We hear that with every generation, people are living longer. But just how much longer? Well, last year, Los Angeles resident, Mark Johnson died at the age of 112. He was thought to be the oldest living Californian and oldest surviving veteran of World War I. What's more, doctors who performed the autopsy said that his body was like that of a 50 year-old, and here's the catch: His diet was largely sausages and waffles! Hmmm... does that mean that sausages and waffles will give you the body of someone half your age, and help you live to an amazingly ripe old age too?

Well, no. As any good scientist will tell you, data taken from the life of one person doesn't prove anything, no matter how interesting it may be. But if an entire region lived to amazingly old age, well, that would be something to pay attention to.

And in fact, there are a few remote locations where not just a few people but most of the population lives well into their 90s and beyond. Studies show that people in Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; and the Caucasus Mountains in Russia all live exceptionally long, healthy lives. A surprising number of them live to be not just 100, but 110, or even older. So, what is it about these people? And what can we learn from them that could help us live longer, healthier lives too?

Ducking the Golden Handshake These three geographically diverse cultures share similar attitudes about work. For example, Okinawan octogenarian Zenei Nakamura is still working as a fisherman, as he has done all his life. He says, "My children tell me to stop fishing, but it is fun, and I feel more powerful doing it." A cultural profile of the Caucasian people points up a similar attitude toward physical labor: researchers comment that these people work "like beasts," eat little, and spend most of their leisure time sleeping.

All three communities depend on farming, fishing, and game. They spend a most of their time in the open air, which some have claimed is the secret to their longevity. But in fact, the single most common factor among these various people groups is physical activity. Researchers have suggests that limited food quantities, daily exercise, and the lack of stress may all be factors that lead to long life. Hmmm... so that calorie-restricted diet may add on years as well subtracting pounds!

Reach Out and Touch Someone All three of these long-lived communities boast strong social networks. And sexuality plays a role as well. The Okinawan Study that brought attention to the long lives of these people discovered that Okinawan elders have higher levels of sex hormones than their contemporaries in other parts of the world.

Other studies suggest that friendship, love, and social connections may hold clues to longevity and health for all of us. Men may benefit more than women, however.

You Are What You Eat The agrarian lifestyle leads to diets that many have claimed are responsible for these groups' longevity. Bradley Willcox, a physician associated with the University of Hawaii and author of The Okinawa Diet Plan and The Okinawa Way claims that the Okinawans' longevity and health is at least partially due to a diet rich in soy and sweet potatoes. These foods contain flavonoids that stimulate what Willcox calls "the sirtuin pathway," causing the body to focus on preservation rather than reproduction.

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