Ikaria (Greece)

Ikaria, an island in the Aegean Sea inhabited by just over 8,000 inhabitants, has one of the highest life expectancy in Greece and a female/male ratio among the oldest people that is also close to 1. Most of the inhabitants of Ikaria follow a traditional lifestyle involving a local version of the Mediterranean diet, vigorous physical activity, and lack of stress (Siasos et al. 2013). The Ikarian diet includes vegetables, olives, moderate consumption of cheese, and goat milk, with two features curiously reminiscent of those of the Sardinian LBZ: an abundant traditional use of potatoes and relatively low consumption of fish. Perhaps the most striking feature of Ikarians is their widespread lack of stress, as evidenced by their proverbial indifference to money and the accumulation of material goods; their habit of taking naps in the afternoon is also widespread, and according to some research, it might reduce the risk of coronary death (Panagiotakos et al. 2011). As Ikaria is the last LBZ to have been identified, investigations are still ongoing to disentangle the role of possible factors underlying its longevity.