. This program has saved lives.”
Right Tribe – “From everything I’ve described—and more—we offer the opportunity and place for people to indeed find their right tribe.”
While the Westlake Community Services Center provides a working example of how a Blue Zone community can be replicated in Northeast Ohio, it can also inspire other social groups to organize programming centered around these nine lifestyle principles. Because the goal is just not to live longer but to thrive along the way.
Source: Estelle Rodis-Brown
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