The Places With the Longest Living People

This Pacific archipelago boasts a diet surprisingly high in carbohydrates; people eat primarily sweet potatoes, seafood, tofu, turmeric and goya (bitter melon). They also consume a lot of jasmine tea. This plant-based diet is high in carotenoids, lycopene and antioxidants, which lower blood sugar and ward off cancer and heart disease.

It's easy to be physically fit when you’re a shepherd (the profession of many Sardinians). But in addition to staying active and “making love every Sunday,” these guys also have uniquely healthy eating habits: They consume locally produced wine (one to two glasses each day), goat’s- and sheep’s-milk cheese, wild greens and olive oil. They also eat homemade, kneaded sourdough bread and plenty of fava beans and chickpeas.

This California community of Seventh-day Adventists boasts the longest-living female population. Their secret—as you might expect—is remarkable prudence: no smoking, drinking or TV, and a diet consisting primarily of grains, avocados, nuts and salmon.

On this remote Greek Island, people simply “forget to die,” and follow the now much-heralded Mediterranean diet, which emphasizes locally grown vegetables, olive oil, feta cheese, honey, legumes and greens. The best news? Here, a glass of wine is considered healthier than water.

Just south of the Nicaraguan border, the Nicoya Peninsula is home to farmers, laborers and cowboys who eat large breakfasts, moderate lunches and small dinners consisting of squash, rice, black beans and homemade corn tortillas. The most carnivorous of all Blue Zoners, Nicoyans eat plenty of pork and eggs. Plus: mangoes as far as the eye can see.