.t·s get the upsetti ng gen.$," gy. Buettn.r. "The other]5% my ••rly 30 . ... she IiIYs.
.. she IiIYs. "We're • very int.rKt. d I with stress. heal
truth over wit h= t he
'L lIIgelng process kicks
in lilt around 30. and
there's no _y to stop
it aven If you do Itill buy your cloth"
ri Topshop and have iI y ar', ,upply
of Boob N07's Proted & Perfed .
Buttke good new5 I, that according to
a book that'fo flying off US shelve5,
you can slow that pro, e u down.
Longevity researcher Dliln Buettn.r
BY' he', cracked the sec:reb of 'The
Blue Zone,' - the four reu of e
orld when•• people liy the longe.t,
nd are fit weUlhto the ir 1S0 5 lind 90s.
"Scientifi, .tudie• • uu• .t that only
~ of how long we Ii is dictated by
is determined by our life.tylu and the
ev.ryday ehoi,•• w. make. It follows
that If we optimise- our 'if.styl.... we
can maximise our lif. expectanci.,."
The four Blue Zone ••r. BlIIrbagi..
in S.rdinia, Okin.wa in J.plI ,Lom.
Lind. in Cillifomill llftd the Nicoya
Peniruula, Costa Rica. Here, not only
do people live significantly lo ng.r.
getting f.wer serious iIInesse. than
In most western counlrie •• but they
also look younger for longer.
Many Blu Zooers, like SMil ..
I-Iodal<in, a m rri.1tge th.nlpiat from
Lam. Linda in California. look 10 ye.N
younger than th.ir ,....I a&•. "I'm 47,
although people tend to thinle I'm in
actiy. communrty lind t h.t helps - we
me.t friends to play tennis or 80 for
II hike rath.r than go to a bar or
retttaunlnt. I thinle t hat'. wn.t giy.,.
me the energy to look afte r my four
childr.n [aged from Sill to u l and do
lome yoluntary work at our loc.l
children's hospital. I alao d rlnlc seven
glane. of water a d.y, ..nd never ellt
m.al. We belie.... health is your wealth
- be fit oiInd you can do ilnythi"l."
Th. good news is t hat ilccording to
Bu.ttn.r's re..arch, it's not gen.l.
climate or environment tn.t k.eps the
Blue Zone people young. but t heir
day-la-day hlilbita. "'t'l no coincid. nce
tn.t th way th... people e.t.
them,elves, ilvold dl.eue lind view
th.ir world yi.lds t h.m more good
years of lif.... he SilYa.. "Their culture5
have evolved this wi,dom over time.
To lelllrn from them. we need only be
ope n and ready to lilten."
You don't haye to move to a Blue
Zo ne to live younger for tonger - mOlt
of t heir inhabitanh' , ecreb un be
elllily adaptttd for city living. Vou don't
eYen hlilY. to do them lilli, says BueUner.
"Pick and choose the mOlt lIppe.aling
it.ms. Whilteve.. you choo.e. chlilnea.
lIIr. you'll be lIIddina months or ye rl
to your life." he liIYS. Here are the
Blue Zone lecreb - lind how
to make th.m work for you.
HEALTH
The average
life expectancy
lor a woman
from Okinawa.
a group of
islands in the Pacific. is 86 (average
British female life expectancy is 79.9).
and h!!'r risk of getting bread cancer
is a quarter of that of the average
British woman.
Okinllll)lIn bellltb secrets
The basis of the
Okinawan diet, they're high in vitamins
A and C and frbre.
Okinawans
say this before every meal. and it
means 'eat unti l yo u are 80% full :
Studies show that slightly under-eating
may extend lifespan, possibly by
reducing damage from oxidative stress
The US city
of lorna linda
is home toa
community of
Seventh Day
Adventiru. They have the longest liFe
expectancy of all Americans - women
live six years longer than average (until
they're 86) - and lower rates of cancer
and heart disease.
LDtnIl Lindon bellltb secrets
Seventh
Day Adventists can't go to work or
st udy on Saturdays, so Ihey have
guaranteed downtime every seven
days that keeps stress levels at bay.
Mos!
Lorna Lindans drink at least Five or six
glasses of water a day. Research has
found thai keen ~20 guzzlers have a
70% reduction in heart attack risk
2 .. WWW STYLiST , CO U~
(the production The average natural yoghurt smoothie.
of free radicals) 60-year-old
Nicoyans eat the
to the DNA. inhabitant of
biggest meal at midday. in the evenin~
the Nicoyan
they lake the pressure off their
Peni nsula has
All Okinawans have a 'moai, a digestive system by eating light.
twice the chance of reaching 90 as a
close circle of friends with
60-year-old in the US or I=rance Nicoyans have
whom they meet every day.
high levels of vitamin D due
Studies show thai those with
NieoYlln bellltb secrets 10 their exposure to
a strong network of friends
sunlight. Deficiency of
have lower stress levels and so
Sex is so vitamin D has been linked
are more likely to li\le longer.
Important for Nicoyans, they turn to several cancer types
Soya a bl ind eye to discreet extra-marital so top up by taking a
beans. a big form at protein for affairs. Research suggests thai regular lunchtime walk.
Okinawans, is II phytoestrogen, sex protects your hea lth by keeping
which ads like a nalurall-lRT and blood pressure low .
Like much of UK lap
lowers cholesterol.
water. Nlcoya n ~20 is
Okinawans have Nicoyclns eat huge quan tities hard and has the
a strong sense of their purpose in life of papaya. mango, pi neapple, country's highest
- they ca ll it 'ikigai·. It can come from bananas and oranges. packed full calcium content which
a job or a hobby, keeps the brain of antioxidants that fight disease, might explain the low
young and slaves off memory loss. Start your day with a fruit and levels of heart disease.
compared to Living past qualities that reduce the risk of hearl
tnose who aren' t. 100 isn't disease and Alzheimer's.
, WAKT TO EAT LlIIE
unusual
Lorna It's not unusua
in the
lindans get an for three generations of Sardin'ans t
mou ntainous
instant support live in the same home, Strong Family
Barbagia region of Sardinia, home
network when links are said to boost
to one of the world's longest· lived
they go to self'esteem, reduce
populations. inhabitants of this
church. which is depression and
hilly sheep·Farming community
thought to boost the give a sense
still stride up mountains in their 70s.
immune system. You can of purpose.
get the same benefits by setting up a
book club or joining a dass. SlIrdinilln bellltb secrets
Lama Lindanslove Sardinians only
healthy Tats, and studies have shown that Sardinian shepherdS burn off 490 eat meat on Sundays; the resl of
the fibre and healthy monounsaturates calories an hour walking Lip and down the week its vegetables and fava bean
Found in nuts have a positive impact on hills. Aim for 30 to 60 minutes on your Studies show vegetarians live longer
health and life expectancy. treadmi ll s 'up' program to challenge than meat eaters.
your cardiovascular system .
Most Loma Cannonau red
Lindans do some kind of volunteering. Goats' cheese, wine is a Sardinian staple; it has high
which helps stave off depression (a risk which conlalns 13% mo re calCium than numbers of powerful antioxidants
factor for life-shortening heart disease) caws', is a staple of the Sardinian diet that fight damaging free radicals. Ma ~
and gives life a sense of purpose. it's thought to have anti-inflammatory sure you slick to one or two glasses.