December 03, 2018

Are the Greek Islands the answer to a long healthy life?


GREEK ISLANDERS SIMPLY LIVE ON AND ON

David Ellis

THE 8,500 people of the little Greek island of Ikaria in the Aegean Sea, say they have more healthy residents amongst them who are 90 years of age or over, percentage-wise, than any other place on earth.

Elderly Greek Islanders enjoying life at a relaxed pace [source: www.greece-is.com]

And they say they can thank being insulated from mechanised conveniences and gadgets and the fast-food culture of modern society elsewhere, for helping them preserve age-old customs and lifestyle habits to explain their exceptional average long-lifespans.

Plus the fact that a daily 30-minute afternoon nap is a cherished custom of Ikarians in reducing stress and decreasing the chance of heart attack, while they say that few of them wear watches, and that showing-up late is both socially acceptable and a help in reducing stress and wrinkles.

And family and community support and strong social connections are positives to lowering depression and body weight, and ultimately also help increase that lifespan.

THE people of the little Greek island of Ikaria claim to have
more healthy residents living amongst them who are 90 years of
age or over, than percentage-wise any other place on earth.
The Ikarians also boast diets high in vegetables and beans, low in meat and sugar, and with extensive use of Extra Virgin Olive Oil whose antioxidants, they say, lower the risk of heart disease and cancer, while those who live to 90 or above also drank goat's milk almost weekly as it was easier to digest than cow's milk, and was high in tryptophan that reduced stress and again lowered the risk of heart disease.

They also use goat's milk to make cheese, incorporate some 150 varieties of wild- growing green vegetables rich in antioxidants in their general cooking, and drink teas they make from herbs they grow themselves to lower blood pressure, and to in turn further lower the risk of heart attack and decrease dementia.

And they say that living in the mountains means they get plenty of daily exercise without thinking about it – further helping so many of them live to 90 or beyond.

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