The Okinawa Centenarian Study is a study of the elderly people of Okinawa, Japan. The study, funded by Japan's ministry of health, is the largest of its kind ever carried out. Over the years, the scientists involved have had access to more than 600 Okinawan centenarians. [1]
The elderly of Okinawa enjoy what may be the longest life expectancy in the world, and are also known for enjoying the relatively good health while doing so. The three leading killers in the West—coronary heart disease, stroke, and cancer—occur in Okinawans with the lowest frequency in the world. [2]
The goal of the study is to find out why this is the case.
Compared to Westerners, the islanders age slowly and are about 80% less likely to get heart disease. They are also a quarter less likely to get breast or prostate cancer. In addition, they have half the risk of getting colon cancer and are less likely than Westerners to get dementia. On average they spend 97% of their lives free of any disabilities. [1]
Current studies
Article title
Demographic, phenotypic, and genetic characteristics of centenarians in Okinawa and Japan: Part 1-centenarians in Okinawa
Introduction
The Okinawa Centenarian Study was conducted by D. Craig Willcox, Bradley J. Willcox, Wen-Chi Hsueh, and Makoto Suzuki and published on January 2, 2024.
Research Methodology
Participant Selection and Verification The selection of participants and verification of their ages are foundational to the study's credibility. Thorough demographic reviews, with researchers consulting official records such as birth certificates and family registers (koseki) to verify the ages of the subjects. This verification is essential to accurately identify centenarians and reduce the possibility of age misreporting. The study's sample includes a significant proportion of the centenarian population in Okinawa, nearly one-third.
Data Collection and Home Assessments Data acquisition for the OCS is performed by in-home assessments; this method aims to lessen stress and facilitate ease for elderly individuals, which is believed to aid in collecting more consistent and precise data.
The assessments encompass several facets of health and well-being:
- Cognitive Functioning
- Physical Health
- Functional Status
Genetic Analysis and Biomarkers Investigating genetic elements related to longevity is a critical component of the study. Attention is given to specific genetic markers, including the APOE gene variants, focusing on the APOE2 allele. The study also examines telomere length, mitochondrial DNA variations, and the interplay between genetics and environmental factors.
A selection of biomarkers is measured to gain insights into various health aspects:
- Inflammatory Markers: These include CRP, interleukins, and tumor necrosis factors, indicative of immune function and chronic inflammation levels.
- Metabolic and Cardiovascular Indicators: The assessment of lipid profiles, fasting glucose, and insulin sensitivity is conducted to understand metabolic health and cardiovascular risk factors.
- Hormonal Profiles: Hormones such as DHEAS, estrogen, testosterone, and other growth factors are measured to explore their roles in the aging process.
- Oxidative Stress Markers: The study measures the activity of antioxidant enzymes and the presence of oxidative damage, which can shed light on cellular aging mechanisms.
Data Collection and Home Assessments
Data collection within the OCS is conducted through direct in-home assessments, which provide a comfortable and familiar setting for participants. This approach is designed to minimize stress and inconvenience for the elderly subjects, thereby facilitating more accurate and reliable data collection. The assessments cover various domains, including: Cognitive Functioning,Physical Health,Functional Status and interviews are utilized to gather information on participants' psychological well-being, social networks, and perceived life satisfaction. These comprehensive assessments provide a multi-dimensional picture of the centenarians' health and lifestyle.
Genetic Analysis and Biomarkers
The Okinawa Centenarian Study investigates genetic factors contributing to longevity, focusing on various genetic markers, such as APOE alleles, especially APOE2, which is linked to a lower risk of Alzheimer's and a higher likelihood of longevity. Researchers also analyze telomere length, mitochondrial DNA variations, and how genes interact with environmental factors to influence lifespan. Key biomarkers measured include: Inflammatory Markers: To assess immune function and chronic inflammation, levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukins, and tumor necrosis factors are measured. Metabolic and Cardiovascular Indicators: Lipid profiles, fasting glucose, and insulin sensitivity are evaluated to understand metabolic health and cardiovascular risk. Hormonal Profiles: Hormones like dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), estrogen, testosterone, and various growth factors are quantified for their role in aging. Oxidative Stress Markers: Activities of antioxidant enzymes and markers of oxidative damage provide insight into cellular aging processes.
Lifestyle Factors Influencing Longevity
Article title
Blue Zones
Introduction
This article is written by Dan Buettner and Samantha Skemp and published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine in 2016.
The exceptional longevity of Okinawa's centenarians can be attributed to a combination of lifestyle choices and cultural practices. Notably, the concept of "Hara Hachi Bu," which advocates eating only until one is 80% full, is a common practice among Okinawans. This practice promotes caloric restriction, which has been linked to longer lifespan in various studies.
Another integral aspect of Okinawan culture is "Ikigai," or a sense of purpose. It is believed that having a clear sense of purpose can contribute to overall well-being and longevity. This cultural ethos fosters strong social ties and community engagement, which are essential components of healthy aging. These lifestyle factors are seen not only as habits but as ingrained cultural practices that contribute to the high life expectancy in Okinawa.
Dietary Habits and Nutritional Biomarkers
Article title
Nutrition in Centenarians
Introduction
This Study was conducted by researchers D.B. Hausman, J.G. Fischer, and M.A. Johnson and published in the journal Maturitas in March 2011.
Dietary Habits and Nutritional Biomarkers
The dietary patterns of Okinawan centenarians are characterized by a high intake of vegetables, whole grains, soy products, and a moderate consumption of fish, with a low reliance on meat and processed foods. The traditional Okinawan diet is low in calories yet nutritionally dense, particularly rich in antioxidants and other phytonutrients. Key nutritional biomarkers for longevity among Okinawans include lower levels of homocysteine and higher levels of antioxidant vitamins, which are indicative of a diet rich in folate, vitamin B12, and vitamin D. These biomarkers suggest a reduced risk for chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and certain cancers.
Vitamin E is a group of eight fat soluble compounds that include four tocopherols and four tocotrienols. Vitamin E deficiency, which is rare and usually due to an underlying problem with digesting dietary fat rather than from a diet low in vitamin E, can cause nerve problems. Vitamin E is a fat-soluble antioxidant which may help protect cell membranes from reactive oxygen species. Worldwide, government organizations recommend adults consume in the range of 3 to 15 mg per day. As of 2016, consumption was below recommendations according to a worldwide summary of more than one hundred studies that reported a median dietary intake of 6.2 mg per day for alpha-tocopherol. Foods rich in vitamin E include seeds and nuts, seed oils, peanut butter, and vitamin E-fortified foods.
Metabolic syndrome is a clustering of at least three of the following five medical conditions: abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high serum triglycerides, and low serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL).
Senescence or biological aging is the gradual deterioration of functional characteristics in living organisms. Whole organism senescence involves an increase in death rates or a decrease in fecundity with increasing age, at least in the later part of an organism's life cycle. However, the resulting effects of senescence can be delayed. The 1934 discovery that calorie restriction can extend lifespans by 50% in rats, the existence of species having negligible senescence, and the existence of potentially immortal organisms such as members of the genus Hydra have motivated research into delaying senescence and thus age-related diseases. Rare human mutations can cause accelerated aging diseases.
Life extension is the concept of extending the human lifespan, either modestly through improvements in medicine or dramatically by increasing the maximum lifespan beyond its generally-settled biological limit of around 125 years. Several researchers in the area, along with "life extensionists", "immortalists", or "longevists", postulate that future breakthroughs in tissue rejuvenation, stem cells, regenerative medicine, molecular repair, gene therapy, pharmaceuticals, and organ replacement will eventually enable humans to have indefinite lifespans through complete rejuvenation to a healthy youthful condition (agerasia). The ethical ramifications, if life extension becomes a possibility, are debated by bioethicists.
Longevity may refer to especially long-lived members of a population, whereas life expectancy is defined statistically as the average number of years remaining at a given age. For example, a population's life expectancy at birth is the same as the average age at death for all people born in the same year.
C-reactive protein (CRP) is an annular (ring-shaped) pentameric protein found in blood plasma, whose circulating concentrations rise in response to inflammation. It is an acute-phase protein of hepatic origin that increases following interleukin-6 secretion by macrophages and T cells. Its physiological role is to bind to lysophosphatidylcholine expressed on the surface of dead or dying cells in order to activate the complement system via C1q.
The Okinawa diet describes the traditional dietary practices of indigenous people of the Ryukyu Islands, which were claimed to have contributed to their relative longevity over a period of study in the 20th century.
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is any disease involving the heart or blood vessels. CVDs constitute a class of diseases that includes: coronary artery diseases, heart failure, hypertensive heart disease, rheumatic heart disease, cardiomyopathy, arrhythmia, congenital heart disease, valvular heart disease, carditis, aortic aneurysms, peripheral artery disease, thromboembolic disease, and venous thrombosis.
Biomarker discovery is a medical term describing the process by which biomarkers are discovered. Many commonly used blood tests in medicine are biomarkers. There is interest in biomarker discovery on the part of the pharmaceutical industry; blood-test or other biomarkers could serve as intermediate markers of disease in clinical trials, and as possible drug targets.
Myricetin is a member of the flavonoid class of polyphenolic compounds, with antioxidant properties. Common dietary sources include vegetables, fruits, nuts, berries, tea, and red wine.
Following is a list of topics related to life extension:
A blue zone is a region in the world where people are claimed to have exceptionally long lives beyond the age of 80 due to a lifestyle combining physical activity, low stress, rich social interactions, a local whole-foods diet, and low disease incidence. Examples of blue zones include Okinawa Prefecture, Japan; Nuoro Province, Sardinia, Italy; the Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica; and Icaria, Greece. The name "blue zones" derived simply during the original survey by scientists, who "used a blue pen on a map to mark the villages with long-lived population."
Chronic systemic inflammation (SI) is the result of release of pro-inflammatory cytokines from immune-related cells and the chronic activation of the innate immune system. It can contribute to the development or progression of certain conditions such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, autoimmune and neurodegenerative disorders, and coronary heart disease.
Ageing is the process of becoming older. The term refers mainly to humans, many other animals, and fungi, whereas for example, bacteria, perennial plants and some simple animals are potentially biologically immortal. In a broader sense, ageing can refer to single cells within an organism which have ceased dividing, or to the population of a species.
Sarcopenic obesity is a combination of two disease states, sarcopenia and obesity. Sarcopenia is the muscle mass/strength/physical function loss associated with increased age, and obesity is based off a weight to height ratio or body mass index (BMI) that is characterized by high body fat or being overweight.
A centenarian is a person who has attained the age of 100 years or more. Research on centenarians has become more common with clinical and general population studies now having been conducted in France, Hungary, Japan, Italy, Finland, Denmark, the United States, and China. Centenarians are the second fastest-growing demographic in much of the developed world. By 2030, it is expected that there will be around a million centenarians worldwide. In the United States, a 2010 Census Bureau report found that more than 80 percent of centenarians are women.
Hara hachi bun me (腹八分目) is a Confucian teaching that instructs people to eat until they are 80 percent full. The Japanese phrase translates to "Eat until you are eight parts full", or "belly 80 percent full". There is evidence that following this practice leads to a lower body mass index and increased longevity, and it might even help to prevent dementia in the elderly.
A person's waist-to-height ratio – occasionally written WtHR or WHtR – or called waist-to-stature ratio (WSR), is defined as their waist circumference divided by their height, both measured in the same units. It is used as a predictor of obesity-related cardiovascular disease. The WHtR is a measure of the distribution of body fat. Higher values of WHtR indicate higher risk of obesity-related cardiovascular diseases; it is correlated with abdominal obesity.
The Spanish Biomedical Research Centre in Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition is a public research consortium which was founded on November 28, 2006 financed by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) and the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MICINN).
Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a type of metabolic disease characterized by hyperglycemia. It is caused by either defected insulin secretion or damaged biological function, or both. The high-level blood glucose for a long time will lead to dysfunction of a variety of tissues.
3. Buettner, D., & Skemp, S. (2016). Blue zones. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, 10(5), 318–321. https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827616637066
4. Hausman, D. B., Fischer, J. G., & Johnson, M. A. (2011). Nutrition in Centenarians. Maturitas, 68(3), 203–209. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.maturitas.2011.01.003
5. Willcox, C., Willcox, B., Hsueh, W.-C., & Suzuki , M. (2024, January 2). Okinawa Centenarian Study D. Craig Willcox, Bradley J. Willcox, Wen-Chi Hsueh & Makoto Suzuki . Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okinawa_Centenarian_Study