Do you really want to live to a ripe old age?
Britain’s oldest woman Florence Baldwin, who has recently celebrated her 113th birthday, credits her long life to a daily fried egg sandwich.
And while medicine can tell you exactly what shortens your life span (smoking and being overweight come to mind) researchers have for along time struggled to identify things that contribute to living longer.
Eating healthy can certainly help but just what types of foods should you choose? And can what you eat really impact how long you live?
So, below is a list of ten suggestions from centenarian’s when asked about the secret to their longevity.
1) Herring and orange juice – is the recommendation from 115-year-old Hendrikje van Andel-Schipper. The herring is a great source of omega 3 fatty acids known to be beneficial to your heart and cardiovascular system. A glass of orange juice provides vitamin C and antioxidants.
2) Vegetables – A variety of these healthy foods cut the risk of cancer and heart disease, and are a regular part of the menu for 120-year-old Mariam Amash. Green veggies are the staple of a good diet and offer a lot of key vitamins and minerals like iron, carotene and dietary fiber.
3) Custard cakes – this suggestion might seem out of place on a list like this, but 114-year-old Mitoyo Kawate swears by this sweet treat and who can argue with her? Experts do concede that as a part of a balanced diet, a few treats now and then aren’t generally troublesome and can make a stricter diet in other places easier to maintain.
4) Alcohol in moderation – This is the secret of 113-year-old Lucy d’Abreu. A few drinks has been shown to lower the potential risk of heart disease. However, alcohol intake has been connected to cancer and too much is known to bring a variety of health complications. Moderation is key.
5) Sausage in bread – This was the suggestion of rural Ukranian Hryhoriy Nestor. Though conventional wisdom would balk at processed meat doing so hasn’t hurt this active elder. Processed foods should only be part of a balanced diet which includes lots of veggies and plenty of regular exercise.
6) Bread, dripping, salt – Although perhaps living to over 100 in spite of this highly unhealthy diet choice, known to increase the risks of heart disease and high blood pressure. Still Yorkshire lady Ada Mason swears this is the reason she has celebrated 111 birthdays and counting.
7) Porridge – Scotswoman Annie Knight, 111 years old, starts her mornings by eating this traditional Scottish breakfast, giving her body a regular dose of fiber. Adding milk makes porridge full of other nutrients like calcium too.
Boiled rice and chicken – is a fantastic source of starch and low fat protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals. Yukichi Chuganji, At age 114, who doesn’t like vegetables, continues to enjoy this comination regularly.
9) Cottage cheese – which is a good source of calcium, essential nutrients, important to your bones, teeth and body health. This is the favorite of the world’s oldest woman, Sakhan Dosova, who has just attained her 130th birthday.
10) Donkey milk – while you won’t find this in the dairy cases at your local grocery store, 116-year-old Maria Esther de Capovilla, swore the milk she regularly drank as a youngster is the reason she’s lived so long.
Before you stock up on some of the more unconventional “goodies”, it’s critical to note that what these people eat may only be part of the reason they live so long.
Good genes certainly play a role, as does the things these people did early in life.
Maybe lack of stress in early life could be part of the picture. No one knows for sure.
And here’s what Dr. de Grey, whose Methuselah Foundation is funding research into regenerative medicine for aging, says those in the over 100 club have in common, “If there’s one thing we can say about centenarians, it’s that nothing bothers them.
Next – just head on over to the Daily Health Bulletin for more information on the 10 foods eaten for longevity, plus for a limited time get 5 free fantastic health reports. Click here to view an automated video on this longevity diet study.
