Find out the secrets of cultures where people commonly live to be 100 years old, or more.

There must be something to be learned from populations where there are astounding rates of people living over the age of 100. Scientists looked at one of these areas, an island off the coast of Italy called Sardinia.

Sardinia has rates of centenarians (people age 100 or older) three times that of the western world. Interestingly, while in the Western world women commonly outlive men by a number of years, in Sardinia the rate of centenarian men and women is equal, with as many men living to be 100 as women.

There are a number of factors that the scientists noticed about centenarian Sardinians that were unique:

• Attitude of contentment. People learned to be content, even though the island has experienced quite a bit of hardship.

• Diet.
o While Sardinians do eat meat, it is only range-fed, natural meat.
o Common foods eaten daily are yogurt; fresh and dried fruit; almonds and walnuts; dark, crusty, whole-grain bread; tomatoes; and small amounts of cheese.
o A special minestrone soup eaten daily by many of the centenarians –including a 112-year old who was the oldest living man at the time – that contains garlic, beans, carrots, kale, olive oil, onions, celery, pasta and cheese. (Linda will rework the recipe for us and make it available on this site soon.)
o Red wine, or dark purple grape juice high in polyphenolic compounds.

• Exercise. While being a sheepherder may not be practical for most of us, the daily exercise it offers is something we can do on our own. 30 minutes of exercise, five days a week is what we need to maintain health.

So live like the Sardinians…Adopt an attitude of contentment, follow the Mediterranean diet, and exercise regularly, and you will be well on your way to living to be 100 years old.