AUTHOR: SILVIA BÜRKLE – HQ METABOLIC BALANCE
Age researchers have found out: Growing old healthy and slim is no coincidence! In addition to exercise and social environment, nutrition is the most important factor. This is proven by the numbers of fit 100-year-olds in the so-called five “blue zones” of the world.
The places in question are Okinawa in Japan, Ikaria in Greece, Loma Linda in California, the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica and the island of Sardinia in Italy.
There is a reason why so many 100-year-olds live there with a slim figure and excellent health. It has been found that these people
• exercise regularly • take time to relax • cultivate family ties and friendships • and eat according to certain rules.
Especially the last point seems to be crucial for a slim and healthy life in old age. Civilization diseases such as diabetes type II, joint diseases, depression or heart attacks are largely unknown in the Blue Zones. Observations and surveys have shown that the 100-year-olds living there stop eating before they are full. The diet consists mainly of regional products, from plants, vegetables and fruits.
Animal products are rarely consumed. Furthermore: The smallest and last meal of the day is eaten in the early evening, between 5 and 6 pm.
In Okinawa, for example, the guiding principle is: Eat something from the land and something from the sea at every meal. Brown rice, shiitake mushrooms, seaweed, bitter melons, green tea and garlic are part of the daily fountain of youth there. The same is true for the island of Ikaria. It is commonly known as “The island where people forget to die”. Regional products determine the menu there, too. In addition to feta cheese and honey, these are lemons, beans, herbs and goat’s milk. Meat plays almost no role. On the tropical island of Nicoya, the diet consists mainly of beans, corn and pumpkin. In addition, it consists of papayas, bananas, yams and the fruit of the peach palm, which is rich in vitamins A and C. In Bella Italia, in Sardinia, especially the male sex enjoys a long life. It is said that they live so long because they like to drink a glass of good wine and live love. However, they also eat very consciously: with many products from goat’s and sheep’s milk, barley (the plant richest in chlorophyll on earth), legumes and chickpeas.
Loma Linda in California occupies a special position among the five places mentioned. There, the fit 100-year-olds are primarily found in the religious group of the Adventists. They don’t smoke and follow a biblical diet of grains, fruits, nuts and vegetables and, if possible, one serving of fish a day. Refined sugar, of course, is taboo.
Conclusion: We can and should learn from this way of life at those places. We, too, can eat local and seasonal food. Vegetables, fruits and herbs should be on the daily menu. Animal products should be of high quality and certainly not consumed every day. Fish should be eaten where it has a body of water: at the sea or at the lakes of a country.
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