The first blue zone to be recognized is on the Italian island of Sardinia. Sardinia was discovered by Dan Buettner while searching for the secrets to a long life.
Since then, he has discovered 7 additional blue zones, including Icarus in Greece and Okinawa in Japan.
A blue zone refers to a region with a high rate of longevity, often with a significant proportion of the population being over 100 years old.
It’s interesting to note that in Sardinia, there are just as many men as women who have reached the century mark.
Since, there are five women in the United States who are above 100 for every man who does so.
Sardinia is one of the seven blue zones due to a mix of genetics, remoteness from other areas, and lifestyle factors. In this article, we will discuss what makes Sardinia a blue zone.
What Is A Blue Zone?
A “Blue Zone” is a region with varying length where people tend to live noticeably longer, happier, and healthier lives.
One of the five Blue Zones identified by scientists throughout the world, Sardinia has the highest percentage of men who live to be 100 years old.
When contrasted to other blue zones, Sardinia’s story is particularly intriguing because the ratio of male to female centenarians is about equal.
This makes the Sardinia Blue Zone situation even more unique because it is genuinely rare.
Fresh And Healthy Diet
Everyone in Sardinia has a particularly healthy lifestyle that is synchronised with the earth’s seasons.
Fresh fruits and vegetables grown and produced on the island will alter, with the change of each season. Residents of the island are aware of places where they can find fresh herbs and wild fruit.
They eat mostly homegrown vegetables, whole grain bread, and very little sugar. They continue to hunt for meat, catch fish, and harvest their food.
People in Sardinia frequently produce their own vegetables and trade their harvest with neighbours.
Healthy Bread Consumption
When you are talking about Sardinia’s diet, you can’t forget about their breads. With more than 300 variations, Sardinia possesses one of the richest bread cultures anywhere in the world.
The people of Sardinia prepare their own fresh bread, sometimes every day, and it is packed with gut-friendly yeast and bacteria.
It is known that very few ingredients are needed to make their bread when compared to what is offered in supermarkets.
Thus, since this bread is so healthy, and eaten so regularly, it is no surprise this helps the consumer live longer.
Handmade/Local Wine
There is a traditional wine called Cannonau that, when consumed in moderation, promotes the body’s wellness.
Cannonau is one of the most well-liked grape types in Sardinia. It is rich in antioxidants and has three times as many flavonoids as other wines, which keeps the arteries clear and ward off disease.
The wine that the Sardinians consume is either their own personal manufacture or that of a friend.
Active Lifestyle
Their traditional way of life includes working in agriculture and caring for their land.
This still holds true today. Men leave the house to work in the fields, tend to vineyards, prune fruit trees, water vegetable gardens, or herd sheep. The body is kept healthy and strong by these tasks.
Consequently, they won’t have to worry about scheduling a gym trip. Everyone also likes to take walks to watch the landscape, especially after a filling lunch to help with digestion.
Isolated Island
Despite multiple foreign conquests over the course of several centuries, Sardinia has managed to maintain its isolation.
Existing gene pools have remained modest and undiminished. It’s possible that they have a gene that has enabled them to live remarkably long lives.
Aside from other blue zones, which may share some of the same characteristics and ways of life as Sardinia.
Some regions of Sardinia have a far higher percentage of centenarians than the rest of the globe.
Sardinia’s historical celebrations and customs have been preserved to this day thanks to its seclusion from other cultures.
Festivals provide an important opportunity for celebration and interaction. Large families frequently decide to stay in their hometowns. As a result, strong communities with plenty of connections are created.
Family And The Older Generations Are Important
Family and community is yet another important component for living a happy and long life.
The elderly are frequently seen as a burden by contemporary society, who generally show little respect for them and view them as helpless and frail.
However, the elderly in Sardinia are highly respected and are not at all a burden. Rather, they are an integral and significant part of the family.
The older generations are regarded as wise teachers because they have lived the longest. They are the ones who teach the younger generations how to live and follow in their footsteps.
Additionally, they are involved in the education of the children. They also know all the secrets for an excellent crop, healthy livestock, and how they should make the best food out of their harvests.
They are put to work in many ways, so they are always active in some way. Even if it is just cooking the food for their family. They still have a purpose and a role to play.
Strong Faith And Connection To Nature
The spiritual and spiritual beliefs of Sardinia are another critical consideration.
Much like the rest of Italy, they have a solid Catholic culture, and a sizable majority of them continue to attend mass.
Sardinia’s lives have a feeling of direction and significance thanks to their religion. While religious celebrations and activities provide a framework.
They also have a strong bond with nature. This relates back to why they grow and eat only their own food based on the seasons.
No Smoking
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that smoking tobacco significantly reduces human lives. This Blue Zones population doesn’t feel the need to smoke. Nearly no one has the impulse to smoke.
The people in the villages don’t obsess over their health, while they don’t pay much attention to the Ministry of Health’s anti-smoking programs.
They simply view smoking as a bad habit that doesn’t serve their cherished community.
Additionally, in a community where survival has always depended on frugality and hard work, there is no room for wasteful habits.
Smoking won’t improve your meat or crops, help you create better cheese or bread, and it will make your cannonau taste terrible.
Final Thoughts
Sardinia is considered a blue zone, as a larger quantity of people live to over a hundred in this region.
This is due to many reasons that we have outlined above, such as regular exercise, healthy diet, no smoking and being isolated from other influences.
This island has a very simple and stress-free lifestyle, which probably helps them live much longer as well.
We hope this article has been interesting, and you have a better idea on what makes Sardinia a blue zone.
