Vegetarians' Lifstyle to Live Disease Free

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For Educational Use Only

HOW DID THE LIFE EXPECTANCY OF HUNZA INCREASE FROM 25 UP TO 160-YEAR-OLD?
EATING THE RIGHT FOOD AND EXERCISING DOES MATTER.

Life expectancy in India was 25.4-year-old in 1800, but over the next 220 years, it increased to almost 70 years, but from 1920 onwards, India's life expectancy has consistently increased, but it is still below the global average.

Hunza was the likely model for the Shangri-La of James Hilton’s novel ‘Lost Horizon’ where he describes it as a country of peace and contentment where the people do not age. Hunza are known as the descended from five wandering soldiers from Alexander’s army.

The myth of the longevity of the Hunzakuts probably stems from the fact that it was selected by the National Geographic magazine as the kingdom where people loved longest, free from social stress and succored by their high intake of apricots and low intake of animal fat. Fruit was, and is, the staple diet. During the summer the people used to eat nothing else; in order to conserve fuel and precious cereals cooking in the summer months was forbidden. In winter the people ate flour made from apricot kernels and drank brandy distilled from mulberries, and wines from the grapes that used to grow everywhere, smothering the poplars and roofs.
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You see in Hunza a large number of old people, most of them apparently in good health, but few, if any, live to be 120. Life is as hard in Hunza as it is elsewhere in the northern areas, particularly in the early spring when the supplies of stored food are running low.

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1. Women live up to the age of 160 years.
2. The average life span of Hunzas is 120 years.
3. Women can give birth up to the age of 65 years.

The Hunza Valley is a fertile valley as the Original Shangri La that supports agriculture and provides isolation from the rest of the world. 


Live Disease Free 
The Hunzas elderlies are fit, full of vitality, and virtually free from disease. 

How They Live Disease Free?
They exercise daily. Hunza people have no choice but to walk the rough passages and steep ridges. The Hunza are heartier than even the strong Sherpas of the Himalayan region.

Their Diet
Most of the Hunza's diet is plant-based, eaten raw, with fruits like apricots, cherries, grapes, plums, and peaches. They also eat a lot of grains — wheat, barley, and millet — in the form of chapati bread.

The Hunzas are happiest people on Earth by doing daily exercise and a living simple lifestyle.

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Proposed Lifestyle for Vegetarians: ​​

A balanced diet is one that provides adequate amounts of various nutrients to maintain health and well-being. Protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamins, minerals and water are all nutrients. Each nutrient has a particular function in the human body. The amount of each individual nutrient needed to maintain an individual’s health is called the nutrient requirement. Nutrient requirements vary depending on age and gender but level of physical activity, body status (such as pregnancy), dietary habits and genetic background are also important factors. 

Here the word "health" refers to a state of complete emotional and physical well-being by living a healthy lifestyle. Good health is central to handling own stress and living a long and active life” with increase productivity.  Health literacy is a lifelong learning process getting towards the betterment of health.  Dietary Advice:  "Healthy eating involves a variety of foods. If we set aside the idea that there is such a thing as a 'healthy' or 'unhealthy' food, and instead eat a wide range of foods, then we might just end up with a diet that is not only balanced and reasonably healthy but also enjoyable. It could also be that deriving pleasure from food, rather than living in fear of it, might soon be shown to be a critical factor in a truly healthy lifestyle."
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Diet & Lifestyle Guidelines: 
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1. Minimum refined or processed foods. Minimum Ghee, Oil or Sugar. If one is on no chronic medications, then two tsp. of ghee/oil and two tsp. of sugar maximum allowed per day. 

2. Eat from all five food groups: fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes and nuts & seeds (spices are recommended).

3. Eat about 1% of your body weight in fruits every day. Include one cup of berries.

4. Eat about 1% of your body weight in vegetables (at least half of those in green leafy) every day. 

5. For Omega-3: Eat 1 tbsp. Flaxseed (ground) and five walnuts every day. 

6. Take vitamin B-12 supplement. Vitamin D-3 supplement only if you are deficient, and you don’t get in the sun much. 

7. Keep your body hydrated at all times. Drink minimum 1/2-liter warm water first thing in the morning before brushing your teeth. Eat your water as much as possible (from fresh fruits and vegetables).

8. Start Intermittent Fasting. Slowly reduce your eating window to 8 or even 6 hrs.  

9. Do extended fasting, water only, for 24-36 hours twice a year. 

10. Walk 10,000 steps or more every day or a minimum of 150 minutes per week exercise of choice you like the most.

11. Love your family and friends unconditionally and stay connected.  

12. Pray regularly and have a positive attitude full of gratitude towards your family. ​

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​What Foods Should I Eat?

Plan your meals and snacks to include

• fruits and vegetables
• grains, especially whole grains
• low-fat or fat-free dairy products
• seafood, and lean poultry, beans, eggs, and unsalted nuts
• limited amounts of solid fats. Consume less than 10 percent of calories from saturated fats. Keep intake of trans fats as low as possible.
• limited amounts of cholesterol, salt (sodium), and added sugars.

Benefits of Vegetables, Fruits, and Grains

Vegetables, fruits, grains and beans also give your body phytochemicals. Phytochemicals are natural compounds such as beta-carotene, lutein and lycopene. Like vitamins, minerals, and fiber, phytochemicals may promote good health and reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers. Research is underway to learn more about these natural compounds.

Vegetables, fruits, and grains offer important vitamins and minerals to keep your body healthy. Most of these foods have little fat. They also have no cholesterol. Fruits, vegetables and grains are also a source of fiber, and eating more fiber may help with digestion and constipation and may lower cholesterol and blood sugar.

Eat a Variety of Vegetables Daily

Eat a variety of colors and types of vegetables every day.
• Broccoli, spinach, turnip and collard greens, and other dark leafy greens are good choices.
• You might also choose red and orange vegetables, such as tomatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, red peppers, or winter squash.

Vegetables may be purchased raw or cooked, frozen, canned, or dried/dehydrated. They may be eaten whole, cut-up, or mashed.

Enjoy a Variety of Fruits

Eat a variety of fruits every day. To make sure you get the benefit of the natural fiber in fruits, choose whole or cut-up fruits more often than fruit juice. Fruits may be purchased fresh, canned, frozen, or dried and may be eaten whole, cut up, or pureed.

Get Your Grains

Any food made from wheat, rye, rice, oats, cornmeal, barley, or another cereal grain is a grain product. Grains fall into two main categories: whole and refined. Foods made from whole grains are a major source of energy and fiber.

When choosing grain foods, try to make at least half your grains whole. In other words, at least half of the cereals, breads, crackers, and pastas you eat should be made from whole grains. Include whole grains in your diet every day.

Why Whole Is Better

Whole grains are better sources of fiber and nutrients than refined grains, such as white flour or white rice. Refined grains have had both the bran and germ removed and don't have as much fiber or as many nutrients as whole grains. Most refined grains are enriched, with some B vitamins and iron added back in after processing. However, fiber is not replaced.

Whole grain foods, such as whole wheat bread, are made with the entire seed of a plant, including the bran, the germ, and the endosperm. Together, they provide lots of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, carbohydrates, and fiber.
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Try whole wheat pasta instead of regular pasta or use brown rice in a casserole in place of white rice. Look for "whole wheat" or "whole oats" rather than just "wheat" or "oats" on the ingredients list of packaged goods to make sure you're getting whole grains.

Choose Dairy Every Day

Low-fat or fat-free dairy products should be among the foods you choose every day, too. These products provide calcium and vitamin D to help maintain strong bones. They also provide protein and potassium. Low-fat or fat-free milk, cheese, and yogurt are good options.
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If you don't drink milk, be sure to have other products that contain the nutrients that milk provides. Some cereals and juices are fortified with extra calcium and vitamin D. Salmon, sardines and mackerel are good sources of vitamin D.

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TESTIMONIAL FROM 80-YEAR-OLD INDIAN AMERICAN GUY

I am an 80-year guy living in Santa Clara for more than a year and had some discussions about starting a rigid Plant Based Whole Food (PBWF) diet and exercise program.

I was on hypertensive medications for a long time.

After following the PBWF diet and exercise program similar to the above lifestyle, my physician recommended reducing the medication from 2 tablets of losartan 50 mg daily to 1/2 tablet.

She insisted that I should continue 1/2 tab as my kidneys are already compromising with creatinine 1.8, and this medication is to help kidneys and not only for hypertension.

My insulin intake is zero from 34 units of R insulin a day.

Getting along well at 80 yrs. of age with yoga and exercise 30 minutes a day+ walk 5,000 steps plus teaching on zoom + gardening + acupressure teaching.