UCL demographer’s work debunking ‘Blue Zone’ regions

 For example, despite vegetables and sweet potatoes being promoted as key components of the Okinawan ‘Blue Zone’ diets, according to the Japanese government, Okinawans eat the least vegetables and sweet potatoes in Japan and have the highest body mass index.

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/news/2024/sep/ucl-demographers-work-debunking-blue-zone-regions-exceptional-lifespans-wins-ig-nobel-prize?

 

 Konon vegetarian hidup lama. Banyak bohong. Sardinia terbukti bohong sama sekali.

The "Blue Zones" concept is a popular idea, but it has generated several myths and faced significant criticism, mainly regarding the data used and the oversimplification of the lifestyle factors.

Here are some of the most common myths and the contrasting realities or criticisms:

### Myth 1: The High Concentration of Centenarians is Undisputed Fact.
**Reality/Criticism:**
* **Data Reliability Issues:** The primary scientific criticism, notably by demographer Dr. Saul Justin Newman, is that the exceptional longevity in some of these regions may be the result of **age exaggeration, clerical errors, and historic pension/identity fraud** in areas with poor or damaged birth records.
* For example, a Japanese government review in 2010 found that a significant number of people registered as over 100 had actually died years earlier.
* The claims of high centenarian rates tend to appear more often in relatively poor, remote areas where proper documentation and age validation are historically difficult.
* **The Proponent's Defense:** Researchers who coined the term Blue Zones (like Dan Buettner and the original demographers) argue that they use a rigorous validation process, cross-checking multiple records (including those of siblings) to verify the age of every centenarian, which eliminates these data errors.

### Myth 2: The Blue Zone Diet is a Strict, Uniformly Vegetarian/Vegan Diet.
**Reality/Criticism:**
* **Animal Products are Consumed:** While the diet is predominantly **plant-based (90-95%)**, it is not strictly vegetarian or vegan (except for the Seventh-day Adventists in Loma Linda).
* **Meat is eaten, but sparingly:** It is reserved for special occasions or to flavor dishes, averaging only about five small servings per month.
* **Fish and Dairy:** Fish is regularly consumed in many of the coastal Blue Zones (like Ikaria and Sardinia). Dairy is also consumed, often from goats or sheep (like Pecorino cheese in Sardinia), which is different from cow's milk.
* **Okinawan Diet Snapshot:** The popular "traditional" Okinawan diet figures (very low in protein) are sometimes argued to be a misrepresentation—a temporary snapshot from the post-World War II period of extreme food scarcity, not the pre-war norm.

### Myth 3: Longevity is Primarily Due to the Special Diet.
**Reality/Criticism:**
* **It's the Whole Environment:** Research consistently shows that **lifestyle and environment** outweigh genetics for longevity (genetics account for only about 20-30% of an individual's lifespan).
* The key takeaway is the *holistic* nature of the life. People in Blue Zones don't "go to the gym" or "go on a diet"; their entire environment naturally **nudges** them toward healthy behaviors:
* **Natural Movement:** Gardening, walking everywhere (due to steep terrain or lack of personal vehicles), and manual labor.
* **Social & Mental Health:** Strong, committed social networks, a deep **sense of purpose** (*ikigai*), and daily rituals for stress reduction (naps, prayer, happy hour).
* **The Diet is a Consequence:** Their healthy diet (high in local, unprocessed plants and fiber) is largely a *consequence* of their traditional, non-modernized, agrarian, and community-focused environment, not a calculated "diet plan."

### Myth 4: Blue Zones are Immune to Modern Health Problems.
**Reality/Criticism:**
* **The Trend is Changing:** The health of younger generations in some Blue Zones is declining as their cultures globalize.
* In **Okinawa**, for instance, younger people are adopting more Western diets (fast food) and sedentary lifestyles, leading to rising rates of obesity and a drop in overall life expectancy at birth, though the elderly cohort remains exceptionally healthy.
* The lessons of the Blue Zones are therefore seen as a testament to the *traditional* lifestyle of the older generation, not the current trajectory of the whole region.

In essence, while the longevity in some zones may be statistically overstated due to poor record-keeping, the scientific value of the Blue Zones concept lies not in a secret pill or diet, but in the **nine holistic and integrated lifestyle factors** that engineer health and connection into daily life.