13 Blue Zone Recipes For Health & Longevity | Elizabeth Rider (2024)

FAQs

What foods increase longevity in the blue zone? ›

The best of the best longevity foods in the Blue Zones diet are leafy greens such as spinach, kale, beet and turnip tops, chard, and collards. In Ikaria more than 75 varieties of edible greens grow like weeds; many contain ten times the polyphenols found in red wine.

Eggs are consumed in all five Blue Zones diets, where people eat them an average of two to four times per week. Cut down your consumption of cow's milk and dairy products such as cheese, cream, and butter. Try unsweetened soy, coconut, or almond milk as a dairy alternative.

In blue zones regions, the routine is similar. Ideally, breakfast or the first meal of the day consists of protein, complex carbohydrates (beans or veggies) and plant-based fats (nuts, seeds, oils) and a majority of the day's calories are consumed before noon.

The best-of-the-best longevity foods are leafy greens such as spinach, kale, beet and turnip tops, chard, and collards. Combined with seasonal fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and beans dominate blue zones meals all year long. Many oils derive from plants, and they are all preferable to animal-based fats.

While longevity foods come from a variety of different food groups (which is key for promoting overall nutrient diversity), one overarching principle of diets linked to long life is that they consist predominantly of whole or minimally processed, nutrient-dense plant foods such as fruits, vegetables, and legumes, and ...

People in Blue Zones areas typically eat an egg every other day, or 3 per week. Favor eggs from cage-free, pastured chickens just like the Blue Zones centenarians. Beans are an important source of protein in the Blue Zones areas with centenarians eating at least one cup of cooked beans daily.

Avoid dairy when possible. If cheese is a must, try ice-cube size portions of sheep (pecorino) or goat (feta) cheese to flavor foods. If you eat eggs, limit intake to three times a week.

In his opinion, it doesn't matter what fruit you consume. "Some would argue that berries are healthier than bananas, but the best fruit to eat is the fruit that you'll actually eat," says Buettner. He does caveat, however, that fruit is most often consumed as dessert in the Blue Zones.

You can use any type of pasta shape, but to make it totally blue zones, be sure to use pasta made of 100 percent whole wheat. If you are sticking to a gluten-free diet, you can also find pasta made from brown rice or quinoa. You can adjust recipe serving sizes for leftovers (and company!) in your menu.

Blue Zones centenarians typically drink coffee at breakfast, tea in the afternoon, wine at 5pm, and water all day. To live to be 100, keep your beverages simple and avoid sugary beverages like soda and fruit juices.

Do blue zones eat cheese? ›

Dairy is high in fat and sugar and is best avoided. Some Blue Zones countries do include sheep or goat dairy, but it is usually eaten in fermented products such as yogurt or cheese.

Grains including oats, barley, brown rice, and ground corn (not so much wheat) play a key role in the world's blue zone diets.

People in Sardinia's Blue Zones eat Sourdough everyday. Low in gluten it also lowers glycemic load of your entire meal by up to 25%. That means, your calories are more likely to be used for energy than belly fat.

Corn—and popcorn too—has long been a staple ingredient in Costa Rica's Nicoya Peninsula, a blue zones hotspot.

Dan Buettner:

People in Blue Zones are living a long time because they're socializing, because they know their purpose. And they live their pure purpose. They live near nature. They keep their families close by and we can map all these to higher life expectancy.

“People in the blue zones eat an impressive variety of garden vegetables and leafy greens (especially spinach, kale, beet and turnip tops, chard, and collards) when they are in season; they pickle or dry the surplus to enjoy during the off-season,” Buettner writes in his book.

Berries contain a large number of antioxidants and phytochemicals, which can “activate longevity pathways,” Hyman says. They can also keep the gut healthy, fight inflammation, and, therefore, reduce the risk for heart disease and other life-threatening chronic conditions.

The diet is mostly plant-based. The daily food intake of people living in Blue Zones is about 95% vegetables, fruits, grains, and legumes. They do not eat much meat, dairy, sugary foods or drinks, and processed food. Food is not the only reason that people in Blue Zones live long, healthy lives.