As long as I can remember, I love to travel. Getting on a plane and taking off is a pure rush for me as much as exploring a new destination and meeting fellow travelers and residents. This is greatly due in part to my father who was a world traveler. Traveling was his biggest passion and it mine as well.

Another love of mine is nutrition and I can get never enough of learning more about it. What are the latest news, trends, and change of thinking? Hottest diet? I read about it and perhaps dabbled. Controversy over a vitamin – too much or too little? I can weigh in. Calories over volume? Tried both. This side of me is hands down inherited from my mother who has studied and practiced good nutrition her entire lifetime. Her findings put into her eating ways have been to her great benefit and good fortune, as my mother will turn 90 years young this year.

Needless to say what a joy it was to find and read a book that combines both of these two passions of mine, travel and nutrition.

In Dan Buetter’s “The Blue Zones,” he globe hops around the world to explore the homelands and secrets of how to successfully live a long healthy life from centenarians – from what they eat, how they exercise, and ways to cope with stress – and then shares his findings with his readers.

A National Geographic explorer and researcher, Buetter is an award-winning author and writer who had a deep interest in demographics and longevity. How one can turn back the biological clock, or better yet, beat it? He wanted to learn this and know how people remained mentally and physically vibrant as they aged, how they lived longer and lived better. So he formed a team of physicians and demographers and began traveling to the “blue zones” of the word, regions with the longest life expectancy, disability-free life expectancy or concentration of persons over 100.

In his book, Buetter takes you Sardinia, Italy; Okinawa, Japan; Loma Linda, California; and the Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rico where you’ll meet a 94-year-old farmer, a 102-year-old grandmother, a 102-year-old hiker and others who share their daily healthy and lifelong habits. By observing their lifestyles extensively, Buettner’s team of professionals identifies critical everyday choices. These choices are practical tips for living long and well and include a diet of plenty of fresh fresh, unchilled fresh water, lots of fresh vegetables, limited red meat, limited fats and sweets, and a commitment to hard farm work or exercising. This is all in addition to having a richly entwined family life and close group of friends as a support system.

Buetter’s book is an interesting read, one you will find yourself dog-earing page after page. It provides the essential components of a healthy lifestyle, reinforcing life choices and priorities you may already practice – eat less, exercise daily, banish stress, and make family a priority – and others you have not. He has shared his “Blue Zone” research and discoveries on national level as well, through the media, including with appearances on the Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN, NBC Nightly News, Oprah Winfrey, and David Letterman plus delivering over 500 keynote speeches.

To learn of more of Buetter’s research and discoveries, pick up a hard or digital copy of “Blue Zone.” It’s a must read for all those who are health conscious and want to discover new ways from the old and wise as to stay young and healthier as well as live life longer.

Be Fit. Be Strong. Be Well.
Adriana