Sardinia, Italy – home to the world's longest-lived men. Okinawa, Japan – home to the world's longest-lived women. Loma Linda, California – Seventh-day Adventist community that outlives the average American by a decade. Ikaria, Greece – tiny island community with significantly reduced rates of common chronic illnesses.
Regular physical activity is thought to be one of the contributing factors to the large number of elderly people living in Blue Zones. In Okinawa, Japan, home to one of the highest percentages of centenarians in the world, many people take part in regular exercise.
Some researchers over the past 20 years have dubbed these places Blue Zones, and they often have an unusual number of people over 90 or even 100 years old. These so-called Blue Zones are: Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Icaria, Greece; and Loma Linda, California.
Body temperature is one of the most well known and important factors involved in lifespan; increased body temperature has been shown to negatively associate with longevity (i.e. earlier death) and conversely, lower body temperature is associated with increased longevity and reduced aging.
Japanese life expectancy
This low mortality is mainly attributable to a low rate of obesity, low consumption of red meat, and high consumption of fish and plant foods such as soybeans and tea. In Japan, the obesity rate is low (4.8% for men and 3.7% for women).
Life expectancy for men and women
A male child born in the United States today will live to be 74.5 years old on average. This puts the male citizens of the US in 47th place in this ranking. On average, US women are 5.7 years older, reaching an age of 80.2.
Perhaps the closest thing a healthy person has to gauge longevity is life expectancy. For example, a baby born in the US in 2021 has an estimated life expectancy of about 76 years, according to the latest report from the National Center for Health Statistics.
Australians are living longer, healthier lives. In the last 100 years, the life expectancy of Australians has increased by 20 years. Now Australia has 3700 people aged over 100.
At the end of the study, about 16 percent of the men and about 34 percent of the women survived to the age of 90. In fact, the authors found that women who were taller than 5 feet 9 inches were 31 percent more likely to reach 90, compared to those who were under 5 feet 3 inches.
Individuals should plan for living well beyond the average – to age 95 or even 100 – especially those in good health. For non-smokers in excellent health, there is almost one in three chance that women will live to age 95 or beyond and one in five chance that men will live to age 95 or beyond.
The Mediterranean Diet has long been touted as one of the world's healthiest diets. It follows the eating habits of Greece and Southern Italy, and has been shown to lower the risk of heart disease and early death.
Social connection appears more important than belief in any system. Which might be why a Pew study awards the religiously unaffiliated (atheists and agnostics) with the second-longest lifespan of any group, finishing just behind Jews and just ahead of Buddhists.
Mediterranean diet
As the renowned medical journal Lancet points out, eating habits play a key role when it comes to Italians and longevity. A large part of the population can easily bring fresh and healthy food to the table, regardless of social status and income. This is what makes the difference.
Married men and married women live, on average, two years longer than their unmarried counterparts. One reason for this longevity benefit is the influence of marital partners on healthy behaviors. Study after study shows that married people eat better and are less likely to smoke and drink excessively.
The researchers forecast that by 2050 life expectancy for females will rise to 89.2-93.3 years and to 83.2-85.9 years for males. The U.S. Census Bureau and the Social Security Administration project life expectancy in 2050 of 83.4-85.3 years for females and 80.0-80.9 years for males.
These are natural changes that occur while aging. They cannot be stopped but it is possible to slow the rate of these processes. This can be done by changing one's lifestyle (diet, exercise, etc). The science of aging is not yet fully understood; therefore, it is difficult to determine an absolute limit of 200 years.
Healthy Diet - The Chinese believe that one of the keys to a longer healthier life is a healthy diet. As a result, the Chinese diet is one of the healthiest in the world. Overall, the Chinese diet values moderation and balance. They believe it is a mistake to eat too much red meat.
Americans typically eat more red meat and dairy, and enjoy sugary desserts and junk food for snacks. The Chinese eat more poultry and fish, much less dairy (due in part to a high incidence of lactose intolerance), and prefer fruit for dessert and nuts for snacks.
Arguably, improvements in the provision of public health services, particularly in infant and maternal health, have been the biggest factors in raising life expectancy. In Mainland China, the Millennium Development Goal to reduce child mortality by two-thirds was reached in 2008, seven years ahead of the target date.
Italy is the world's healthiest country, according to the CEOWORLD magazine ranking that uses data from the United Nations Population Division, the World Bank, the Lancet study, and the World Health Organisation, with Singapore coming at a close second.
Regular, moderate activities, such as brisk walking, have been associated with increasing life expectancy by several years. For example, 150 minutes of exercise or more each week increased life expectancy by about 7 years over those who didn't do regular moderate exercise.
A Mediterranean diet remains one of the gold standards for living longer and more healthfully. This pattern is characterized by a high intake of fruits and vegetables; whole grains; pulses; healthful fats from nuts, olive oil, and avocado; and herbs and spices. It includes seafood a few times a week.