Ikaria, Greece, well-known for the longevity and good health of its residents, is among the “Blue Zones” as described by Blue Zones expert Dan Buettner who recommends eating like the Ikarians.
Blue Zones are regions of the world where Buettner claims people live much longer than average and the term first appeared in his November 2005 National Geographic magazine cover story, The Secrets of a Long Life. Buettner noted that the five regions are Okinawa,
Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Ikaria, Greece; and among the Seventh-day Adventists living in Loma Linda, California.
Healthy Greek foods help ensure Ikaria has a high percentage of centenarians among its population without chronic illnesses associated with aging such as dementia, cancer, and depression. A four-part Netflix documentary released in August 2023, titled Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones, like Buettner’s eponymous book, explores the Blue Zones and how diet and lifestyle habits help the people in each area live longer lives.
Among the foods that the Blue Zones have in common are beans. ‘The cornerstone of every longevity diet in the world is beans,” Buettner told ZOE Science and Nutrition podcast, Daily Mail (DM) reported. “And if you’re eating a cup of beans a day, it’s probably associated with about four extra years of life expectancy over less healthy sources of protein.”
Buettner “suggests the real food that helps people live a long and healthy life is ‘peasant foods’ and ‘cheap stuff everybody can afford,’” DM reported, adding that “Professor Tim Spector, a renowned dietitian and co-founder of ZOE, explains beans and pulses can improve our gut health and in turn strengthen the immune system.”
“Polyphenols [plant compounds with antioxidant properties] improve our gut health which is vital for a healthy immune system, Professor Spector said on the podcast,” DM reported.
“If you can have a healthy immune system, then that immune system is repairing your body continuously, it’s fighting early cancer, it’s repairing the cells, it’s making sure that you do live to an old age by picking up problems early,” Professor Spector said, DM reported.
Read more at thenationalherald.com
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