Why do
people in some regions of the world live seven to twelve years longer than
would be expected? That is the question that has driven National Geographic
writer and explorer Dan Buettner to search for the lessons learned from these “longevity
hotspots” in order to help us all live longer, healthier, and happier lives.
It
started with the demographic work by Gianni Pes and Michel who identified
Sardinia, an island in the Mediterranean near Italy, as the region of the world
with the highest concentration of male centenarians. On a map, Pes and Poulain
drew blue circles around those villages of extreme longevity and began to refer
to the areas inside the circles as “Blue Zones.”
Dan
Buettner took the concept of “Blue Zones” further, identifying four other parts
of the world with exceptional longevity including Loma Linda in California. Dan
and his team of researchers studied those areas and found nine evidence-based
common behaviors of the inhabitants which they called the “Power of 9”.
But
what about genetics? Your genes do have an influence, but only between 20 - 30%
variation in life span is due to genetics. The rest is due to environmental
factors and lifestyle choices.
Last
Wednesday, Brett Ratchford from The Dalles Blue Zone Project team spoke at the
Center about how the project team was working with community partners to use
the lessons from the Blue Zones to improve the health and well-being of
everyone in The Dalles. It is a three-year effort and right now they are just
starting. But by January you should be hearing more about their work to make
healthy choices easier so we can all enjoy more “years in our life and life in
our years”.
You may
have noticed I haven’t listed the nine common behaviors of the “Power of 9”. In
the coming weeks, I will describe each of them, but until then what do you
think are the nine behaviors for living a longer, healthier, and happier life?
As you
may have read, the Mid-Columbia Council of Governments (MCCOG) is divesting
itself of the programs they administer. That includes the local Area Agency on Aging
(AAA) which provides valuable services for older adults in the five-county region
of Hood River, Wasco, Sherman, Gilliam, and Wheeler counties.
Because
of MCCOG’s action, the State Unit on Aging, is now responsible for identifying
a new administrative home for the AAA. To that end, the State Unit on Aging
will be holding public meetings in all five counties to hear what the
communities would like to see in a new AAA. In Wasco County, the meeting will
be held at the Center on Tuesday, October 31st at 1:00 pm. (If you
need transportation, you can call 541-298-4101.) And in Sherman County the
public meeting will be held at the Sherman County Senior & Community Center
in Moro on Friday, November 3rd at 12:00 pm.
The Center’s
4th Annual Holiday Bazaar will be on Saturday November 18th.
There is still room for additional vendors, and if you are interested call the
Center. And on the same day is the St. Peter’s 39th Annual Holiday Bazaar
which will be held across the street from the Center at St. Mary’s Academy. This
gives you a chance to check out two bazaars within walking distance for your
holiday gifts.
The
pant style from the 60’s when the legs of a pair of store bought pants were cut
and sewn so they would be skin tight were called “pegged” pants. (I received
correct answers from Diana Weston, and Deloris Schrader this week’s winner of a
quilt raffle ticket. And a raffle ticket also goes to Rhonda Austin who I
forgot to mention last week.)
Since
the World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Houston Astros begins
this week, I must ask a baseball question for all the baseball fans in the
audience. In 1957, the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles. For this week’s “Remember When”
question, where did they move from? And for bonus points, why are they called
the Dodgers? Email your answer to www.mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, leave a message
at 541-296-4788 or drop it off with a picture of Ebbets Field.
Well,
it’s been another week, trying to get use to the darker mornings. Until we meet
again, it’s never too late to try something new - but don’t expect it to be
easy.
“Everyone you will ever meet knows something you
don’t.” Bill Nye, the Science Guy
1 comment:
Thank you for sharing such a beautiful article but I do think that aging makes a person looks more sober and decent. Thanks again
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