The key to longevity lies in the adoption of small but revolutionary habits to adopt today for our future well-being: here are them
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Having healthy habits today is the key to a long, healthy life and a peaceful old ageto. When you are young you underestimate the great importance of lifestyles, and the consequences that these can have on the years to come – in terms of longevity, health and well-being.
Scientific literature has delimited small areas of the world – the so-called Blue Zones – in which levels of healthiness, well-being and life expectancy are exceptionally high, also thanks to a healthy lifestyle and the adoption of particular “longevity habits”.
Feeding on the fruits of the earth, doing manual activities, keeping fit throughout your life, cultivating genuine social relationships: these are just some aspects of a lifestyle marked by simplicity and direct contact with Nature, which allows the inhabitants of Blue Zones to live so long – and so well.
The so-called blue zones are:
Ogliastra and Barbagia (in our Sardinia), the island of Okinawa (Japan), Loma Linda (California), Nicoya (Costa Rica) and Icaria (Greece)
And the beauty of those who live there is that they don’t consciously commit to maintaining a lifestyle that allows them longevity.
The inhabitants of Blue ZonesUnlike us, they don’t rush to implement complicated food plans, they don’t subject themselves to exhausting workout sessions or force themselves to participate in social events to meet new people.
They simply they live simply, as they saw their parents and grandparents dofollowing a lifestyle (habits, cultural norms, rituals) that naturally leads them towards longevity.
If we too want to live a long and healthy life, we can only take inspiration from this lifestyle and start “imitate” the habits of longevity: here are some that we can introduce into our lives today.
Read also: Longevity: what do the 5 places in the world where people live the longest have in common?
Replace the chair with a mat
Physical activity in the gym is very important, but it is limited to the moment in which we frequent the sports centre: if when we return home, we return to our extremely sedentary lifestyle and endorse our laziness, gym membership is useless.
In the Blue Zone in Okinawa, Japan, people sit and lie almost at floor level on thin fabric mats: this forces them to make a much more challenging movement and to exercise more muscles than when sitting in an armchair or on a bed.
Sitting on the floor (and standing up) is a simple exercise that strengthens the muscles of the central part of the body (the core) and legs, guarantees greater balance, makes us more flexible and less subject to falls.
Eliminating some of the physical comforts we are used to (armchairs, sofas, beds, but also cars for short trips) forces us to do more movement and this translates into a healthier lifestyle.
Find an active hobby
Another strategy for introducing movement into our day is to find an activity or hobby that forces us to be more active and move more. The inhabitants of Blue Zonesfor example, often devote themselves to gardening.
A garden to take care of requires a lot of constant attention to grow flourishing and healthy, it pushes us to weed, water and harvest almost every day – and this translates into healthy movement of the whole body.
Eat like a farmer
As we have explained in many articles, what we eat has a huge impact on the quality of our life and also on the prevention of chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases and tumors.
It has been seen that the people of the Blue Zones they have a simple diet similar to that of farmersrich in legumes, unrefined cereals, healthy condiments such as olive oil, extremely adherent to the seasonality of the earth’s products, poor in meat and products of animal origin.
We too can change our eating style by eliminating processed fast food, limiting or completely eliminating products of animal origin, respecting the seasonality of products and creating simple and tasty recipes with few high quality ingredients.
We also remember to pay the utmost attention to the moments of preparation of our dishes and their consumption, avoiding watching television while eating, putting away technological devices such as smartphones and tablets to transform the meal moment into a moment in which to slow down and savor really aware of what you are eating.
Read also: Blue Zone Diet: what it is, benefits and why it can promote longevity
Take an afternoon nap
Today experts call it “power nap”, but the substance of the nap after lunch is always the same: a short period of time to rest the mind and body before tackling the second part of the day.
Many people, to overcome the inevitable obstacle represented by post-prandial drowsiness and to continue being active in work or study, treat themselves to a nice coffee (or perhaps more than one) so as not to “lose the rhythm”.
On the contrary in Blue Zoneswhere life flows slower and without the frenzy of our communities, a nap seems to be the right answer before resuming activities after lunch.
15/20 minutes of rest free of noise and distractions are enough to find the right energy to face the second part of the day.
Read also: Do you know Inemuri? Napping in public is a real “art” in Japan and is even accepted at work
Weave social networks
The people who live in the Blue Zones they rely on each other to meet life’s challenges and solve problems: no one is ever left alone if they are in difficulty – be it an economic, health or other type of difficulty.
In our communities, however, we are increasingly alone and selfish, and everyone is always thinking about taking care of their own backyard without caring about the problems and needs of others. We should learn and rediscover the profound value of kindness and altruism if we want to live a long and healthy life.
To do this we can engage in volunteer activities, start having a more active role within our neighborhood or parish community, participate in the soup kitchen for the poor… the possibilities are endless.
But beyond all this, what should change is our attitude towards each other. We must not appear hostile and disinterestedbut we must always keep an ear open to listen to the problems and difficulties that the other person may be experiencing at the moment.
Read also: Performing acts of kindness, the best medicine to relieve the symptoms of depression according to this study
Move to the countryside
We imagine that for many people this last piece of advice is difficult to put into practice, but leaving the big city to start a new life in a smaller village or even in the countryside can really make a difference to the quality of our life and, consequently , for our longevity.
Big cities are crowded, chaotic, noisy and polluted: they offer many services and entertainment, it’s true, but at the cost of our health and our mental serenity.
A small urban center, on the contrary, offers a healthier environment, cleaner air and less noise pollution; the streets are less congested than those of the city and it is easier to “network” with neighbors and other inhabitants.
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2023-09-17 16:21:23
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