In Sardinia, the secrets of happy aging in the Blue Zone

Researchers from the University of Cagliari compared elderly residents of Sardinia's Blue Zone with those of a neighboring rural area. Curiosity, social connections, and emotional resilience emerged as the distinguishing factors of successful aging.

Global life expectancy has now reached an average of 73,5 years, but living a long life does not guarantee good health. It is precisely this question that led Italian researchers to study the elderly in the Blue Zone of Sardinia, as published in the...International Journal of Applied Positive Psychology.

Blue zones designate geographically isolated territories where longevity is exceptional: central-eastern Sardinia, Okinawa in Japan, Ikaria in Greece, and Nicoya in Costa Rica. To qualify for this designation, a place must have clearly defined borders, an unusually high concentration of people who have reached at least 90 years of age over the last 150 years, and records that allow for verification of birth and death dates.

In Sardinia, the Blue Zone is concentrated in six villages in Ogliastra, the central-eastern part of the island. The proportion of centenarians among people born between 1880 and 1900 was about five times higher there than in the rest of Europe, and three times higher than in Sardinia as a whole. A rare phenomenon worldwide: men and women reach 100 years of age in almost equal proportions, whereas women are far more numerous everywhere else.

The study compares older adults living in this area to those in a neighboring rural region. Participants answered questions about their lifestyle, perceived quality of life, and completed a cognitive test. Residents of the blue zone spend an average of 11,3 hours per week on cognitively and physically stimulating leisure activities, compared to 6,8 hours for their neighbors outside the blue zone.

These seniors don't try to do everything: they focus on activities they can still perform successfully and that they find rewarding, such as gardening, walking, or attending community centers. Researchers emphasize that this selective approach helps maintain a sense of competence and satisfaction.

Psychologically, residents of the blue zone exhibit higher levels of curiosity and openness to new ideas, as well as a greater ability to understand and share their own emotions. They also possess more effective coping strategies for dealing with daily challenges and report greater satisfaction with their relationships, both familial and non-familial.

The study's authors emphasize the central role of maintaining a social role and a sense of purpose in old age. Community involvement and stress management appear as pillars of successful aging in these Sardinian villages, alongside the genetic, environmental, and dietary factors already documented by previous research.