STOCKTON– As one scrolls through Netflix to find a show to watch, one in particular caught my attention; “Live to 100: Secret of the Blue Zones.”  It intrigued me because I was already fairly familiar with what blue zones were, and I wanted something to calm my mind at the end of the day.  Host Dan Buettner, who has dedicated his life to implementing blue zone habits and transforming the lives of over 5 million Americans, travels to five different communities across the globe to discover the secrets and science to longevity and living a fulfilling life. 

For those who are unfamiliar with the concept of blue zones, Healthline.org defines it as “geographical areas with lower rates of chronic diseases and a longer life expectancy.”  Buettner travels to Okinawa, Japan; Ikaria, Greece; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; and a homestate special, Loma Linda, California to interview people and talk about their lives.  The residents of these areas are pushing the limits and consistently living to 100, but how? 

Each blue zone has specific qualities that made it differ from the rest, but they all had common denominators.  Moving naturally, eating a plant based diet, a positive outlook on life, and meaningful connections were all patterns across the zones. 

Moving naturally was a big surprise to me.  Usually we’re conditioned to think that going to the gym is the best way to get healthier and burn calories.  People in these blue zones are already doing their exercise naturally by walking around town or to the market, tending to livestock, daily tasks; the key is to keep on moving.

Another huge shock to me was their plant based diets.  I have always thought it was the best thing for you was protein from meat, but instead they’re getting it from beans.  Although these people don’t follow strict diet plans and aren’t vegetarian, they all are consuming plants in different variations.  Meat is more considered as a side dish when eaten. 

It was revealed that 1 out of 300 centenarians do not belong to a faith based community.  The connection to faith was a recurring factor that consistently came up throughout the duration of the series.  This is believed to give people a sense of purpose and belonging. 

I was most familiar with the method of maintaining meaningful connections.  Elderly people’s children housing and taking care of them was a factor most blue zones share.  I knew this was expected, with most families in southern Europe living with that arrangement and two out of the five blue zones visited were both in southern Europe.  Each blue zone had their own similar version of this. Also staying true and loyal to a community or group supports a healthy lifestyle.