Have you heard of the Blue Zones?
Before I was obsessed with autistic perimenopause (hard to believe there was such a time, I know), my special interest was longevity research findings and healthy lifestyle advice.
National Geographic explorer and researcher, Dan Buettner, shares the optimal lifestyle principles believed to be responsible for extending the healthspans and lifespans of the oldest living human communities on Earth, in the idealistic Netflix documentary series: Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones.
Where on Earth are the Blue Zones?
* Loma Linda, California, USA
* The Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica
* Nuoro Province, Sardinia
* Icaria, Greece
* Okinawa, Japan
Some definitions
Blue Zones: regions of the world with the highest number of centenarians (people living to 100 and beyond) that Dan Buettner marked in blue on a world map, thus coining the term. With information galore to be gleaned and implemented from Dan’s New York Times bestselling books, countless podcast interviews, and now a Netflix series, we have no excuse to check out of this world early, right?
Power 9: 9 commonalities found across the Blue Zones, that are thought to be lifestyle behaviours that can lead to a long lifespan, and healthspan.
Lifespan: the length of time someone is alive.
Healthspan: the length of time someone is free of dementia, chronic disease and/or disability, living with a good quality of life (which is highly subjective…)
Mental health span: the length of time someone is free from significant mental health issues (including chronic stress, emotional dysregulation, depressive episodes), and able to function, cope and thrive despite life’s challenges.
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I found Dan Buettner’s Blue Zones concept sexy long before it was well known in the mainstream. I even had a diagram of the Blue Zones Power 9 stuck to my fridge because knowledge is power sexy. But now that practically everyone is talking about the Blue Zones, I am no longer interested.
Story of my life.
The same thing happened when The Mighty Boosh got their third TV series onwards. The original BBC radio series was when it peaked!
Not to mention when the now Taskmaster superstar Greg Davies’ incredible live sketch comedy trio, We Are Klang*, was scripted into a TV sitcom.
Urgh, mainstream media. Yawn.
They just lost all their appeal to me. I want to be the only person who knows something, and I want to be the one boring everyone else to death with it.
If people then like it and quote it back at me, I’m out.
But I know I shouldn’t be selfish with my longevity research special interest. We all want to grow old together beyond the midlife (ish) shitshow that is neurodivergent menopause. So many people rave about life improving for us post-menopause!
Personally, I can not imagine feeling any worse than I currently do in autistic perimenopause, but I am trying to hang in there…
A question I often ask myself is, if neurodivergent people could reverse engineer longevity to live in Blue Zones style conditions, could we all become centenarians?
* You may find this YouTube clip highly offensive, in which case I can only apologise! It aligns with my vulgar British sense of humour…
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🗞️ This just in! 📰
Blue Zones researchers report that…
🙌 … Science Confirms: Coffee Can Add Years to Your Life 🙌
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But what about us?
Being late diagnosed neurodivergent can feel akin to being beaten up and left for dead. Yes, a diagnosis may feel validating and reassuring, putting our struggles to date into context. But rarely does it come with a plan or model to follow up with strategies intended to optimise our lives going forward.
We may feel bereft of the person we could have become, had we benefited from the right accommodations and acceptance from others earlier in life, and from society at large.
Where is the newly diagnosed neurodivergent’s manual we need to pick us up and guide us through midlife, and beyond?
Sadly, academics are still at the research stage that tells us what we all already know: that The Lost Generation of Neurodivergent People (you and I) are at risk of poor mental health outcomes, chronic disabilities and untreated co-occuring conditions.
Give it another twenty years, and we might know what to do about it.
Research into the life expectancy of autistic people in the UK
Dr Judith Brown, Head of Evidence and Research at the National Autistic Society, said:
“Autistic people continue to face unacceptable inequalities through a lack of understanding, barriers to vital services and inadequate care, which lead to poorer mental and physical health outcomes.
“Without investment, improved understanding, inclusion and the correct level of support and care, autistic people will continue to see reduced life expectancy, with the most at-risk group in this study being autistic women with learning disabilities. This research should be a wake-up call for Government, the NHS, healthcare professionals and society as a whole that we must tackle the health inequality autistic people face.”
University College London (UCL) News: ‘Premature death of autistic people in the UK investigated for the first time’, published online 24 November 2023
It is bleak.
Neurodivergent people often have a much shorter mental healthspan than the average population.
I can’t think of a single year out of my 43 and counting that I haven’t grappled with mental health struggles that retrospectively co-occured alongside my undiagnosed neurodivergence.
Fun fact: At birth, I weighed 8lb 7oz, and was already 9 months into a chronic existential crisis…
What can really skew lifespan data is premature death by suicide. A shorter mental healthspan may cause the most vulnerable and least supported amongst us to have a preventably shortened lifespan.
Risk factors for suicide in autistic people
Mental health challenges can increase the risk of someone taking their own life. About 8 in 10 autistic people will experience a mental health problem during their life. This compares to 1 in 4 people in the general population having a mental health problem at some point in their life.Some research suggests co-occurring ADHD can increase the risk of suicidality in autistic people. One study found possible explanations for this include increased depression, people feeling they are being perceived as a burden, and impulsivity (a key feature of ADHD) meaning people are more likely to be exposed to ‘painful and provocative’ life events.Gender diversity can increase the risk of suicidal acts. Autistic people are more likely to be gender diverse than non-autistic people.
Autistica website, ‘Suicide and Autism’
So, with all odds stacked against us, how can we reverse engineer longevity within the neurodivergent population?
The Blue Zones Power 9! *mic drop*
*Picks mic back up*
Don’t worry, guys! Dan and his Blue Zones have us covered!
Let’s take each Blue Zones principle in turn and see how it fits into neurodivergent life. We need all the help we can get, afterall!
But first, a message from Blue Zones’ own Dan Buettner (with all following italicised block quote text taken directly from the original research paper,Blue Zones Lessons From the World’s Longest Lived):
“To make it to age 100, it seems that a person must have to win the genetic lottery. However, many individuals have the capacity to make it well into the early 90s and largely without chronic disease.
Blue Zones uncovered 9 evidence-based common denominators among the world’s centenarians that are believed to slow this aging process.”
1) Move naturally
The world’s longest-lived people do not pump iron, run marathons, or join gyms. Instead, they live in environments that constantly nudge them into moving without thinking about it. They grow gardens and do not have mechanical conveniences for house and yard work.
We are starting off with a banger, because I know that I move very unnaturally, and people have never hesitated to give me such feedback. As a child, I struggled with proximity to others. Observing what other people did with their hands was my mission as a teen, especially to figure out what they do with them when dancing… By midlife, I have had countless injuries from tripping up when running, smashing my hands and stubbing my toes when misjudging my motion through space.
When autistics and ADHDers move naturally and stim, we are often discouraged from doing so. It looks weird, right? All that flapping, spinning, swinging and rocking makes the poor normies feel uncomfortable around us.
Movement and exercise are sensitive topics for me, as I have a tendency to exercise compulsively, or not at all. No environment could nudge me into motion constantly without thinking about it. Nothing. As I was writing the introduction to this post yesterday we had a “light earthquake” with a local epicentre that measured 4.4 magnitude. Did I move? No. The fact that I live in a tsunami zone on the west coast of Aotearoa New Zealand is alarming (see what I did there?), because my reaction time to everything is exceptionally slow.
Suggesting that I have my “mechanical conveniences” taken away so that I need to wash, rinse and wring my family’s laundry by hand is ludicrous. We would be forced to become naturists.
And yes, I jumped on the kitchen garden bandwagon like many others during Covid lockdowns. But that’s all dead now, and, if I don’t start moving naturally soon, perhaps I will be too.
2) Know your purpose
The Okinawans call it Ikigai and the Nicoyans call it plan de vida; for both, it translates to “why I wake up in the morning.” Knowing your sense of purpose is worth up to 7 years of extra life expectancy.
Ha ha, is this one a joke?
I have only just discovered my own neurodivergence and everything I thought to be true is lies. I don’t know who I am, or why I am. And I am supposed to have it all figured out?
I wake up in the morning because it’s what I do every day, not because I want to. But if I know why I wake up I get to do it for seven extra years? That sounds exhausting.
Dan Buettner said on the Zoe podcast that those of us who don’t have a purpose in life are living “rudderless lives”, and I quite like the idea of that. Isn’t it poetic? Whilst everyone else is willingly in the ratrace, we often burnout and have to recover from utter exhaustion. Often whilst carefully titrating psychiatric pharmaceuticals to balance our differently wired brains, and sticking to our suicide safety plans.
Meanwhile we have to keep providing snacks, plastering on a false smile and acting like we know our purpose. Anyone who isn’t trying to survive debilitating bouts of hormonal depression must have so much more time on their hands than I do!
3) Down shift
Even people in the Blue Zones experience stress. Stress leads to chronic inflammation, associated with every major age-related disease. What the world’s longest-lived people have that others do not are routines to shed that stress. Okinawans take a few moments each day to remember their ancestors; Adventists pray; Ikarians take a nap; and Sardinians do happy hour.
This is nice, isn’t it? Such a lovely idea. I don’t do many of those things and, as an PDAuDHDer (persistent drive for autonomous autistic with co-occuring attention deficit hyperactive disorder), I actively resist routines. I don’t like being told what to do, Dan. And in itself that is extremely stressful.
The idea of a “Happy Hour” not being stressful is opposing to my reality. All those fake smiles, clinking glasses, trying to follow someone’s inane small talk with competing background noise? I think that would definitely become a daily “Unhappy Hour” for me, and I would be forced into social hangover mode shrivelled up in enforced isolation in a sensory deprivation tank for the following 23 hours before the next social onslaught Happy Hour.
So I am wondering if autistic episodes of dissociation can count as a down shift? They are certainly a necessary relief from my alternative state of chronic hypervigilence.
Sensory processing differences co-occur in many neurodivergent people. Feeling constantly under attack from every day sounds, smells, light levels, crowds, textures and clothes tags is overwhelming.
A societal level down shift would be nice, where people could all just agree to stop talking and doing stuff near me regularly and for extended periods of time. Preferably forever.
I think if I could be alone doing what I want to do at all times with no friction or conflict, I could significantly reduce my stress levels. How do I arrange this?
4) 80% rule
"Hara hachi bu”—the Okinawan 2500-year old Confucian mantra said before meals reminds them to stop eating when their stomachs are 80% full. The 20% gap between not being hungry and feeling full could be the difference between losing weight or gaining it. People in the Blue Zones eat their smallest meal in the late afternoon or early evening, and then, they do not eat any more the rest of the day.
This is like voodoo. How does anyone have a level of interoception so astute whereby they can determine the capacity of their stomach at any given time?
Witchcraft.
Don’t get me wrong, I would love to have this awareness. I can only tell if I am hungry retrospectively by getting snarky at people, then eating an emergency snack and apologising profusely. Three times a day.
When I eat a meal, I eat until I feel like I may soon explode. Then eat a little lot more on top. Three times a day.
Rather than, during the meal, contemplating what level of fullness my belly is at, after a meal, I contemplate what level of discomfort I am prepared to tolerate before taking reflux meds.
5) Plant slant
Beans, including fava, black, soy, and lentils, are the cornerstone of most centenarian diets. Meat—mostly pork—is eaten on average only 5 times per month. Serving sizes are 3 to 4 oz, about the size of a deck of cards.
Several things come to mind with Plant Slant.
* The person who came up with the name of this principle was surely neurodivergent, and I love them for it. I like to imagine them cackling about it as they announced “Plant Slant!” too loudly in the research room, laughing until their stomach hurt (laughing alone, obviously, because this wouldn’t amuse a normie), then giving themselves the rest of the day off as a reward for such an epic contribution to science!
* Blue Zones is often reduced down to recommending a Mediterranean style diet. If that is of interest to you, and you would appreciate an alternative perspective than this over hyped eating plan, I would recommend reading The Mediterranean Diet is a Whitewashed Fantasy, by Anjali Prasertong at Antiracist Dietitian (who wrote on Substack until February 2024).
* Eating issues and disorders are common for neurodivergent people, including avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID). Disordered and restricted eating patterns may start or flare up again for people during the menopause transition.
* Additionally, many of us have co-occuring unresolved chronic gastrointestinal issues, and beans may not be friendly to our digestive systems.
* For the many autistics who prefer a six pack of chicken nuggets over a five bean chilli, there can be so much guilt and shame around consuming our safe foods. So much so that we will eat them in secret. This is unfair on us. We should be able to freely enjoy the foods we love as much as anyone else.
6) Wine at 5
People in all Blue Zones (except Adventists) drink alcohol moderately and regularly. Moderate drinkers outlive nondrinkers. The trick is to drink 1 to 2 glasses per day (preferably Sardinian Cannonau wine), with friends and/or with food. And no, you cannot save up all week and have 14 drinks on Saturday.
This may turn into a therapy session for me but - actually I don’t even know where to begin…
Alright, I grew up in London in the 1980s and 90s just as ladette culture was upwardly trending along with my teenage alcohol consumption. And I wasn’t drinking alone, we were all doing it. By 13 I was certainly a moderate drinker - and, seeing as I got started early, is that going to enhance my later life chances?
By late teens and all through my twenties I was a heavy regular binge drinker. A very heavy drinker, but at least I had quit smoking by 15 and never took it up again. Watching my Dad die in an NHS respiratory ward last year will be enough to put me off ever restarting, and so I refuse to touch a vape.
Thirties and now in my early-mid forties, I no longer drink alcohol (except the trace levels in kombucha, and consumed in fruit that has overripened to the point of fermentation in my fruit bowl). Honestly, I drank enough to never need nor want to drink again. I can not tolerate it anymore. Perimenopause has already ruined my cognition, I don’t want to impair it any further. Although I totally understand why others may enjoy reaching for a Wine at 5.
Unfortunately around 5pm daily, my ADHD stimulant medications are wearing off, and it’s too late in the day for me to tolerate caffeine. So I get pretty grumpy and whiny.
May I thus propose instead that the non-drinkers amongst us have a good old Whine at 5?
7) Family first
Successful centenarians in the Blue Zones put their families first. This means keeping aging parents and grandparents nearby or in the home (it lowers disease and mortality rates of children in the home too.). They commit to a life partner (which can add up to 3 years of life expectancy) and invest in their children with time and love. (They’ll be more likely to care for aging parents when the time comes.)
This is great, assuming they haven’t already disowned us for being the “weird” ones in the family!
There is also the small issue of intergenerational trauma that runs through many neurodivergent families, including for those of who have consciously decided to break the shame cycle. There is still so much entrenched resentment, shame and rejection going back through our family lines that it can impact our day to day familial functioning.
There are higher than average divorce rates for ADHDers, so many of us can kiss goodbye to those love-filled three additional years of life. And I wonder how that affects those people who were once adored and become widowed.
Blue Zones puts a huge emphasis on intergenerational living arrangements, yet nuclear families are dominant in many of the places we live outside the Blue Zones. Thank you, late stage capitalism! 🫶
Modern life perpetuates an enormous societal emphasis on hyper-independence as the goal for all, which is detrimental to many neurodivergent adults and children. As my hormone levels fluctuate catastrophically in autistic perimenopause, so too does my cognitive capacity, my energy levels, my tolerance for others, and my suicidality risk.
I have been fortunate to rely upon family and friends when I have been at my most hormonally incapacitated, but not everyone feels safe enough to identify their support needs, nor to express them to others.
If we can’t safely unmask around family, who can we unmask around?
8) Belong
All but 5 of the 263 centenarians interviewed belonged to some faith-based community. Denomination does not seem to matter. Research shows that attending faith-based services 4 times per month will add 4 to 14 years of life expectancy.
As a child raised London Irish Catholic, now vehemently rejecting that institution, I will need to be sensitive to others’ beliefs here (which isn’t my forte)…
It is lovely for people who feel they belong to a faith group, regardless of what that faith may be. If it brings you joy, I am sincerely very happy for you.
For those of us without religious faith, we can still congregate in groups. We have our conventions (Star Wars, gaming, board games etc.), music festivals (Glastonbury, I love you!), LEGO shows, model railway exhibitions and so on. I am trying so hard and failing to think beyond the autistic stereotypes here, but what I am trying to say is that our people are out there, if we know where to find them!
9) Right tribe
The world’s longest lived people chose—or were born into—social circles that supported healthy behaviors, Okinawans created moais—groups of 5 friends that committed to each other for life. Research from the Framingham Studies shows that smoking, obesity, happiness, and even loneliness are contagious. So the social networks of long-lived people have favorably shaped their health behaviors.
Shock horror! Neurodivergent people may not be born into social circles that support healthy behaviours! Some of us may spend decades developing complex post traumatic stress disorder (c-PTSD) alongside our missed neurodivergence, followed by decades spent unravelling our c-PTSD alongside processing our late identified neurodivergence. Yay!
Megan Anna Neff writes here about the all too common intersection of trauma and autism.
But we are not alone! The Lost Generation of Neurodivergents are finally getting our recognition, and we are thriving coping online together.
Our NeuroTribes are where it’s at! (R.I.P. Steve Silberman.)
If we can avoid catching smoking habits, obesity, happiness and loneliness from each other, we can maybe all suffer live to see 100!
Although, 5 people in a Moai? At best, my maximum capacity when communicating effectively with others is on a one to one basis. Even then, I talk over them, or go silent; crack jokes they don’t get, then laugh alone hysterically for protracted periods; don’t know how to end a conversation; and can not infer when I have outstayed my welcome. I can not imagine being stuck in a group of 5 people until I am 100.
So much social awkwardness and for so long? I’m out!
Are you thinking what I’m thinking?
Yes, Blue Zones is a sexy concept! The Netflix series is a great watch and Dan Buettner is doing great work in the world reverse engineering longevity in select communities.
Oh to be in a Blue Zone. All those naps we could be taking, the plant slant *sniggers*, all the coffees… Sigh.
Yet in reality this world is declining into climate catastrophe and political warfare, so the prospect of living to 100 outside of the idyllic Blue Zones is terrifying.
But if the old good people of the Blue Zones are willing to adopt us all as refugees whilst our rights to disability state supports as neurodivergents are being removed in a worldwide domino effect, I am keen to sign up!
100 years though? That’s a long life and I am not sure I want to live forever in this dystopian moral drain.
I’m so glad you are here. If you feel seen and heard by my writing, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription. I have spent a decade processing this information, and two days writing, editing, overcoming imposter syndrome and, eventually, publishing this particular article 💕
