Getting people to live a healthier life style

Dan Buettner is an amazing person. In 1987, he rode his bicycle 15,500 miles from Alaska to  Argentina, the first of three world records for endurance bicycling. The last of these became the subject of an Emmy-winning PBS documentary co-produced by Buettner and a book he authored, Afratrek: A Journey by Bicycle through Africa.

More recently, Buettner is known for his exploration and study of “blue zones,” a term he coined for areas of the world where people live extraordinary long and healthy lives. In April 2008, Buettner released a book on his findings, The Blue Zone: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest, through National Geographic Books.

In the above video, Buettner discusses why most people are unable to maintain healthy lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise. And he talks about a program he initiated in  the small town of Albert Lea, Minnesota, that resulted in lasting changes that actually increased the life expectancy of its citizens by 3.2 years.

Well worth watching if you are at all interested in living a longer life!

–DB