Explorer Dan Buettner identifies beans and grains as key for promoting longevity, while cautioning against commercially marketed superfoods high in sugars and processed ingredients.
Explorer and educator Dan Buettner has outlined the “real superfoods” for promoting longevity and warned against commonly marketed packaged foods. Speaking to his followers, the National Geographic fellow noted that widely marketed superfoods often contain added sugars or processed ingredients.
Buettner, who has extensively researched the world’s five “blue zones” where people routinely live into old age, emphasized that beans and grains are fundamental to longevity diets. These foods are easy to store and provide sustenance when fresh produce is unavailable.
Highlighting the accessibility issues in urban areas, Buettner suggested that a diet incorporating beans and grains—such as beans with rice, corn tortillas, or pasta—offers a complete protein source and is more practical.
Citing the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica, Buettner mentioned that this area has the world’s lowest middle-age mortality rate. Residents are two and a half times more likely to reach age 92 compared to those in the United States or Europe. The key components of their diet include corn, squash, and beans. Revising conventional eating habits to focus on whole, unprocessed foods could improve longevity akin to the dietary practices observed in blue zones.