A general principle for any designed system is that it functions optimally when it is used or able to perform in the way it was originally designed. Take, for example, a new car. It performs optimally when driven under normal road conditions. But if you decide to weld a snowplow blade to the front end of your BMW and use it to plow country roads all winter long, it will likely not last long. Or, if in a moment of insanity, you decide to stir the soup on the stove with your cell phone, the consequences will be disappointing and costly.

Likewise with living creatures. Anyone who has visited a zoo has probably gotten the feeling, that although the caged animals are safe and well-fed, their quality of life is compromised compared to what it would be if they were free to live in their natural habitats. This seems especially pertinent the more advanced the type of animal it is. A human in captivity languishes most.

Forms of Bondage

For humans, not all forms of bondage consist of cages or prison cells. Bondage can derive from a variety of factors affecting our lives in negative ways. Potential sources could be environmental, societal, institutional, or even related to worldview and belief systems. A polluted environment or a corrupt political system could afflict to some degree everyone living in that society. 

On the other hand, research has shown that specific pockets of human society possess an optimal blend of conditions that work together to ideally promote human flourishing.¹

Blue Zones® are places or regions which have a high concentration of centenarians in addition to clusters of people who have reached old age without disease and/or other health conditions such as obesity, cancer, diabetes, and heart problems….individuals living in these areas or regions not only live longer, but their day-to-day lives are fulfilled with activity, citizens who experience good health, and positive engagements with their families and communities.

A significant result from research on communities with a higher percentage of thriving, long-lived individuals is that factors related to lifestyle influence longevity to a greater degree than genetics.

You might think good genes alone are required to be able to live to 100….While genetics do have some impact on longevity,…they most likely account for only about 20% to 25% of differences in lifespan.

In a study of longevity factors for nonagenarians on the Greek island of Ikaria, researchers found the following:²

In conclusion, the participants had a very high level of family solidarity, social interaction and physical activity.

It’s also interesting to note that longevity on Ikaria doesn’t necessarily correlate with some of our more accepted conventions of health.³

Ikaria is a mountainous island located in the Eastern Aegean Sea between Mykonos and Samos. Despite a low socioeconomic status and the presence of cardiovascular risk factors (hypertension, diabetes, and tobacco smoking), the elderly inhabitants of this tiny island have maintained a relatively good health status, in particular a low rate of depression, high muscle strength, and good functional abilities.

Additional observations of characteristics contributing to human flourishing include:⁴

Family solidarity may contribute to increased feelings of well-being, and reduced distress and cognitive impairments…. Several studies have found a positive correlation between religious belief and practice, and mental and physical health and longevity….  In our study, the level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with protection from coronary heart disease, regardless of the common cardiovascular risk factors.

An Original Design 

Not everyone agrees about the existence of Blue Zones. Yet there seems to be some interesting consistency to data about what makes for our flourishing. Three of the most commonly cited factors for humans to flourish and live long are belonging to a supportive community, moderate physical activity, and belief in God. Regarding the data on common factors related to longevity, it’s instructive to ask if these factors best align with an original design for human beings according to intelligent design and a biblical perspective, or if longevity factors are best explained by the evolutionary paradigm. 

The essence of evolutionary theory is natural selection, based on survival of the fittest. While community solidarity may correspond to some of the benefits of herd behavior, valuing the eldest members of a community and providing them with a safe, honored place is hard to reconcile with “selection pressure” and the “struggle to survive.” 

An Aberration from Reality

The type and degree of physical activity associated with longevity, with descriptions such as moderate, routine, and paced, hardly seems to favor the strongest, fastest, or most competitive. Belief in God, in a purely naturalistic paradigm, would correspond to an aberration from reality and not a sublime alignment with truth.

How do optimal longevity factors align with the supposition that those who live according to these factors are reaping the benefits of living in closer alignment with our original design? Relationships have always been of importance and benefit to people. One of the first observations made of man in the Bible is, “It is not good that the man should be alone.”⁵ Belonging to a fellowship, meeting together, and loving one’s neighbor are exhortations for those who believe in God’s design for their lives.

Exercise as part of the normal routine of daily life has traditionally been a part of the human experience. Hunting and gathering, tending flocks, sowing and reaping comprised necessary human activities for much of our history. Now, however, with modern society primarily dependent upon industrialized food production, most people are freed from much of the labor associated with feeding themselves, but we thereby lose the benefits of a naturally active lifestyle. 

We perhaps glimpse a hint from the lifestyle common to those who live long and flourish that the original design for humans had something to do with being gardeners.⁶

The common longevity trait of belief in God rather obviously affirms the prevailing concept of humans being designed for relationship with God. Much more could be said about conditions leading to longevity and human flourishing, but the factors considered seem to affirm our original purpose and design, while running contrary to evolutionary naturalism.

Notes

1. Hannah R. Marston, Kelly Niles-Yokum and Paula Alexandra Silva, “A Commentary on Blue Zones®: A Critical Review of Age-Friendly Environments in the 21st Century and Beyond, “Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, (2021), 18(2), 837; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18020837.
2. Romain Legrand, Gilles Nuemi, Michel Poulain and Patrick Manckoundia, “Description of Lifestyle, Including Social Life, Diet and Physical Activity, of People ≥90 years Living in Ikaria, a Longevity Blue Zone,” Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(12), 6602; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18126602.
3. Legrand, et al., ibid.
4. Legrand, et al., ibid.
5. Genesis 2:18 (ESV).
6. See Genesis 2:15.