The Hunza people, inhabitants of the Hunza valley, a remote, mountainous region in Pakistan, have received the attention of some anthropologists and researchers for their unusually long and healthy lives. The Hunza show little to none of the common degenerative diseases of modern society, though the claims made for their longevity are a subject of debate. The diet of the Hunza people includes several notable and unique characteristics that may contribute to their robust health.
Raw and Unprocessed Foods
Longevity has more to do with your lifestyle choices than your choice of parents, says Randall Fitzgerald, author of the book "The Hundred-Year Lie: How to Protect Yourself from the Chemicals That Are Destroying Your Health." The Hunzas of Pakistan and the Okinawans of Japan regularly live long, productive lives and stay healthy throughout their later years. Hunza people live to an average age of 90 and remain vigorous until death. To achieve their long and healthy life span, the Hunzas use organic farming techniques and eat no processed foods or synthetic chemicals. They eat most of their food raw and participate in a ritual yearly spring fast.
Water and Apricots
The Hunza people live in a mountain region that is more remote than the famed Georgians in Russia, also known for their longevity and robust good health. One explanation for the long lives of the Hunza people lies in the mineral content of the glacier water they drink, says Timothy Harris, author of the book "Living to 100 and Beyond." Also, apricots form an important part of the Hunza diet and are used for food, cooking oil and fuel.
Health Advantages
Despite the lack of rigorous studies needed to provide adequate verification about longevity of the Hunza people combined with recent irreversible changes in their culture resulting from encroachment of modern civilization, certain evidence of their sterling health was evident, says John Robbins, author of the book "Healthy at 100: The Scientifically Proven Secrets of the World's Healthiest Peoples." The Hunzas were conspicuously lacking in common degenerative diseases such as cancer, heart disease, ulcers or gout.
Considerations
Lack of birth statistics and record keeping in that region has meant that confirmation of elderly ages of the Hunzas has been primarily by word of mouth. Also, because of their Muslim faith, the Hunzas do not keep baptismal records to substantiate claims of longevity. Since receiving attention for their health and long lives, the Hunza valley has been connected to the outer world by a road built in the 1980s that connects it to China and other parts of Pakistan and is no longer as isolated as it once was.
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