A long life in good health is a dream that many people strive to fulfill (I am one of those people). And although in developed countries life expectancy is slowly increasing, the spread of all kinds of diseases and ailments, unfortunately, follows the same trend.
The secret to longevity is not medication or expensive and sometimes dangerous anti-aging pills and injections. Learn how to live a long and healthy life, Artоit in people who can boast of excellent health even in old age.
Longevity scientists pay a lot of attention to centenarians – people aged 100 and over. I have already written about the book “Rules of Longevity”, in which the author examines the inhabitants of the five “blue zones” of the planet, among whose population there is an unusually high concentration of healthy centenarians.
Exploring blue zones is a rewarding but challenging task. Researchers need to verify that age information they receive from people is true, and reliable sources are not always available. In addition, while it can be reliably established what centenarians eat today, how do you know what they ate during the previous decades?
Okinawa Island in Japan is one of the “blue zones”. Careful research has confirmed the dates of birth of the 1949-year-old inhabitants of the island. And detailed information on their diet since XNUMX is available thanks to population surveys conducted by local governments.
The older group of Okinawans (usually those who were born before 1942) have the greatest functional ability and life expectancy in Japan, a country traditionally known for its long-livers. Rates of heart disease and many forms of cancer are significantly lower among older Okinawans than among Americans and other Japanese people of the same age. At the age of 97, almost two-thirds of Okinawans are still self-sufficient.
What do centenarians eat?
What is the traditional diet of this group, which is distinguished by longevity and the absence of diseases, even in extreme old age? The following are the main sources of the calories they consumed in 1949:
| Product | Total percentage of calories |
| Sweet potato | 69% |
| Other vegetables | 3% |
| rice | 12% |
| Other cereals | 7% |
| beans | 6% |
| Oils | 2% |
| Fish | 1% |
And the following foods individually represent less than 1% of total calories: nuts and seeds, sugar, meat, eggs, dairy products, fruits, seaweed, and alcohol.
Adherents of this diet received 85% of calories from carbohydrates, 9% from protein and 6% from fat.
Can diet slow down the aging process?
Why does the plant-based, whole food diet traditionally followed in Okinawa and other Blue Zones around the world have such a huge impact on the aging process? Does this only mean that eating in this way helps prevent fatal ailments such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes? Or does nutrition affect the aging process itself?
Recent research has shown that the latter assumption has a right to exist: proper nutrition helps to significantly lengthen life expectancy, and not just cure specific diseases. Many interrelated factors contribute to the aging process. One of these factors is the length of telomeres – protective structures located at both ends of our chromosomes. Shorter telomeres are associated with shorter lifespan and, in fact, a higher risk of chronic disease. Recent studies show that people with longer telomeres age more slowly.
There is mounting evidence that lifestyle and diet have a powerful effect on telomere length. Scientists believe that a diet high in antioxidants (i.e. based on whole plant foods) protects telomeres from damaging oxidative stress. A study in men at low risk of prostate cancer found that a comprehensive lifestyle program that included a diet based on whole plant foods was significantly associated with increased telomere length. The stricter people followed a given program, the more their telomeres lengthened over a five-year observation period.
Bottom line: If you want to follow the lead of centenarians around the world, focus on whole, plant-based foods in your diet. Better yet, if you pay attention to other aspects of your lifestyle – healthy sleep, stress management, physical activity, regular check-ups. It’s never too late to start!