Dan Buettner

Last updated
Dan Buettner
DanBuettnerOct10.jpg
Buettner in October 2010
Born (1960-06-18) June 18, 1960 (age 63) [1]
Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States [1]
NationalityAmerican
Occupations

Dan Buettner (born June 18, 1960) is an American author, explorer, longevity researcher and public speaker. [2] [3] He co-produced the documentary TV mini series Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones (2023) based on his book of the same name and holds three Guinness records for distance cycling. [4] [5] Buettner is the founder of Blue Zones, LLC. He is a National Geographic Fellow. [6]

Contents

Buettner is a promoter of plant-based diets from his research on blue zones and has authored numerous books on the subject. [7] [8] [9] [10]

Biography

Buettner was born on June 18, 1960, in Saint Paul, Minnesota. [1] Buettner graduated with a BA in Spanish and Literature from the University of St. Thomas in 1983. [11]

Soon thereafter he went to work for The Washington Post columnist Remar Sutton. Later he took a job with National Public Radio in Washington, D.C., to recruit celebrity participation in a fund-raising croquet tournament with journalist George Plimpton of Paris Review. [12]

In 1986, Buettner launched the first of several Guinness World Records for transcontinental cycling. [13] "Americastrek" traversed 15,536 miles (25,003 km), from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, to Tierra del Fuego, Argentina; the 1990 "Sovietrek", where Dan was joined by his brother Steve, [14] followed the 45th parallel around the world and covered 12,888 miles (20,741 km), as Buettner recounted the trip in his book Sovietrek.[ full citation needed ] In 1992, in "Africatrek", the Buettner brothers team-cycled from Bizerte, Tunisia, to Cape Agulhas, South Africa, with cyclist Dr. Chip Thomas, covering 11,885 miles (19,127 km) over eight months.[ citation needed ]

National Geographic Collaborations

When Buettner realized that adults were also following his expeditions, he approached National Geographic with the idea to research longevity hotspots and was given support to move forward.[ citation needed ] He then met with Robert Kane,[ citation needed ] as of 2016 the Director, Center on Aging, at the University of Minnesota, [15] who introduced him to demographers and scientists at the National Institute on Aging (NIA) in Washington, D.C.[ citation needed ] Buettner was awarded a grant from the National Institute of Aging.[ citation needed ] Previous research identified the longevity hotspots of Sardinia, Okinawa, and Loma Linda.[ citation needed ]

In 2003, Buettner began leading trips to these destinations while collaborating with a variety of experts, including anthropologists, historians, dietitians, and geneticists. His early trips focused on Sardinia, Italy; Okinawa, Japan; Monterrey, Nuevo Leon; and then Loma Linda, California. [16]

Buettner reported on communities with increased longevity, identified as a blue zone, in his cover story for National Geographic Magazine's November 2005 edition, "Secrets of Long Life." [17]

In 2006, under aegis of National Geographic, Buettner collaborated with Michel Poulain and Costa Rican demographer Dr. Luis Rosero-Bixby to identify a fourth longevity hotspot in the Nicoya Peninsula. In 2008, again working with Poulain, he found a fifth longevity hotspot on the Greek Island of Ikaria.[ citation needed ] In April 2008, Buettner released a book on his findings, The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest, through National Geographic Books which resulted in interviews for Buettner on The Oprah Winfrey Show , The Dr. Oz Show, and Anderson Cooper 360.[ citation needed ]

In October 2010, he released the book Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way, largely based on research taking a data-based approach to identify the statistically happiest regions of the happiest countries on Earth.[ according to whom? ] He argues that creating lasting happiness is only achievable through optimizing the social and physical environments. [18]

In April 2015, Buettner published The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World's Healthiest People, which listed Ikaria (in Greece), Okinawa (Japan), Sardinia (Italy), Loma Linda (California), and Costa Rica as the places with top longevity. [19] It became a New York Times Best Seller. [20] The book was featured on the cover of Parade, and Buettner was interviewed extensively on national media.[ citation needed ]

In 2019, Buettner and National Geographic photographer David McLain revisited all of the Blue Zones to study diet; based on this, Buettner and McLain wrote The Blue Zones Kitchen.[ full citation needed ][ citation needed ]

Blue zones

The concept of the blue zones was originally developed by Michel Poulain Professor Emeritus at the Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium who is demographer and world expert in studies of longevity who proposed five of the six so-called blue zones. [21] Given the importance of the discovery, the Blue Zones concept early on in its development, attracted the attention, and support, of Buettner.

By 2003, Buettner formed a marketing company and trademarked [22] the name Blue Zones®. [23] In 2020, Blue Zones® LLC was acquired by Adventist Health. [24]

AARP/Blue Zones Vitality Project

In 2008, inspired by Finland's North Karelia Project, [25] [ third-party source needed ] Buettner designed a plan to apply his Blue Zones principles to an American town.[ citation needed ] He auditioned five cities and chose Albert Lea, Minnesota, for the AARP/Blue Zones Vitality Project, where he believed the key to success involved focusing on the ecology of health—creating a healthy environment rather than relying on individual behaviors.[ citation needed ]

Walter Willett, chair of the department of nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health, found the results[ clarification needed ] "stunning". [26] As a whole, the community showed an 80% increase in walking and biking; 49% decrease in city worker's healthcare claims, and 4% reduction in smoking.[ citation needed ] The community shed 12,000 pounds, walked 75 million steps, and added three years to their average life expectancy.[ citation needed ] City officials reported a 40% drop in health care costs.[ citation needed ]

In 2010, Buettner partnered with Healthways, a global health and well-being company, to scale the Blue Zones city work under the rubric of Blue Zones Projects. [27] [ third-party source needed ] The Blue Zones Project team partnered with Beach Cities Health District in Southern California to apply Blue Zone principles to three California communities—Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, and Manhattan Beach. Their work occasioned the lowering of BMI by 14% and smoking by 30%, as well as increasing healthy eating and exercise. [28]

In 2011, the Blue Zones Project joined forces with Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield to deliver the Blue Zones Project across the State of Iowa as the cornerstone of the Governor's Healthiest State Initiative and is at work in 18 cities there to effect change.[ citation needed ] In 2013, projects began in Fort Worth, Texas, and in Hawaii.[ where? ] [29] [30] [ third-party source needed ]

In 2014, work began in Naples, Florida; South Bend, Indiana; and Klamath Falls, Oregon. [27] [ third-party source needed ] In 2018, Klamath Falls was recognized by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) as the "Culture of Health" prize winner [31]

Documentary TV mini series

In 2023, Buettner co-produced and featured in a TV mini series Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones. [32]

Public speaking

Personal life

Buettner and American model Cheryl Tiegs ended a relationship on January 1, 2009. [38] Buettner described his own diet as "98% plant-based". [10]

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Longevity</span> Longer than typical lifespan, especially of humans

Longevity may refer to especially long-lived members of a population, whereas life expectancy is defined statistically as the average number of years remaining at a given age. For example, a population's life expectancy at birth is the same as the average age at death for all people born in the same year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Okinawa diet</span> Eating habits of the indigenous people of the Ryukyu Islands

The Okinawa diet describes the traditional dietary practices of indigenous people of the Ryukyu Islands, which were claimed to have contributed to their relative longevity over a period of study in the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicoya</span> District in Nicoya canton, Guanacaste province, Costa Rica

Nicoya is a district and head city of the Nicoya canton, in the Guanacaste province of Costa Rica, located on the Nicoya Peninsula. It is one of the country's most important tourist zones; it serves as a transport hub to Guanacaste's beaches and national parks.

The Okinawa Centenarian Study is a study of the elderly people of Okinawa, Japan. The study, funded by Japan's ministry of health, is the largest of its kind ever carried out. Over the years, the scientists involved have had access to more than 600 Okinawan centenarians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicoya Peninsula</span> Peninsula

The Nicoya Peninsula is a peninsula on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. It is divided into two provinces: Guanacaste Province in the north, and the Puntarenas Province in the south. It is located at 10°N 85.4166667°W. It varies from 19 to 37 miles (60 km) wide and is approximately 75 miles (121 km) long, forming the largest peninsula in the country. It is known for its beaches and is a popular tourist destination.

Loma Linda Broadcasting Network (LLBN) is a non-profit, community and variety television, Christian broadcasting network in Loma Linda, California founded in 1996. Broadcast can be received via GloryStar Satellite Systems - Galaxy 19, Internet video streaming on each website, IPTV services such as Roku and Roku devices, Joozoor TV and many more, and Verizon FiOS and cable/low and high power TV stations in select areas. LLBN English broadcasts on Glorystar channel 105, along with LLBN Arabic on Glorystar channel 405 and LLBN Latino on Glorystar channel 505. It is located in Loma Linda which is known as one of only five blue zones worldwide from the surrounding Seventh-day Adventist community from which it draws for its programs, with values and lifestyle centered on the Seventh-day Adventist Church and from the Loma Linda University and Hospital nearby.

Ellen G. White, one of the co-founders of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, was extremely influential on the church, which considers her a prophet, understood today as an expression of the New Testament spiritual gift of prophecy. She was a voluminous writer and popular speaker on health and temperance. Her teachings are preserved today through over 50,000 manuscript pages of her writings, and the records of others.

A blue zone is a region in the world where people are claimed to have exceptionally long lives beyond the age of 80 due to a lifestyle combining physical activity, low stress, rich social interactions, a local whole-foods diet, and low disease incidence. Examples of blue zones include Okinawa Prefecture, Japan; Nuoro Province, Sardinia, Italy; the Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica; and Icaria, Greece. The name "blue zones" derived simply during the original survey by scientists, who "used a blue pen on a map to mark the villages with long-lived population."

Adventist Health Studies (AHS) is a series of long-term medical research projects of Loma Linda University with the intent to measure the link between lifestyle, diet, disease and mortality of Seventh-day Adventists.

Matt Osterman is an American independent filmmaker. He wrote and directed the films Ghost from the Machine, 400 Days, and Hover. He resides in Roseville, Minnesota.

Ikigai is a Japanese concept referring to something that gives a person a sense of purpose, a reason for living.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loma Linda, California</span> City in California, United States

Loma Linda is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States, that was incorporated in 1970. The population was 24,791 at the 2020 census, up from 23,261 at the 2010 census. The central area of the city was originally known as Mound City, while its eastern half was originally the unincorporated community of Bryn Mawr.

The AARP/Blue Zones Vitality Project is an initiative aimed at improving well-being that began in January 2009 when the city of Albert Lea, Minnesota, launched the initiative with assistance from the United Health Foundation and led by Dan Buettner, author of "The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest."

The concept of Hara hachi bun me (腹八分目) or hara hachi bu is the practise of eating until one is about 80% full, a traditional Japanese philosophy to achieve good health and longevity. The elders of Okinawa, are world renowned for their longevity are also featured in a series of books referencing their traditional

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ellsworth Wareham</span> American cardiothoracic surgeon

Ellsworth Edwin Wareham was an American cardiothoracic surgeon and centenarian from Loma Linda, California who promoted the health benefits of plant-based nutrition.

Human Longevity, Inc. is a San Diego-based venture launched by Craig Venter and Peter Diamandis in 2013. Its goal is to build the world's most comprehensive database on human genotypes and phenotypes, and then subject it to machine learning so that it can help develop new ways to fight diseases associated with aging. The company received US$80 million in investments in its Series A offering in summer 2014 and announced a further $220 million Series B investment offering in April 2016. It has made deals with drug companies Celgene and AstraZeneca to collaborate in its research.

Moais are social support groups that form in order to provide varying support from social, financial, health, or spiritual interests. Moai means "meeting for a common purpose" in Japanese and originated from the social support groups in Okinawa, Japan. The concept of Moais have gained contemporary attention due to the Blue Zone research popularized by Dan Buettner. According to research, Moais are considered one of the leading factors of the longevity of lifespan of the Okinawan people, making the region among the highest concentration of centenarians in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michel Poulain</span> Belgian demographer

Michel Poulain was originally trained in astrophysics at University of Liège (ULiège). He received a PhD in demography at University of Louvain (UCLouvain). As a demographer, he has specialized in international Migration Statistics and Longevity studies. Currently emeritus professor at UCLouvain, he is also senior researcher at the Estonian Institute for Population Studies at Tallinn University (Estonia). He has been President of the Société Belge de Démographie (1984-1990) and later of the Association Internationale des Démographes de Langue Française (AIDELF), (1988-2000).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hunza diet</span> Part of Pakistani cuisine

The Hunza cuisine also called the Burusho cuisine consists of a series of selective food and drink intake practiced by the Burusho people of northern Pakistan. Alternative medicine and natural health advocates have argued without providing any scientific evidence that the Hunza diet can increase longevity to 120 years. The diet mostly consists of raw food including nuts, fresh vegetables, dry vegetables, mint, fruits and seeds added with yogurt. The cooked meal, daal included with chappati, is included for dinner.

<i>If Youre Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast</i> 2017 American film

If You're Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast is a 2017 American documentary film directed by Danny Gold that premiered on May 19, 2017 on HBO.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Diamond, Jed (2023). "Adopting a Blue Zones Way of Life: What You Need to Do To Survive The Challenges We Face Today". MenAlive. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023.
  2. ↑ Harvey, Kay (2008). "Explorer taps world's secrets of longevity". MinnPost. Archived from the original on May 18, 2024.
  3. ↑ Shea, Kitty (2022). "Exploring Dan Buettner". Archived from the original on August 19, 2022.
  4. ↑ Moniuszko, Sara (2023). "Want to live to 100? "Blue Zones" expert shares longevity lessons in new Netflix series". CBS News. Archived from the original on August 30, 2023.
  5. ↑ https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/culture-magazines/buettner-dan
  6. ↑ "Blue Zones author to speak at WVU". WVUToday. 2017. Archived from the original on May 19, 2023.
  7. ↑ Gordinier, Jeff (2015). "My Dinner With Longevity Expert Dan Buettner (No Kale Required)". The New York Times.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ↑ Landsverk, Gabby (2023). "Researcher Dan Buettner gave up meat forever after hearing a doctor describe what it does to arteries". Business Insider.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ↑ Buettner, Dan (2020). "'Ensure that your diet is 90% to 100% plant-based': 9 food rules from the world's longest-living people". CNBC.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. 1 2 Onque, Renée (2024). "I've studied 100-year-olds and longevity habits for 20 years: What I eat every day". CNBC.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ↑ "Adventurer Dan Buettner to address First Friday luncheon Oct. 6". St. Thomas Newsroom. 30 November 1999. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  12. ↑ Carlyle, Erin (February 3, 2010). "Dan Buettner's Blue Zones Teach Nine Secrets of a Longer Life". City Pages. Archived from the original on August 9, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  13. ↑ The Guinness book of records 1994. Guinness publishing. 1993. p. 563. ISBN   9780851127729.
  14. ↑ Sutton, Remar (1990-04-09). "Sovietrek Hits the Road" . Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  15. ↑ "Faculty Expertise in Aging and Long-Term Care". Sph.umn.edu. 2013-12-17. Archived from the original on 2016-06-22. Retrieved 2016-07-27.[ better source needed ]
  16. ↑ Potter, Ned. (January 18, 2007). Finding the keys to longevity. ABC News. Accessed September 14, 2007.[ full citation needed ]
  17. ↑ Buettner, D. (Nov. 2005) "On Assignment—The Secret of Longevity," National Geographic , Accessed September 14, 2007.[ full citation needed ]
  18. ↑ name="Denmark">NPR Staff (November 28, 2010). "How To 'Thrive': Dan Buettner's Secrets Of Happiness". NPR - Weekend Edition.
  19. ↑ Buettner, Dan (April 1, 2015). "New Book: Secrets to Long Life". National Geographic Traveler. National Geographic.
  20. ↑ "Advice, How-To & Miscellaneous Books - Best Sellers - Books - April 26, 2015 - the New York Times". The New York Times.
  21. ↑ https://longevitybluezone.com/the-5-blue-zones/
  22. ↑ https://www.bluezones.com/founders-statement/#section-2
  23. ↑ Alexa Mikhail (2023). A look inside America's only blue zone city—home to some of the world's longest-living people. https://fortune.com/well/2023/04/02/longevity-tips-loma-linda-california-blue-zone-city/
  24. ↑ "Adventist Health acquires community health planning venture". bizjournals.
  25. ↑ Buettner, Dan. "The Finnish Town That Went on a Diet." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 07 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 June 2015.
  26. ↑ Underwood, Anne. "How Public Policy Can Prevent Heart Disease." NewsWeek. NewsWeek, 2 Apr. 2010. Web. 24 June 2015.
  27. 1 2 "Blue Zones Project". Communities.bluezonesproject.com. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  28. ↑ "Blue Zones Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach health initiative". Easyreadernews.com. November 2013. Archived from the original on 2016-04-22. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  29. ↑ "Blue Zones Project - Fort Worth". Fortworth.bluezonesproject.com. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  30. ↑ "Blue Zones Project - Hawaii". Hawaii.bluezonesproject.com. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  31. ↑ "2018 RWJF culture of health prize winner". Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. 18 September 2018. Archived from the original on 13 August 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  32. ↑ https://www.npr.org/2023/09/14/1199429444/netflix-series-travels-the-worlds-blue-zones-where-longevity-rules
  33. ↑ "Press Release: President Clinton Announces Program for Second Annual Health Matters Conference". Clinton Foundation. 2013-01-09. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  34. ↑ "The World We Build- Dan Buettner Zeitgeist *Americas 2012". YouTube. 2012-10-16. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  35. ↑ "Dan Buettner | Speaker | TED".
  36. ↑ "TEDxTC | TED".
  37. ↑ https://www.ted.com/talks/dan_buettner_how_to_live_to_be_100
  38. ↑ "Turns out, Tiegs and Buettner now live in Splitsville - StarTribune.com". Star Tribune . Archived from the original on 2016-07-25. Retrieved 2017-06-10.

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