Yes, have heard a lot about it! You did a fantastic job debunking the theory very concisely! I remember you previously mentioning the Blue Zone store. It certainly does sound like a good way of cashing in on all the hype. Too bad the customers are being scammed for something so blatantly deceptive!
Blue Zones were popularized by vegan Dan Buettner, who wrote a book about 5 specific regions of the world with the Blue Zones trait. What is most interesting, is that all but one of the places he chose eat meat and sometimes a lot of it! In an interview with Dr. Mark Hyman Buettner states: “In all honestly, Blue Zones did eat meat… But it was infrequent often as a condiment…. We made the decision to stay 100% plant-based within the Blue Zone family.” So he basically decided to make up a diet that fits his vegan agenda. Meat intake is a staple and not just a condiment of Blue Zones. Further, the Blue Zones lifestyles are very important to consider as they are healthier overall. They are lives lived at slower paces, less stress, more green spaces, sunshine, walking, gardening, less smoking and have a strong sense of community. There is also a strong genetic component. Lastly context of the diet is important. Overseas, people enjoy meat along with a healthy diet and have healthy lives. In America, because we’ve been told meat (especially red meat) is terrible for us, those that eat it often are less likely to be healthy overall because of the rebellious nature. That means along with meat, they most likely eat more fast food, are more likely to smoke, drink soda and eat candy, etc. Take a moment to examine the places Buettner used for his Blue Zones to show how misrepresented they were. The places he selected to work on include Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Ikaria, Greece, and Loma Linda, California. Okinawa, Japan: The average Okinawan man lives for 80 years, and women for 86. A study (Nutrition for the Japanese elderly) examined the diet of Japanese centenarians and found: Nutrient intakes in 94 Japanese centenarians showed a higher proportion of animal protein to total proteins than in contemporary average Japanese. 2. High intakes of milk and fats and oils had favorable effects on 10-year (1976-1986) survivorship in 422 urban residents aged 69-71. The survivors revealed a longitudinal increase in intakes of animal foods such as eggs, milk, fish and meat over the 10 years. 3. Nutrient intakes were compared, based on 24-hour dietary records, between a sample from Okinawa Prefecture where life expectancies at birth and 65 were the longest in Japan, and a sample from Akita Prefecture where the life expectancies were much shorter. Intakes of Ca, Fe, vitamins A, B1, B2, C, and the proportion of energy from proteins and fats were significantly higher in the former than in the latter. Intakes of carbohydrates and NaCl were lower. Pork is eaten in abundance in Okinawa; all the pig was eaten, including the fat, face, ears, hooves, leaving nothing behind. This indicates that pork cuisine is not simply a source of protein, but also has health-giving effects as a result of its collagen content. It deserves attention as an integral part of Okinawan longevity food. This is very different compared to the Japanese mainland where a vegetarian diet for religious occasions is observed. We tend to avoid pork in this present era of overeating, but in Okinawa it is a major pillar of the longevity diet. Sardinia, Italy: In 2016, life expectancy for Sardinia was 82.6 years. Blue Zones website states the diet is 47% whole grains, 26% dairy, 12% vegetables, 5% meat, fish and poultry, 1% fruits and 2% added fats. Many of the videos shot there show that their diet consists of goat, dairy, tons of olive oil and fresh foods. Further, there are many recounts of tourists who traveled there and found out what they really eat (surprise: it’s lots of meat, seafood and some pasta!). Nicoya, Costa Rica: Only the men seem to live longer here. The Nicoya region of Costa Rica: a high longevity island for elderly males, 2013: For a 60-year-old Nicoyan male, the probability of becoming centenarian is seven times that of a Japanese male, and his life expectancy is 2.2 years greater. This Nicoya advantage does not occur in females, is independent of socio-economic conditions, disappears in out-migrants and comes from lower cardiovascular (CV) mortality. Nicoyans have lower levels of biomarkers of CV risk; they are also leaner, taller and suffer fewer disabilities. Two markers of ageing and stress-telomere length and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate-are also more favourable. The Nicoya diet is prosaic and abundant in traditional foods like rice, beans and animal protein, with low glycemic index and high fibre content. Ikaria, Greece: One third of Ikaria's population lives past the age of 90. The Blue Zones website states the diet for this location is 5% meat and 6% fish (dairy isn’t listed at all, so 0%?). However, from many videos shot there you can see that that is not the case and their diet is substantially meat (pork and goat), organ meat and dairy. Loma Linda, California: The average male in Loma Linda lives to 89; the average woman to 91. This is the only true vegetarian group. However, it’s a bad sign when your diet reduces your fertility (this isn’t addressed in the Blue Zones book or website either). Food intake diet and sperm characteristics in a blue zone: a Loma Linda Study, 2016: Lacto-ovo vegetarians had lower sperm concentration. Total motility was lower in the lacto-ovo and vegan groups (33.2±3.8% and 51.8±13.4% respectively) versus non-vegetarians (58.2±1.0%). Vegans had lowest hyperactive motility.
My grandmother lived over 100 years. When she was 84 from traveled on her own to Australia. She went everywhere, Perth by train, Coober Pedy, climbed Ayers Rock, went to Darwin, Brisbane, Great Barrier reef, Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney and every where between plus Hobart. I dont think she missed much. She drank precisely 1 oz of brandy every day that I knew her much to the chagrin of one of her teetotaling daughters. She ate beef every day, and if it wasn't aged enough in her mind, she would age it in the fridge. When properly oxidized, she would wipe it down with apple cider vinegar and then roast it. She would only use iodized salt and no any other spicing except when in season dill weed. When she was in her mid 90's, she visited her siblings. There were 7 of them, all alive, ranging in age from 85 to 107, and they ate the same way.
Wow! What a fortunate family. Hopefully I’m like your Grandma when I’m that age. Both parents died in their early 80s. Hoping to healthily survive longer.
Let’s not forget that many of the blue zones (though not all) eat much more meat than we’ve been told. Meat is the main staple food in many of these places. Whole Foods diet: yes. Whole Foods plant based diet: no.
Today is day 394 of my Carnivore journey. Praise be to God for allowing me to find this life-saving knowledge. Without him we are nothing. Praise his name through the Son, Jesus Christ. All praise and glory goes to the Father, through the Son. Praise the Father for allowing us to form these communities and share vital knowledge. Jesus Christ said that believers are the salt of the Earth, in Matthew 5:13. Let us preserve his creation, resist evil, and be like grains of salt sprinkled over the Earth. Thank you, Rabbi, I sincerely appreciate you and the goodness and wisdom you impart in your podcasts. The members of your temple are very lucky to have such a kind and caring man, helping them and caring for them. I will pray for you and your family. Thanks for your wonderful work. You are making a huge difference.
I've been to Ikaria, Greece. According to legend, it's named Ikaria because it's near where Icarus fell after he flew too close to the sun. It's a lovely place, extremely beautiful, clean, and peaceful. If you wanted to live for a century, Ikaria would be a very good place to try it, in my opinion. But when I was there, I saw only the normal age distribution for a Greek island. And their diet wasn't particularly healthy, comparatively. Everyone was always drinking coffee and eating a pastry at little cafe tables, and a normal amount of boozing went on in the evenings. I was there in summer, and I and everyone else ate a lot of ice cream. Lovely place, great seafood, cute stray cats. Worth a visit? Yes! A secret Greek Shangri La? No. By the way, it's pronounced IK-a-ria, and not i-KAR-ia. I made the same mistake, because that's a very natural way for an English-speaker to place the emphasis.
When researchers studied Japans death records, they found that the government had ap. 280,000 dead people still recorded as living. No wonder they had such great longevity.
Another excellent podcast. I lived in Costa Rica for a brief time a few years back with my previous career. I preferred Mexico, I found CR very expensive. The cost of living in CR is prohibitive. Blue zone narratives are marketing ploys, IMO. I agree with you Rabbi, our diet is the foundation, no matter where on Earth we live. Trust in God, he will provide for us. Put our faith in him.
None of the people I know who lived over 90 ate the carnivore diet. They all lived a simple life and a couple of them were living in run down homes as well. The oldest man I knew lived to 98 and he was driving and living by himself to the end. He ate beef every day No surprise that there is fraud involved when it comes to the "super centinarians". We don't know what allows a person to live longer but we do know what can make your life healthier.
I have no trouble believing that any whole food diet will be far healthier than the standard American diet. Avoiding ultra-processed food is the biggest thing. Personally I think people should eat lots of meat and eggs and animal fats, but even whole-food vegans (with proper supplements) are undoubtedly healthier than anyone eating processed foods.
Another thing that is false about Blue Zones is that they are all plant based. That is false, except for the Loma Linda group, they still eat a lot more fish and chicken, some are strict vegetarian/vegan, but there is a lot more animal protein than led to believe. The rest of locations eat a lot more beef/lamb/pork than talked about.
