Page 78 - Spring2009

All Thumbs Book Reviews

The Blue Zones: And then there is Loma Linda, haven of the
Lessons for Living Longer Seventh Day Adventists. According to Adventist
From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest Health Study-1 (AHS-1) they live several years
By Dan Buettner longer than the average Californian. AHS-1 is
National Geographic, 2009 based on life table analyses. If I understand cor-
rectly, that means human ability to predict the
A very superficial first glance at this book future is now so reliable we can base studies on
might give one the impression that The Blue it. I hope everybody will forgive me if I’m just a
Zones recounts a recent tour of the globe remi- little skeptical about that.
niscent of Weston Price’s investigative travels The author also gives a brief history of Ellen
in the 1930s, which resulted in Nutrition and G. White, one of the founders of the Adventists
Physical Degeneration. Dan Buettner, a writer who frequently railed against eating flesh meat,
for National Geographic, went poking around butter, cheese and eggs. He neglects to mention
the areas of the world with the highest concentra- the fact that according to contemporary reports
tions of people on the high side of 100 years old. and her own memoirs, she was unable to follow
He calls these areas the Blue Zones. The zones her own precepts and routinely ate all these
are Sardinia, Okinawa, Loma Linda (California), foods.
and Costa Rica. There is no mention of any scientific mea-
In Sardinia, the author caught up with sures to screen out any other such cheaters in
Tonino, a very active, robust seventy-five-year- vegetarian studies, which leads me to the bottom
Any economy old “giant” who was literally up to his elbows in line. The Blue Zones is mostly story-telling and
that tries to a cow he was slaughtering at their first meeting. speculation. It is hardly scientifically rigorous.
Mr. Buettner mentions Toku from Okinawa who There is not a single footnote. There is the usual
force food was 105 years old and liked to fish every day. In self-serving comparison of health-conscious

production Costa Rica he met Rafael Angel Leon Leon who vegetarians to health-oblivious omnivores. This
to exceed was one hundred years old, harvested his own book is nothing to stick my thumb up about.
corn and beans and kept some livestock. These While veganism isn’t explicitly promoted, the
soil capacity examples of hale and hearty meat-eating elders message is that the more rabbit food you eat, the
is doomed notwithstanding, The Blue Zones maintains a longer you will live. If you are eating like that,
to failure. distinctly vegetarian bias to its interpretations you are not living longer. It just seems like it.
of longevity strategies.
Review by Tim Boyd

STRENGTH IN NUMBERS

During these difficult economic times, the Weston A. Price Foundation derives its strength from numbers. In our most
recent membership renewal period, the average check amount was $49, with only 1 percent of membership renewals in
checks over $200. Yet, we had our most successful renewal period ever, with an increase in income over the previous period
and a renewal rate of almost 70 percent. Of course, we are always grateful for members who renew at levels greater than
the regular dues, and the occasional large grant allows us to pursue major new projects, but our solid financial foundation
comes from regular membership dues. And all members can contribute to our growth and financial health simply by en-
couraging others to join. Regular membership dues remain at $40 per year—the same as when we were founded ten years
ago. The reduced rate of $25 is available for students, seniors, persons with disabilities and those currently unemployed.
76 Wise Traditions SPRING 2009