Beating old age

Almost every day we hear about new health related ‘life hacks'. Tips can often seem confusing or conflicting - salt is good for you, salt can raise your blood pressure. Don't drink too much alcohol, drink wine regularly. So, what's really the key to living a long and healthy life?

According to author and explorer Dan Buettner, people who live in five "Blue Zones" around the world have figured it out. The zones - islands in Italy, Japan and Greece, a peninsula in Costa Rica, and a seventh day Seventh-Day Adventist community in the United States - all have far longer life expectancies than the rest of the world. Senior citizens in these areas are not just living longer, but they're healthy and active too.

Buettner's latest book focuses on how people in the rest of the world can draw lessons from ‘blue zones'. But to what extent can these lifestyles be successfully replicated in a different setting?