This Carnivore Is Hanging Up His Steak Knife For The Mediterranean Diet

Ever since my wife, Sara, and I watched Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones on Netflix last summer, we've been on a healthy eating kick. Well, it was derailed a bit by the holiday season, but that's to be expected. However, this is the first time in my fifty years of life that I've truly embraced making some changes to the way I eat. Until last summer, I was a committed carnivore. Now it looks like I'm hanging up my steak knife for the Mediterranean diet. I'm a carnivore no more.

If you're unfamiliar with the Blue Zones, they are the five places in the world with the highest concentrations of centenarians, or people who live to 100. National Geographic's Dan Buettner has been studying what makes the people of Okinawa, Japan; Ikaria, Greece; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; and Loma Linda, California so long-lived. It's a combination of things like daily physical activity, community, purposeful living, and a largely plant-based diet.

Of course, the specifics vary from one place to the next based on factors including topography, culture, and available ingredients. For example, wine and sourdough bread show up in the European Blue Zones but not in Okinawa. However, there are many common threads, such as strong social ties, running through all five of the Blue Zones. It's a fascinating look into human longevity.

Despite the title of the Netflix series, the point isn't necessarily to live to 100, but to enjoy the highest possible quality of life with the years you're given. As Sara and I watch our parents navigate old age with their individual challenges, we've become more mindful of our own lifestyle habits and choices. Hence, the change to our diet. We're going Mediterranean.

U.S. News & World Report has just released their list of the Best Diets for 2024. For the annual report, 43 health experts rank 30 diets in 11 categories including Best Overall Diets and Best Weight Loss Diets. For the seventh year in a row, the Mediterranean diet has been named Best Overall Diet.

The Mediterranean diet falls very much in line with the way people eat in the Blue Zones of Ikaria, Greece and Sardinia, Italy. It focuses on the importance of eating a wide range of mostly plant-based foods. Think fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, whole grains, olive oil, wine, seafood, and a little bit of lean poultry. This diet tops many categories, including Best Diabetes Diets, Best Heart-Healthy Diets, Best Family-Friendly diets, and Easiest To Follow Diets.

Having lived in Texas and now North Carolina, I could often be found hanging around a barbecue pit. But over time, beef and pork didn't hold the same appeal for me. I wasn't as enthusiastic about the taste and texture anymore. I also didn't like what I was reading about the environmental impact of beef and pork production. It just wasn't for me anymore. Moving to more of a plant-based diet hasn't been as hard as you might think. In fact, if you enjoy cooking like Sara and I do, it's kind of fun exploring new ingredients and ways of preparing them.

Of course, the Mediterranean diet isn't the only option out there. If you're looking to change the way you eat in 2024, whether for weight loss, heart health, diabetes, or another reason, click here to explore the other high-ranking diets on the U.S. News & World Report list. And check out the trailer for Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones below.

Can you imagine actually adding years to your life? I'm not talking about one or two years. According to CNN, new research shows that it's possible to add a couple of decades to your life. Adopting eight healthy habits at the age of 40 could add up to 24 extra years to your life. If you start by the time you're 50, you could still extend your life by up to 21 years. Even if you don’t do it until 60, you could gain almost 18 years if you add all eight of the lifestyle choices.

A new health study analyzed data on more than 700,000 U.S. military veterans and the findings were presented in Boston on July 24th at Nutrition 2023, the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition. “There’s a 20-year period in which you can make these changes, whether you do it gradually or all at once,“ says lead study author Xuan-Mai Nguyen. “The earlier the better, but even if you only make a small change in your 40s, 50s or 60s, it still is beneficial.”

Adding just one healthy behavior at age 40 could add 4.5-years to a man’s life and 3.5-years to a woman’s life. Adopting additional habits adds more years and doing all eight gives you an “added boost to extend your life, but any small change makes a difference,” Nguyen explains. So what are these life-extending habits? They're all things we’ve heard before that are actually attainable for most people.

The study's authors find that working out is one of the most important behaviors anyone can do to improve health. It can lead to a 46% decrease in the risk of death from any cause compared to those who don’t exercise.

Opioid addiction became an epidemic in America beginning in the 1990s, largely due to nefarious marketing tactics and over-prescription. Avoiding a dependency on opioid drugs can reduce the risk of early death by 38%.

The study finds that never smoking can lower the risk of death by 29%. However, even if you have used tobacco products, stopping at any point in life comes with major health benefits.

While some amount of stress will always be with us, especially during our working years, it behooves us to find ways of reducing its effect on our health. Managing your stress can reduce the risk of early death by 22%, according to the study.

This is one of the most challenging ones on the list. Shifting to a plant-based diet requires real commitment, but it appears to be worth the effort. The study shows doing so could raise your chance of living longer by 21%.

Not having more than four alcoholic drinks a day reduces the risk of death by 19%, study results show. As with opioids, alcohol addiction can lead to devastating outcomes, both for the user and the people around them.

Along with managing stress, it pays to be mindful of one's sleep. The study's authors say that at least seven hours a night can reduce early death by 18%. I think it's even worth investing in some things, like a humidifier, that can help with your sleep quality.

The COVID-19 pandemic showed what social isolation can do to a person's well-being. Loneliness has actually been called an epidemic of its own, especially among the elderly. We all need supportive people in our lives. Those healthy relationships with family and friends can help boost longevity by 5%.