Mystery of World's Oldest Human | The Secret of Living 120+ years | Dhruv Rathee
In today's video, Dhruv Rathee dives deep into the captivating life of Jeanne Louise Calment, who lived to an astounding age of 122 years, experiencing monumental historical events from World War I to the dawn of the internet era. Born in 1875 in Arles, France, she witnessed the world's transformation from horse-drawn carriages to space exploration. As we explore her life, we'll uncover the secrets of the world's "Blue Zones," regions where people live exceptionally long lives. Join us on this journey as we learn about the Power 9—nine habits these centenarians share—and how you can incorporate them for a longer, healthier life. Dive into history, science, and the art of longevity with us!
Category
📚
LearningTranscript
00:00Namaskar friends, in the year 1875, a girl is born in Arles, a small town in France.
00:06John Louis Calment.
00:08It was a time when cars and aeroplanes were not invented.
00:12People used to travel by horse-drawn carriages.
00:15People used candles to light their homes.
00:18At this time, no human being in the world would have dreamed that this girl would make history in the future.
00:26She would live such a long life, such a long life that she would break all the records of the world.
00:34In the year 1889, Louis was only 14 years old when he became the Eiffel Tower in the city of Paris.
00:40In the year 1896, when Louis got married at the age of 21, Mahatma Gandhi had just moved to South Africa.
00:47By the way, Mahatma Gandhi was only 6 years older than Louis.
00:52Fast forward a few years later, in the year 1914, when Louis was only 29 years old,
00:57he was living a happily married life with his daughter.
01:01There was a big explosion in Europe.
01:03The beginning of World War I.
01:10In the year 1934, when Hitler's rise was being seen in Germany,
01:14there was an unfortunate tragedy in Louis's family.
01:17His daughter died of a lung infection.
01:20At this time, she was 69 years old.
01:2269 years is such an age when for most women, it is the age of becoming a grandmother.
01:27But Louis must have never imagined himself that his lifetime was not even half complete.
01:33In the year 1942, World War II was going on in Europe with full force.
01:37Millions of people lost their lives in this war.
01:39Millions of people separated from their families.
01:42And the same thing happened at Louis's house.
01:44When she was 64 years old, she lost her husband.
01:48In the year 1947, the flag of Prime Minister Nehru was waving.
01:52India got independence from the British.
01:54Louis was 72 years old at that time.
01:57And unknowingly, he was seeing the pages of history turning.
02:01In his life, horses were replaced by cars.
02:04Candles by electricity.
02:06In the year 1969, when he celebrates his 94th birthday,
02:10humans set foot on the moon.
02:13That's one small step for man, giant leap for mankind.
02:17In the year 1985, Rajiv Gandhi gets a historic victory in the Indian elections.
02:22The IT revolution was just about to begin in India.
02:26At this time, Louis was 110 years old.
02:29Till now, she was living happily in her house.
02:31But after this point, she moves to a nursing home.
02:35In the year 1988, the world finally pays attention to Louis.
02:39His discussions are held at home and abroad.
02:42In the news, it is said that now he has become the oldest living human.
02:47In the year 1997, at the age of 122, when Louis dies,
02:53the age of computers and the internet has already begun.
02:57Jean-Louis Calment crossed all the limits of imagination.
03:02He made a record that no one has ever been able to break.
03:05What was the reason behind it?
03:07What is the secret of living such a long life?
03:09Let's find out in today's video.
03:20The first answer that will come to your mind is that obviously, luck was involved.
03:25Which is true, if you want to live for 122 years, you will need a lot of luck.
03:31But the question here is that in such a long life,
03:34what is the contribution of luck and what is the contribution of your lifestyle choices?
03:39Between the years 1870 and 1900, a scientific research was conducted in Denmark on twins.
03:45More than 2,800 twins were analyzed to see
03:49how big is the factor of genetics in longevity and how big is the factor of lifestyle and environment.
03:56This research was known as the famous Danish Twin Study.
04:00The conclusion was that an average person's life is 20% dictated by genes
04:06and 80% is influenced by lifestyle and environment.
04:11That is, your food choices, the way you exercise,
04:14and a healthy lifestyle have a huge impact on how long you will live.
04:19The question arises, what are the healthy lifestyle choices that can lead to such a long life?
04:25The best way to find out this is to do a reverse research.
04:29Look at the lifestyles of those people who are already living such a long life.
04:33In the early 2000s, Dan Butner, an explorer and author, was working for National Geographic.
04:38He thought why not go to such places in the world and study where people live for the longest time.
04:44In 2003, he collaborated with anthropologists, historians, dietitians, and geneticists to complete this mission.
04:51He used population data to locate such areas in the world
04:55where most people are found to be over 100 years old.
05:00These people are called centenarians because they have completed the century.
05:04Around the same time, some other people were also doing research on the same thing.
05:08Like this research paper that was published in the Journal of Experimental Gerontology.
05:13Here, they identified that in the Sardinian region of Italy,
05:16the highest concentration of male centenarians is found.
05:20Those people who are over 100 years old.
05:23In the Italian villages, blue circles were drawn on the map of the highest concentration of these people.
05:29And these places were referred to as the Blue Zone.
05:33On the other hand, Dan Butner finds another such place.
05:35On the Okinawa Island of Japan, the world's longest disability-free life expectancy is found.
05:42These people set out on an expedition to find out why people are living such a long life.
05:50In the future, the team of scientists and demographers will explore the world
05:54and find 5 such Blue Zones.
05:56The first one is Sardinia in Italy.
05:58The second one is Okinawa in Japan.
06:00The third one is Loma Linda in California State, America.
06:03A 7th day Adventist community.
06:06This is a religious sect within Christianity.
06:08The fourth one is Icaria Island in Greece.
06:11And the fifth one is Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica.
06:16The people living in these 5 Blue Zones live a longer life than the rest of the world.
06:22Is there something special about these places?
06:24Is it the clean water or clean air?
06:26Or is it the lifestyle choices of these people?
06:30Dan and his team work for years to find out the real reason.
06:34And finally, when they publish their report,
06:36they say that the real reason is the lifestyle habits of these people.
06:40Specifically, there are 9 lifestyle habits that are common in all these regions.
06:45They call these 9 habits as Power 9.
06:48What are these habits?
06:49Let's find out one by one so that you can also learn from them,
06:52implement them in your life,
06:54and live a long life.
06:56The first lifestyle habit is to move naturally.
06:59It's not that these elderly people living in the Blue Zones
07:02go to the gym every day and lift heavy weights
07:04or run a marathon.
07:06In fact, the environment in their life
07:10encourages small natural movements throughout the day.
07:14For example, most of these people live in villages
07:16where cars are not used a lot.
07:18In fact, if you want to meet your friends or go to work,
07:22you have to walk.
07:23Along with that, these people grow their gardens near their homes
07:27where they work on their own.
07:29Contrast this with the modern world
07:31where most people sit at home,
07:33sit in the car,
07:35and go to the office where they work.
07:38If you want to go somewhere for entertainment,
07:40you sit in the car and go to the cinema hall to watch a movie.
07:44Let's sit and watch.
07:45Natural walking is so rare in our modern world.
07:49The American Cancer Society surveyed more than 1,25,000 adults
07:53and found that people who sit for more than 6 hours a day
07:57have a 19% higher chance of dying in the next 21 years.
08:01Cancer, coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes,
08:04kidney disease, liver disease, Parkinson's disease,
08:07Alzheimer's, nervous disorders,
08:09and other causes of death which are more likely
08:12the more you sit.
08:14Many studies have shown a very big correlation here.
08:17Look at a latest study which says
08:19that by walking for at least 11 minutes a day,
08:22the risk of premature death is reduced by 25%.
08:26Just by walking for 11 minutes.
08:27But obviously, in the case of blue zones,
08:29natural walking is happening more.
08:31The more you include natural walking in your daily life,
08:35the better it will be.
08:36In walking, only specific muscles of the feet are used.
08:40But in the body, it is very important to naturally move every muscle.
08:44What we see in Okinawa is that
08:46people don't have a lot of furniture in their homes.
08:49Instead of using the dining table,
08:51people sit on the floor and eat.
08:53What is the benefit of this?
08:54At least 3-4 times a day, you will sit up and down.
08:57It will be a natural movement.
08:58The simple logic is,
08:59try to incorporate natural movements as much as possible
09:01in your daily life.
09:04Instead of a normal desk,
09:05you can buy a standing desk.
09:07Instead of eating on the dining table,
09:08you can sit on the floor and eat.
09:10In many places in India,
09:11this has always been a very traditional way.
09:13And instead of using a car,
09:15try to use walking and cycling as much as possible.
09:18The second point, Purpose.
09:20Dan's researchers found that
09:21in Okinawa, there is no word like retirement.
09:24In fact, there is a Japanese concept called
09:26Ikigai.
09:27It means a reason for being.
09:30What is the purpose of my life?
09:31A sense of purpose.
09:33When people turn 90-100 years old in Japan,
09:36they don't retire and sit down.
09:38In fact, they look for an Ikigai in their life.
09:41In the blue zone of Costa Rica,
09:42a similar concept has been seen
09:44called Plan de Vida.
09:46Its translation is Life Plan.
09:48Dan's research found that
09:49a sense of purpose in life
09:51can increase your life expectancy
09:53by up to 7 years.
09:55Now the interesting thing is that
09:56the meaning of life purpose here is not necessary
09:59that something that shakes the world
10:01is your purpose.
10:03The things that give you long-term satisfaction
10:06and happiness in daily life,
10:08those things can also be your purpose.
10:10For example, volunteering for an NGO,
10:13becoming skilled in an art or craft,
10:15or adopting any hobby
10:17that you enjoy doing.
10:19Point number 3, Downshift.
10:21We all know that stress is not good for us.
10:24But do you know chronic stress?
10:26A stress that you have to endure
10:28for a long period of time.
10:30It can be very harmful to your health.
10:32According to a study by Yale,
10:34living in chronic stress
10:36increases your life expectancy.
10:38Many studies have repeatedly shown that
10:40due to chronic stress,
10:41the risk of a heart attack increases,
10:43the risk of diabetes increases,
10:45the risk of cancer increases.
10:47Almost every age-related disease
10:49has been associated with stress.
10:51Look at this article.
10:52According to one study,
10:53if you are stressed at work,
10:55your life can be shorter than 33 years.
10:58Now, what is so special about people
11:00living in blue zones?
11:01It's not that they don't get stressed.
11:03The thing is that
11:04they have made such habits in their daily routines
11:07so that they can be stress-free.
11:09Okinawans take out some time every day
11:11to remember their ancestors.
11:13Adventists in California pray.
11:16Icarians in Greece take a nap in the afternoon
11:19and Sardinians in Italy practice the happy hour.
11:22These are all the things
11:23that help reduce your stress.
11:25Okinawans have a special place
11:27in their house called Boot Sudan
11:30where they can honor their ancestors.
11:33Adventists in California
11:34practice spiritual prayer.
11:37It's interesting to see that
11:38praying in front of God
11:40is a very effective way to reduce stress.
11:43Taking naps in the afternoon,
11:45sleeping for 1-2 hours,
11:47has been proven by research
11:49that improves your cardiovascular health
11:52and reduces stress levels.
11:54On the other hand,
11:55the way to reduce stress for Okinawans
11:57is social interaction.
11:59They have a happy hour from 5-7
12:01when they meet friends and family.
12:03The lesson here is
12:04that you should also do a daily ritual
12:07to reduce your stress.
12:09Whether you do yoga, meditation,
12:11pray in front of God,
12:13pray in church,
12:14pray,
12:15spend time with your family,
12:17sleep in the afternoon
12:18or do some sports or exercise.
12:20It's important not to get stressed.
12:22Fourth point,
12:2380% rule.
12:25There's a phrase in Japan
12:26called Harahachibu.
12:28It means
12:29eat until you are 8 parts full.
12:32Eat until your stomach is 80% full.
12:36Don't eat so much
12:37that your stomach is 100% full.
12:40This practice is followed in Okinawa
12:42so that people remember
12:43that after 80% full,
12:45they should stop eating.
12:47In 4th century BC,
12:48in Ayurvedic medicine,
12:50this principle was described.
12:52Fill your stomach with 1 third liquid
12:55and 1 third food.
12:56Leave the remaining 1 third empty.
12:58Generally,
12:59there are proven scientific benefits
13:00of eating less food.
13:02And the interesting thing is
13:03that fasting has been a part of
13:05almost every religion or culture
13:07for centuries.
13:08Hindus fast during Navratri.
13:10Muslims fast during Ramadan.
13:12And some Christians fast
13:13even before Easter.
13:15Scientists have found
13:16that there are many scientific benefits
13:17of fasting.
13:19Last year,
13:20a Yale School clinical trial was conducted.
13:22It found that
13:23people who cut their calorie intake
13:25by 14%,
13:27saw many health improvements in their lives.
13:29Their aging pace
13:31slowed down.
13:32In 1935,
13:33a scientist,
13:34Clive McKay,
13:35made a shocking discovery
13:36on rats.
13:37He fed rats very little
13:39and found that
13:40the lifespan of rats
13:42increased by 33%
13:44by doing this.
13:45In the last few decades,
13:46similar experiments
13:47have been done on many different animals.
13:49Whether it's worms,
13:50rats,
13:51or monkeys.
13:52Specific details
13:53vary from study to study.
13:54But everyone's conclusion
13:55is the same.
13:56By eating less food regularly,
13:58the lifespan
13:59extends by 50% to 300%.
14:02Point number 5.
14:03Plant Slant.
14:05The diet of most people
14:06in the Blue Zone
14:07is the Plant Slant Diet.
14:09This is a diet
14:10that is mostly plant-based
14:11vegetarian diet.
14:12In the Blue Zones,
14:13either meat is not eaten
14:15or if meat is eaten,
14:17then it is eaten in a very small amount.
14:19In all these centenarians' diets,
14:21a large amount of beans
14:22is seen.
14:23Whether it's fava beans,
14:24black beans,
14:25soy beans,
14:26or literally,
14:27lentils.
14:28In places like Okinawa,
14:29pork is eaten by people.
14:31But on average,
14:32it is only eaten
14:335 times a month.
14:34But apart from this,
14:35in all the Blue Zones,
14:36whole grains are eaten a lot.
14:38Different types of vegetables
14:39are eaten a lot.
14:41And tubers are eaten a lot.
14:43Tubers are anything
14:44that grows underground.
14:45Like,
14:46sweet potatoes,
14:47or potatoes,
14:48or nuts,
14:49or beans.
14:50The community in California
14:51in the Blue Zone,
14:52by the name of Loma Linda,
14:53the people there are
14:54fully vegetarian
14:55and some of them are
14:56even vegan.
14:57In 2023,
14:58an analysis was done
14:59analyzing multiple
15:00research studies
15:01from 1980 to 2022,
15:03where a lot of
15:04vegetarian and
15:05vegan diets were seen.
15:06And the conclusion
15:07was that
15:08eating a plant-based diet
15:09reduces the risk
15:10of a lot of diseases.
15:12Diabetes,
15:13dementia,
15:14high blood pressure,
15:15obesity,
15:16colon cancer,
15:17breast cancer,
15:18prostate cancer,
15:19depression.
15:20And the meta-analysis
15:21that Dan did
15:22on the plant-slant diet,
15:23he found that
15:24out of the 5 Blue Zones,
15:25the centenarians
15:26that were surveyed,
15:2795% of the centenarians
15:30eat plant-based diets.
15:32Point number 6,
15:33wine at 5.
15:34This is a very
15:35controversial point.
15:36Dan's research found that
15:37in most of the Blue Zones,
15:39except the California Blue Zone,
15:41people drink alcohol
15:42in moderate amounts.
15:44For example,
15:45in Sardinia,
15:46people drink 1-2 glasses
15:47of red wine every day.
15:49If you look at
15:50old research papers,
15:51there are many such
15:52researches that show
15:53that drinking red wine
15:54in moderation
15:55can be good
15:56for health.
15:57The reason behind this
15:58is the antioxidants
15:59present in red wine,
16:00like resveratrol.
16:01It increases the amount
16:02of good cholesterol
16:03in the body.
16:04But this is the only
16:05point that
16:06has become
16:07outdated now.
16:08Because the latest
16:09research and studies
16:10tell us that
16:11even a small amount
16:12of alcohol
16:13can be harmful
16:14for you.
16:15That is,
16:16drinking zero alcohol
16:17is the healthiest.
16:18This shows that
16:19the centenarians
16:20living in most of the
16:21Blue Zones
16:22are living a long life.
16:23Not because of
16:24drinking wine,
16:25but even after
16:26drinking wine.
16:27The beneficial
16:28antioxidant present
16:29in red wine,
16:30resveratrol,
16:31is actually found
16:32in grape juice.
16:33And better than
16:34grape juice,
16:35it is also found
16:36in grapes.
16:37So if you want to
16:38benefit from this,
16:39then simply
16:40eat grapes.
16:41Point number 7,
16:42the sense of belonging.
16:44263 centenarians
16:45were interviewed
16:46and everyone
16:47among them
16:48except 5 people
16:49were part of
16:50some faith-based
16:51community.
16:52It doesn't matter
16:53which religion
16:54you believe in.
16:55Or whether you
16:56believe in religion
16:57or not.
16:58It is important
16:59that you become
17:00a part of some
17:01social community
17:02or spiritual community.
17:03This community
17:04can also be
17:05your religious community.
17:06Any community
17:07that gives you
17:08a purpose,
17:09peace,
17:10and a positive
17:11outlook.
17:12Another way
17:13to get this
17:14is to do
17:15community service.
17:16Volunteer somewhere,
17:17help people,
17:18or do charity.
17:19You can get this
17:20sense of belonging
17:21even then.
17:22Dan's research
17:23found that
17:24this is so important
17:25that people who
17:26attend faith-based
17:27services 4 times
17:28a month,
17:29their life expectancy
17:30increases
17:31from 4 to 14
17:32years.
17:33Imagine,
17:34you will live
17:35for 14 years
17:36more just
17:37by doing this.
17:38Point number 8,
17:39loved ones first.
17:40Centenarians from
17:41the Blue Zone
17:42prioritize their
17:43family first.
17:44Either they live
17:45in the area
17:46around their
17:47aging parents
17:48and grandparents
17:49or at home
17:50with them.
17:51Apart from this,
17:52they are committed
17:53to their one
17:54life partner.
17:55With the help
17:56of this,
17:57according to
17:58Dan's research,
17:59life expectancy
18:00can increase
18:01from 3 years.
18:02And then,
18:03they invest
18:04their time
18:05and love
18:06in their children.
18:07Finally,
18:08we come to
18:09the point
18:10where
18:11they have
18:125 friends
18:13and they
18:14are committed
18:15to their
18:165 friends
18:17all their life.
18:18People living
18:19in the Blue Zone
18:20are part of
18:21such social circles
18:22that support
18:23these healthy
18:24behaviours.
18:25Many research
18:26papers show
18:27that smoking,
18:28obesity,
18:29happiness
18:30and loneliness
18:31are also
18:32contagious.
18:33If your
18:34friend circle
18:35is made with
18:36such friends
18:37who promote
18:38such healthy
18:39behaviours,
18:40it becomes
18:41very easy
18:42when people
18:43around you
18:44are also
18:45following
18:46such healthy
18:47behaviours.
18:48After hearing
18:49all this,
18:50a question
18:51must have
18:52arisen in your
18:53mind.
18:54Is it possible
18:55to live a long
18:56life outside
18:57these 5 Blue
18:58Zones?
18:59This question
19:00also came
19:01to Dan's
19:02mind.
19:03And according
19:04to Dan,
19:05a 6th Blue
19:06Zone can be
19:07a new Blue
19:08Zone due to
19:09its changing
19:10behaviour.
19:11This place
19:12is the
19:13country of
19:14Singapore.
19:15Dan says
19:16that he has
19:17seen the
19:18life expectancy
19:19in Singapore
19:20increasing
19:21by almost
19:2225 years.
19:23Today,
19:24people living
19:25in Singapore
19:26have one
19:27of the
19:28longest and
19:29healthiest
19:30life expectancy.
19:31The reason
19:32behind this
19:33is the
19:34policies made
19:35by the
19:36government.
19:37The
19:38infrastructure
19:39around the
19:40country has
19:41been made
19:42so that people
19:43can walk
19:44more in their
19:45daily lives.
19:46And
19:47driving cars
19:48has been
19:49taxed more
19:50so that it
19:51can be
19:52discouraged.
19:53Another
19:54interesting
19:55thing in
19:56Singapore
19:57is that if
19:58your parents
19:59live in a
20:00500-yard
20:01circle,
20:02you get
20:03a tax
20:04break.
20:06You need
20:07a lot of luck
20:08to live
20:09for 120 years.
20:10But
20:11if you follow
20:12the things
20:13mentioned in
20:14this video,
20:15you can
20:16easily
20:17kill a century.
20:18If you
20:19liked the
20:20video,
20:21you can
20:22watch it
20:23on World's
20:24Fattest
20:25Country.
20:26In this
20:27video,
20:28I gave you
20:29extreme
20:30positive
20:31examples.
20:32In this
20:33video,
20:34I gave you
20:35an extreme
20:36positive
20:37example.
20:38In this
20:39video,
20:40I gave you
20:41an extreme
20:42positive
20:43example.
20:44In this
20:45video,
20:46I gave you
20:47an extreme
20:48positive
20:49example.
20:50In this
20:51video,
20:52I gave you
20:53an extreme
20:54positive
20:55example.
20:56In this
20:57video,
20:58I gave you
20:59an extreme
21:00positive
21:01example.
21:02In this