Reason why people live past 100 years old in 'blue zones' where oldest family in the world lived

Here are the secrets of the planet's so-called 'blue zones' where people typically live much longer than the average person.

Back in 2012, the tiny town of Perdasdefogu in Sardinia, Italy made global headlines after a Guinness World Record was given to the town's Melis family who at the time had a combined age of 818 years.

The nine siblings were then known as the world’s longest-lived family, with the surviving siblings going on to feature in Dan Buettner's 2023 Netflix documentary Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones.

So what is a blue zone, and why do some residents live so much longer?

The Melis family received a honour of the oldest living in family (ETTORE LOI/AFP/GettyImages)

The world's blue zones, explained

According to various studies, across the past couple of decades there are currently five blue zones spread around the planet, these are: Loma Linda in California, Nicoya in Costa Rica, Okinawa in Japan as well as the islands of Sardinia and Icaria in Italy and Greece respectively.

So what makes these places so special?

Ever since Buettner coined the phrase back in 2005, there has been a global fascination over what makes these particular places so special when it comes to people living longer and healthier lives.

And it turns out there are a number of factors involving diet and lifestyle which makes these places particularly special. "The key factor across all the blue zones is that the centenarians living there did not wake up one morning and decide they wanted to live to 100," Buettner explained in a previous interview with The National.

Sardinia is considered one of the planet's five 'blue zones' (Getty Stock Images)

"They simply lived in environments that nudged them into daily movement, encouraged social connectedness and plant-based eating – making the healthy choice not only easy, but unavoidable."

He continued: "We found that all the blue zones shared nine common characteristics that we feel create this environment of health."

For example, the Melis family revealed that a daily staple in their diet included a three bean minestrone soup, which included a number of additional vegetables and is packed full of nutrients, fibre and protein.

Moderate amounts of alcohol are also common in these diets, as well as a more relaxed outlook on life and stronger sense of community. Buettner states that 'knowing your sense of purpose' can also be a crucial part of living longer as well.

Minestrone soup was a staple in the Melis family diets (Getty Stock Images)

Environment can also play a crucial role, with Giacomo Mameli - a distant cousin of the Melis siblings - telling The Guardian in 2021: "We live in a place where the air is clean. Our centenarians were in continuous movement in a healthy environment.

"Another important factor is that Perdasdefogu conserves the sense of community... if you talk, you live well."