Where Would You Rather Live? Blue and Green Zones of Longevity in Italy

Elisabetta Barbi , Sapienza University of Rome
Giacomo Lanfiuti Baldi, La Sapienza - Università di Roma

Italy, with its regional peculiarities, offers perhaps the best opportunity to investigate different conditions of high survival and longevity. It is among the countries with the highest life expectancy in the world but it still presents great variability through the country. Italy also boasts the presence in Sardinia of one of the 5 geographical areas of the planet, the so-called Blue zones, characterized by a surprisingly high concentration of centenarians. As the number of centenarians is growing throughout the country, other potential Blue zones might be identified in Italy. However, a high concentration of centenarians does not necessarily imply a higher life expectancy. By using mortality and population data at municipality level, this study aims at identifying areas of longevity in Italy according to two meanings of longevity, i.e. areas with high concentration of long-lived individuals, the Blue zones, and areas with high life expectancy at birth, that we named Green zones. Preliminary results show that mountain areas, where health facilities are usually less efficient and accessible, have lower level of life expectancy but definitely higher concentration of centenarians. This suggests that other factors, different than the efficiency of the health system, must play a role in determining individual longevity in these apparently disadvantaged areas. Mapping the Italian territory according to different meanings of longevity can help to identify the different factors that have determined in specific areas of the country particularly favorable conditions for increasing survival and longevity. This is of fundamental importance to implement synergic, integrated, targeted policies.

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 Presented in Session 44. Variations in Healthy Ageing and Longevity