Longevity expert names four 'best foods' to live longer inspired by Blue Zones
Eating more of these foods could help increase your chances of living to 100.
A longevity expert has revealed the four 'best' foods to help you live longer based on the diets of people living in the world 's Blue Zones. Blue Zones are regions known for lower incidences of chronic diseases and a higher concentration of people living to 100.
Though the diets across these diverse zones vary, there are shared elements that specialists believe play a key role in promoting their remarkable longevity. This includes consuming "wholesome, nutrient-dense, and fibre-rich foods" such as various plants, beans, and healthy fats while reducing sugar and processed food consumption.
The five original Blue Zones are Okinawa in Japan, Sardinia in Italy, Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica, Ikaria in Greece, and Loma Linda in California. Dan Buettner, the founder of Blue Zones LLC, pinpointed some of the dietary staples of people in these areas on the Blue Zones website.
He explained: 'I knew we needed to start with some simple guidelines. I brought together some of the smartest people I could find, and we started by figuring out how to make kitchens healthier.
'We reasoned that if we could identify the four best foods from the Blue Zones diet to always have on hand, and the four worst foods to never have on hand - and create a nudge - we might be able to get people to eat better. I included myself among the potential benefactors.'
From this his team selected four foods people should 'always' eat. However, these also had to be readily available and affordable, had to taste good and be versatile enough to include in most meals, and their benefits had to be backed up with 'strong evidence'.
Wholewheat bread
This needs to be 100 per cent wholewheat to reap the benefits. Although not maybe the most nutrient-packed food on the list, Dan revealed that it could help lower people's intake of mass-produced white bread.
Dan said: 'We figured it could be toasted in the morning and become part of a healthy sandwich at lunch. While not, perhaps, the perfect longevity food, it could help force white breads out of the diet and be an important step toward a healthier Blue Zones diet for most Americans.'
Nuts
According to Dan, a two-ounce serving (about 55 grams) is the 'ideal snack'. He said: 'We know that nut-eaters outlive those who don't eat nuts.
'Nuts come in a variety of flavours, and they're full of nutrients and healthy fats that satiate your appetite.' He added: 'Ideally, you should keep small two-ounce packages on hand. Small quantities are best, since the oils in nuts degrade (oxidize). Larger quantities can be stored in the refrigerator or freezer for a couple of months.'
Beans
He hailed these as one of the 'world's greatest longevity foods'. 'They're cheap, versatile, and full of antioxidants, vitamins, and fibre, and they can be made to taste delicious,' he continued.
'It's best to buy dry beans and it's easy to cook them, but low-sodium canned beans in non-BPA cans are okay too.'
Your favourite fruit
We all know how healthy fruit is. But by focusing on eating more of your favourite fruit, you're more likely to up your intake.
He also advised keeping your fruit bowl stocked up and in sight. Dan added: 'Research shows that we really do eat what we see, so if chips are always in plain sight, that's what we'll eat. But if there is a fruit you like and keep in plain sight all the time, you'll eat more of it and be healthier for it. Don't bother buying a fruit you think you ought to eat but really don't like.'
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Even his own students don't understand that influencers might stand to benefit from sales of the products they endorse, he added. Many companies, including Amazon, have affiliate marketing programs in which people with substantial social media followings can sign up to receive a percentage of sales or some other benefit when someone clicks through and buys a product using a special individualized link or code shared by the influencer. Means has used such links to promote various products sold on Amazon. Among them are books, including the one she co-wrote, 'Good Energy'; a walking pad; soap; body oil; hair products; cardamom-flavored dental floss; organic jojoba oil; a razor set; reusable kitchen products; sunglasses; a sleep mask; a silk pillowcase; fitness and sleep trackers; protein powder and supplements. She also has shared links to products sold by other companies that included 'affiliate' or 'partner' coding, indicating she has a business relationship with the companies. The products include an AI-powered sleep system and Daily Harvest, for which she curated a 'metabolic health collection.' On a 'My Faves' page that was taken down from her website shortly after Trump picked her, Means wrote that some links 'are affiliate links and I make a small percentage if you buy something after clicking them.' It's not clear how much money Means has earned from her affiliate marketing, partnerships and other agreements. Daily Harvest did not return messages seeking comment, and Means said she could not comment on the record during the confirmation process. Disclosing conflicts Means has raised concerns that scientists, regulators and doctors are swayed by the influence of industry, oftentimes pointing to public disclosures of their connections. In January, she told the Kristin Cavallari podcast 'Let's Be Honest' that 'relationships are influential.' 'There's huge money, huge money going to fund scientists from industry,' Means said. 'We know that when industry funds papers, it does skew outcomes.' In November, on a podcast run by a beauty products brand, Primally Pure, she said it was 'insanity' to have people connected to the processed food industry involved in writing food guidelines, adding, 'We need unbiased people writing our guidelines that aren't getting their mortgage paid by a food company.' On the same podcast, she acknowledged supplement companies sponsor her newsletter, adding, 'I do understand how it's messy.' Influencers who endorse or promote products in exchange for payment or something else of value are required by the Federal Trade Commission to make a clear and conspicuous disclosure of any business, family or personal relationship. While Means did provide disclosures about newsletter sponsors, the AP found in other cases Means did not always tell her audience when she had a connection to the companies she promoted. For example, a 'Clean Personal & Home Care Product Recommendations' guide she links to from her website contains two dozen affiliate or partner links and no disclosure that she could profit from any sales. Means has said she invested in Function Health, which provides subscription-based lab testing for $500 annually. Of the more than a dozen online posts the AP found in which Means mentioned Function Health, more than half did not disclose she had any affiliation with the company. Means also listed the supplement company Zen Basil as a company for which she was an 'Investor and/or Advisor.' The AP found posts on Instagram, X and on Facebook where Means promoted its products without disclosing the relationship. Though the 'About' page on her website discloses an affiliation with both companies, that's not enough, experts said. She is required to disclose any material connection she has to a company anytime she promotes it. Representatives for Function Health did not return messages seeking comment through their website and executives' LinkedIn profiles. Zen Basil's founder, Shakira Niazi, did not answer questions about Means' business relationship with the company or her disclosures of it. She said the two had known each other for about four years and called Means' advice 'transformational,' saying her teachings reversed Niazi's prediabetes and other ailments. 'I am proud to sponsor her newsletter through my company,' Niazi said in an email. While the disclosure requirements are rarely enforced by the FTC, Means should have been informing her readers of any connections regardless of whether she was violating any laws, said Olivier Sylvain, a Fordham Law School professor who was previously a senior adviser to the FTC chair. 'What you want in a surgeon general, presumably, is someone who you trust to talk about tobacco, about social media, about caffeinated alcoholic beverages, things that present problems in public health,' Sylvain said, adding, 'Should there be any doubt about claims you make about products?' Potential conflicts pose new ethical questions Means isn't the first surgeon general nominee whose financial entanglements have raised eyebrows. Jerome Adams, who served as surgeon general from 2017 to 2021, filed federal disclosure forms that showed he invested in several health technology, insurance and pharmaceutical companies before taking the job — among them Pfizer, Mylan and UnitedHealth Group. He also invested in the food and drink giant Nestle. He divested those stocks when he was confirmed for the role and pledged that he and his immediate family would not acquire financial interest in certain industries regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. Vivek Murthy, who served as surgeon general twice, under Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, made more than $2 million in COVID-19-related speaking and consulting fees from Carnival, Netflix, Estee Lauder and Airbnb between holding those positions. He pledged to recuse himself from matters involving those parties for a period of time. Means has not yet gone through a Senate confirmation hearing and has not yet announced the ethical commitments she will make for the role. Hund said that as influencer marketing becomes more common, it is raising more ethical questions, such as what past influencers who enter government should do to avoid the appearance of a conflict. Other administration officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz, have also promoted companies on social media without disclosing their financial ties. 'This is like a learning moment in the evolution of our democracy,' Hund said. 'Is this a runaway train that we just have to get on and ride, or is this something that we want to go differently?'
