Creating Your Own Blue Zone: A Blueprint for Healthier Living

Change your environment. Change your health.

Sounds straightforward, right? Yet, it's anything but simple.

I recently delved into the Netflix documentary, "Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones". In the series, pioneer Dan Buettner guides us through regions around the globe with the highest concentration of centenarians. He unveils the common threads he believes are key to longevity - connection, whole foods, purpose, regular movement, and more. Essentially, things we all know but often struggle to incorporate.

It's no secret that our environment shapes our behaviors and habits, which in turn affect our health. Some choices are deliberate (like socializing), while others are born out of necessity (like daily cooking).

For years, this led me to wonder, if we understand what makes a 'Blue Zone', how can we attempt to replicate these environments at scale elsewhere?

The answer, I believe, starts at home.

It's quite astounding that our biggest investment - our homes, where we spend approximately 74% of our time, seldom consider health in their design.

Here's my take: if we can inadvertently design sickness into our lives, surely we can consciously design health and well-being too. By tweaking our environments to make healthy choices the norm, we can make strides in both preventing and delaying chronic diseases.

The longevity equation seems simple to me:
Redesign surroundings + Alter default habits = Better health choices.

The real challenge lies in gaining momentum and support.

Kudos to pioneers like Dan Buettner, Mark Hyman, Peter Attia, Nora la Torre, Alexandra Drane, Robin Berzins, Ken Dychtwald, Krista Drobac, Sheila Alston, and numerous others who are trailblazing towards a healthier, happier future - in our homes.

At The Well Home, we're teaming up with builders, developers, and designers eager to create 'Blue Zone' inspired homes and communities. Interested in what we're up to or how our healthy design blueprints can enhance your upcoming project? Get in touch!

For individual homeowners interested in learning how to incorporate blue zone designs into their homes, try our signature Healthy Home Makeover that does just that. Send us an email for more details.