{"id":4295,"date":"2023-05-30T01:12:01","date_gmt":"2023-05-29T18:12:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/social-connection-and-longevity-whats-the-link\/"},"modified":"2023-05-30T01:12:01","modified_gmt":"2023-05-29T18:12:01","slug":"social-connection-and-longevity-whats-the-link","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=4295","title":{"rendered":"Social Connection and Longevity: What&#8217;s the Link?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"drop-cap text-big text-gray\"> <span class=\"drop-cap__first text-dropcap \">T<\/span>here are a bunch of memes on social media that all play off the same joke: A love of canceling plans with friends at the last minute. But Christal Burnette, a media promoter for the <a href=\"https:\/\/orcls.org\/our-team\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/orcls.org\/our-team\/\">Okinawa Research Center for Longevity Science<\/a> and a specialist in Okinawan health, says she doesn\u2019t find the punch line funny.<\/div>\n<p>\u201cI wish people would push themselves to always go out,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>Through her work in longevity research on Okinawa, a Japanese island home to some of the longest-living people in the world (aka one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/blue-zone-guide\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/blue-zone-guide\/\">\u201cBlue Zones\u201d<\/a>), Burnette has learned just how big of a role <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/relationships-help-you-live-longer\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/relationships-help-you-live-longer\/\">social connection<\/a> plays in our health. \u201cI always try to tell people that the secret to longevity is not food and exercise,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s social connection.\u201d (And this is coming from someone who literally founded an <a href=\"https:\/\/haitailife.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/haitailife.com\/\">Okinawan health food company<\/a>.)<\/p>\n<p>When people hear that Burnette works in longevity, she says they typically have questions for her about what to eat. And she\u2019ll tell them about the Okinawan diet filled with what might be the healthiest carb (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/purple-sweet-potato-pie-bar-dessert-recipe\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/purple-sweet-potato-pie-bar-dessert-recipe\/\">purple sweet potato<\/a>), plenty of green vegetables, tofu made with mineral-rich ocean water, and only unrefined brown sugar in desserts.<\/p>\n<p>But Burnette points out that throughout all the Blue Zones, the food is healthy, yes, but a more important factor is that people eat that food together. \u201cThey\u2019re eating in a group, or with their families,\u201d she says. \u201cThey always have someone with them, eating with them, joking with them, laughing with them, taking care of them.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content \" style=\"\" data-module-init=\"related-content\" data-module-immediate=\"\" v-cloak=\"\">\n<div class=\"related-content__wrapper \" v-cloak=\"\" :class=\"{'is-loaded':isLoaded}\">\n<p> <span class=\"inline pr-6 text-seafoam-dark\">Related Stories<\/span> <\/p>\n<p> <related-content class=\"related-content__links\" parent-article-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/social-connection-longevity\/\" current-title=\"\u2018I\u2019m a Longevity Expert, and I\u2019m Begging You To Stop Canceling Your Social Plans\u2019\" current-image=\"GettyImages-social-connection-and-longevity.jpg\" v-on:parsely-posts-loaded=\"onPostsLoaded\" start-date=\"2022-11-29\" tag=\"div\" inline-template=\"\" url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/social-connection-longevity\/\" secret=\"w5ztterVB03LGZJLfXS0hf3EvQBuFFIWew9hmVQxthU\" apikey=\"wellandgood.com\" limit=\"3\"> <\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"related-content__card mb-[10px] sm:mb-[20px]\" :class=\"{'related-content__card--full':posts.length === 1}\" v-for=\"(post, key) in posts\"> <a v-on:click.prevent=\"trackLinkGA($event, key)\" :href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/social-connection-longevity\/post.url\" data-url-source=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content__link\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content__card--image bg-tan\" :style=\"{ backgroundImage: 'url(' + post.image_url + ')' }\"> <img :src=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/social-connection-longevity\/post.image_url\" :alt=\"post.title\"\/> <\/div>\n<p> <\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/related-content> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC2729718\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC2729718\/\">Research<\/a> has shown that having strong community ties can directly improve our physical health. &#8220;Many studies\u00a0have shown lower rates of hypertension, obesity, diabetes, and possibly even cancer for people with lots of friends and loving relationships in their lives,&#8221;\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/yourdoctors.online\/richard-honaker\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/yourdoctors.online\/richard-honaker\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\">Richard Honaker, MD,<\/a>\u00a0a family medicine physician and chief medical advisor for\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/yourdoctors.online\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/yourdoctors.online\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\">Your Doctors Online<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/blue-zone-power-9\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/blue-zone-power-9\/\">previously\u00a0told<\/a>\u00a0Well+Good.<\/p>\n<h2>Okinawan practices that support social connection and longevity<\/h2>\n<p>An active social life can also lead to what\u2019s known in Okinawa as \u201cikigai,\u201d or the will to live. Burnette believes this mentality is an absolutely essential ingredient to longevity. Yet, it\u2019s woefully overlooked because it\u2019s so subjective, which makes it difficult for researchers to definitively study and put hard numbers behind.<\/p>\n<p>But Burnette explains the link this way: In most cultures, as someone gets older, \u201cthey lose their standing in society, or they feel like they don&#8217;t have a purpose. Their family doesn&#8217;t come around to visit them anymore\u2026people start dying around them, so they lose those social connections and then in turn lose the will to live.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One way that Okinawans have traditionally protected against this dangerous spiral is through the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bluezones.com\/2018\/08\/moai-this-tradition-is-why-okinawan-people-live-longer-better\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.bluezones.com\/2018\/08\/moai-this-tradition-is-why-okinawan-people-live-longer-better\/\">moai<\/a>, a custom where close <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UVjwgkJpFvE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UVjwgkJpFvE\">groups of friends get together<\/a> monthly to eat, drink (yes, including alcohol), connect, and exchange money\u2014they regularly pool their funds when someone in their moai needs the help. \u201cIt\u2019s a support system,\u201d explains Burnette. \u201cBecause they do this, they&#8217;re always socializing, they\u2019re always helping.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>The case for prioritizing your social life<\/h2>\n<p>Meanwhile in the United States, the Surgeon General recently released a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf\">report<\/a> that loneliness has reached epidemic levels\u2014with one stat pointing out that a lack of social connection can increase the risk of premature death by about as much as smoking 15 cigarettes a day (!). \u201cLoneliness kills people far faster than they think,\u201d says Burnette.<\/p>\n<p>Her advice if you&#8217;re feeling isolated? Build some social momentum.<\/p>\n<p>Burnette herself is guilty of one of the biggest things you\u2019re not supposed to do: live alone. (Traditional older Okinawans either live with their families, or at least close by, or near lots of friends: \u201cAll the old ladies live in the same neighborhood,\u201d she says.) Burnette knows firsthand how spending a day by yourself can easily lead to two days by yourself, and build into a temptation to cancel all your plans. \u201cPush yourself to get out of the house,\u201d she says. \u201cTalk to people, and feel the friendliness.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That advice remains true even if you\u2019re meeting up with someone who\u2019s not necessarily your favorite person, Burnette adds. \u201cPeople need to realize that, as annoying as your father, mother, partner, children may be, you know, you get frustrated sometimes, you&#8217;re angry or fight, but you gotta realize, we really need each other,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m not trying to be cheesy, but love is important.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1675549\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There are a bunch of memes on social media that all play off the same joke: A love of canceling plans with friends at the last minute. But Christal Burnette, a media promoter for the Okinawa Research Center for Longevity Science and a specialist in Okinawan health, says she doesn\u2019t find the punch line funny. &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4296,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4295","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4295","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4295"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4295\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4296"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4295"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4295"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4295"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}