If you’ve been watching longevity expert Dan Buettner’s Netflix Series “Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones,” then you know that Buettner has delved into five areas of the world noted for residents’ longevity and health into old age. The term “blue zones” was coined 20 years ago, but Buettner has popularized it by highlighting such locations as the Greek island of Ikeria, where residents live eight years longer than Americans and have half the rate of heart disease and almost no dementia.

Buettner founded the Blue Zones Project to encourage others to adopt the healthy lifestyles that these regions of the world have in common. He’s trying to replicate the lifestyle and environmental features of the Blue Zones in other parts of the world. The first town to take part was Albert Lea, Minnesota, and just a year after implementation, a longevity measure called the True Vitality Test concluded that residents’ expected lifespan had increased by 3.1 years. Here in Rye our infrastructure is already quite conducive to adopting Blue Zone routines. Here are some ways to take advantage of it:

Exercise

People in the Blue Zones don’t take part in structured exercise, but they move naturally throughout their day – they walk to work or to socialize, they carry out household tasks themselves and by hand, and they have gardens that they also tend themselves. In the U.S. we spend twice as much time in our cars as we did in the 1980s and only 10 percent of school students walk to school compared to 50 percent in the 1970s. The good news for Rye is that almost every household is within walking dis- tance to the schools and our main street and library. We also have plenty of greenspace and even shoreline, and what a perfect time of year this is to take advantage of all that again.

Outlook

Blue Zone residents get stressed from time to time, but they have daily rituals to counter its impact. They might do this through reli- gion or other traditions; in Okinawa, Japan, for example, some have shrines of remembrance of their ancestors in their homes and begin the day with 15 minutes of gratitude for where they came from. Blue Zone residents often have vocabulary around a sense of purpose — they know how they will put their own gifts to work each day. In Albert Lea, for exam- ple, residents held a volunteer fair to match volunteers with causes. According to Buettner, people who volunteer have lower rates of heart disease, weigh less, and have measurably lower health-care costs. In Rye, there are oodles of opportuni- ties to volunteer if your sense of purpose needs a boost.

Connection

Family is of utmost importance in the Blue Zones, with each gen- eration investing in their partners, parents, and children. What a lovely way to increase your lifes- pan — my mind went to family vacations with my parents and siblings and long, chatty dinners with my kids. In fact, long, chatty dinners are another commonality across the Blue Zones; they are great for connection, healthier digestion, and avoiding mindless eating. Buettner also encourages casual social interactions through- out the day — with the mailman or the shop assistant. Such con- versations are a better predictor of longevity than diet and exer- cise. That’s a perfect complement to your Spring Blue Zone resolution to take more strolls on Purchase Street.

Diet

The best news of all is that the main thing meals across the Blue Zones have in common is deliciousness, with home-cooked family recipes using local ingredients being passed down through

generations. Ninety percent of the recipes in Blue Zones consist of whole foods. They are often plant-based with whole grains, tubers, and beans featured heavily. The Blue Zones Project often has to encourage major changes in what local stores and restaurants offer; in Rye, our supermarkets, delis, and eateries already offer delicious healthy options.

“The same things that help us live a long healthy life are the things that make life worth living,” Buettner says at the end of the series. In Rye, we’ve got an abundance of resources — so let’s make use of them.