Singapore ‘designed’ a society where you can live to be 100 – here’s how

The Asian country has one of the longest-lived populations in the world.

Xu Sijie | Electronic+ | Getty Images

Singapore is the world’s latest “blue zone” – defined as a place where people live longer and healthier lives.

“Singapore has the highest health-adjusted life expectancy in the world. So whatever Singapore does, it is committed to creating the longest, healthiest life on earth,” Dan BitnerThe man who coined the term “blue zones” tells CNBC Make It.

Blue areas are places with ten times the number of centenarians per capita as in the United States.

The original five blue zones are: Ikaria (Greece), Okinawa (Japan), Nicoya (Costa Rica), Sardinia (Italy) and Loma Linda (USA) – but Singapore Now on Bittner’s new list, it’s called “Blue Zone 2.0.”

The original blue area was caused by the natural environment, while Blue Area 2.0 is man-made.

“The old blue areas are disappearing because they are becoming Americanized,” Buettner said. “Mechanization is replacing physical activity and technology is removing people from face-to-face interactions.”

In 2004, Buettner teamed up with National Geographic and the National Institute on Aging to try to “reverse engineer” longevity. The team identified areas of the world where people are living significantly longer, and then worked to find out why people in these communities live longer.

“Power 9”

Buettner and his team identified “Power 9”—the core factors that represent the habits of the healthiest and longest-lived people in the world.

The nine principles are: Move naturally in daily life; Be purposeful; Maintain a regular schedule to reduce stress; Stop eating when 80% full; Eat more plant-based foods; Drink alcohol moderately and regularly; Be part of a community; Stay close to loved ones Relationships; Surround yourself with people who have healthy habits.

Bittner says Singapore is an ‘engineering longevity hotspot’ Said before.

Here are some of the health drivers in Singapore’s policy structure.

Walk, don’t bike

While people in many parts of the world drive from one place to another, most Singaporeans walk – but this is usually out of necessity rather than for exercise.

“I think Singapore taxes cars, taxes petrol, taxes road use… and then invests heavily in walking, cycling and public transport,” Butner told CNBC.

“It’s not just coincidence, it’s very good planning… and as a result, you get people out from behind the wheel and on their feet,” he added.

It starts with recognizing that employees are your most valuable resource…and this doesn’t happen overnight. This spirit creates the lens through which they view policy.

Dan Bitner

Author, The Complete Blue Zone: Lessons from the Healthiest Places on Earth

In order to buy a car in Singapore, you must first obtain a license to own a car, COE or Certificate of Entitlementwhich may be more expensive than the car itself.

In contrast, as of March, listed companies price The Toyota Camry Hybrid in Singapore is priced at S$209,888 (approximately US$155,800).In the United States it is list The price is a fraction of $28,855.

Keep loved ones close

Research shows that people in blue zones tend to prioritize their loved ones and keep them close to them.

This can be seen from Singapore’s policy neighborhood housing grant This financially incentivizes people to live with or near their parents and children.

“Instead of placing seniors in nursing homes, as we do in the United States, where seniors are connected to their families. More often, they receive better care from their families, so this all benefits the life expectancy of seniors,” Buettner said.

sense of belonging

Research finds that belonging to a faith-based community may be associated with longer lifespan.

“All but five of the 263 centenarians we interviewed belonged to a faith community,” Buettner said. “Research shows that attending four faith-based services per month can increase life expectancy by 4 to 14 years.”

According to the Department of Statistics, nearly 80% of Singaporean adults are religious pew research center.Additionally, a 2014 Pew study study ranks the city-state as the most religiously diverse country in the world.

Choose healthy habits

Bittner said Singapore was doing well in making “healthy food cheaper and more accessible than junk food”. The country has created incentives to encourage food companies to offer healthier options.

healthier choices The Health Promotion Council is promoting foods such as brown rice and whole grains.The Ministry of Health has also established a labeling system Show residents which food stalls have healthier options.

Smoking has become “difficult, unattractive and expensive,” Buettner said. “Singapore has done a great job with the look of cigarette packaging and the graphics of oral cancer… they were one of the first countries to do this Tax cigarette. “

Accessible healthcare

Singaporeans enjoy National health insurance This means residents have access to high-quality medical services, including preventive, curative, rehabilitative and hospice health services.The government has tried hard Develop policies to subsidize medical expenses.

“Health care in the United States is very expensive and inefficient at delivering health because the priority of governing policy is the economy,” Buettner said.

“The agenda of Lee Kuan Yew and his colleagues was different. They were trying to really ensure that people stayed healthy rather than making money off of people,” he added, referring to Singapore’s founding father and first prime minister.

strict laws

Singapore is known for its strict laws. Bans on chewing gum or heavy fines for eating on public transport are common examples.

However, the country is also very strict about guns and drugs. Either offense could result in jail time, judicial caning or the death penalty.

“The fact that guns are illegal in Singapore … is a very smart policy in terms of life expectancy. We have about 55,000 gun deaths a year in the United States and about three fewer in Singapore,” Buettner said.

“Tough laws against drugs – we should be concerned about that. Last year, there were over 100,000 drug-related deaths in the United States and about 20 deaths in Singapore,” he added.