The Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest

by Dan Buettner

IKARIA’S BLUE ZONE SECRETS Try these common practices from Ikarians: Drink some goat’s milk. Adding some goat milk to your diet could provide a great source of calcium, potassium, and the stress-relieving hormone tryptophan. Researchers found that goat milk is very similar to human milk and provides oligosaccharides, which promote healthy intestinal flora. It’s also hypoallergenic and can usually be tolerated by people who are lactose intolerant. Mimic mountain living. The longest lived Ikarians tended to be poor people living in the island’s highlands. They exercised mindlessly, by just gardening, walking to their neighbor’s house, or doing their own yard work. The lesson to us: Engineer more mindless movement into our lives by living in neighborhoods with sidewalks, owning a bike that works, and planting a garden each spring. Eat a Mediterranean-style diet. Ikarians eat a variation of the Mediterranean diet, with lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans, potatoes, and olive oil. Try cooking with olive oil, which contains cholesterol-lowering monounsaturated fats. Two other lessons: Look for the freshest oil, as time can diminish its antioxidant