Reputation for longevity
Located in a historical and scenic valley, it is a common destination for tourists, in part because it is widely believed that its inhabitants grow to a very old age. Locals assert that it is not uncommon to see a person reach 100 years of age and it is claimed that many have gotten to 120, even up to 135, which would make it an area with the oldest inhabitants in the world. It is often called the Valley of Longevity.The reasons for this claimed longevity are not very clear. French studies have shown that the diet and lifestyle of the inhabitants may be a factor. Dr. Richard Laurence Millington Synge, a Nobel Chemistry Prize winner and the man who discovered amino acids, claims that there are remarkable medicinal qualities to be found in the plant life in certain places near the Equator .... with the valley of Vilcabamba being one of these areas. Due to scientific chemical assay techniques, analysis has now shown that the fruit, roots and herbs of this particular Equatorial sub-area offer some of the strongest anti-oxidant protection in the world. In 1973, Dr. Alexander Leaf of Harvard Medical School introduced these remarkable people to the world for the first time in his cover story for National Geographic Magazine.[1]
In 1981, the Ecuadorian government hired medical journalist Dr. Morton Walker to study these people in depth. In his book, "The Secret to a Youthful Long Life", Dr. Walker reported that his research showed the mineral rich water that the Vilcabambans drank was key to their long lives and health. Laboratory analysis of the Vilcabamba water determined that the unique balance of enriched colloidal minerals in the local drinking water was ideal for promoting optimum human health.[2]
In 1991, businessman Craig Keeland traveled to Vilcabamba to study the anti-oxidants. He developed and marketed a whole fruit puree made from Vilcabamba fruits and vegetables and sold it through his former company, Youngevity, which he sold in 2005.[3] In July 2003, Keeland formed a new company that developed a whole food puree product called ViaViente which is now sold globally in over 26 countries and territories. Keeland founded the Andes Children’s Foundation in 2003 to support the education of children in Vilcabamba.[4]
Medical researchers have confirmed that the retinas of 100 year-old residents are often comparable with those of 45 year-old city-dwellers.[5][dead link] Others suggest that the climate in the region, which is reasonably steady without much variation, or the mineral content of its drinking water is particularly healthful and explains the advanced age of its inhabitants.
Skepticism concerning longevity claims
According to The Bewildering History of the History of Longevity[6] by Peter Laslett, "geographical variation in the incidence of long life is no doubt a reality but better general survival does not demonstrably raise the probability of extreme ages and systematic, sceptical analysis of these confidently asserted propositions has condemned them as entirely baseless."Longevity in Vilcabamba has been attributed to nothing more special than the benefits of exercise, a healthy diet and good treatment of the elderly by the community.[7] Longevity of the residents has also been attributed to a result of migration of younger people to cities.
Age Exaggeration
Even as Vilcabamba's international fame grew, scientists continued to investigate the secret of the villagers' longevity, but some were beginning to grow skeptical. In particular, Dr. Alexander Leaf, the Harvard Medical School researcher who had been among the first to conduct research in Vilcabamba, was having doubts. His suspicions were aroused when he realized that the villagers were inconsistent in their self-reported ages. For instance, in 1971 he had met a man who reported his age as 122. When Leaf returned three years later, that same man claimed to be 134 years old.Leaf then persuaded Dr. Richard Mazess of the University of Wisconsin Madison and Dr. Sylvia Forman of the University of California Berkeley to help determine the correct ages of Vilcabamba's elderly population. They reached the conclusion that there was not a single centenarian living in Vilcabamba. The oldest person in the village was found to be 96 years old. The average age of those claiming to be over 100 years was actually 86 years. The researchers presented these results on February 27, 1978 at a workshop at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md.
Far from being the 'Valley of Longevity,' the researchers concluded that "Individual longevity in Vilcabamba is little, if any, different from that found throughout the rest of the world." Further, they reported that "Life expectancy (corrected for exaggeration) at all ages in Vilcabamba (and Loja) is in fact less than in the U.S."
Sources of Error
Mazess and Forman identified two sources of error. First, the villagers systematically exaggerated their ages and the older they grew, the greater their exaggerations became. Mazess and Forman provided the example of Miguel Carpio Mendieta (MCM):Apparently MCM did not begin exaggerating his age until later in life. When he was 61 in 1944 he reported an age of "70", and five years later he was reputedly "80". In 1970, at age 87, he was reputedly "121", while in 1974, at 91, he was "127".
The researchers speculated that the villagers had originally exaggerated their ages in order to gain prestige in the community. This practice appeared to have been occurring for generations, long before academic researchers had arrived in the village. However, Dr. Leaf speculated that the international publicity, and subsequent rise in tourism, may have encouraged the villagers' exaggerations to grow more prolific.
The second source of error was the widespread use of identical names in the small community. This had initially confused researchers who had studied the baptismal and birth records. The birth-date of an identically named uncle or father would appear to confirm the extreme longevity of a resident. By asking the Vilcabambans for the names of their godparents, the researchers were able to identify the correct records for each resident.
It turned out that Vilcabamba did actually have a higher-than-normal percentage of elderly people. However, this was caused by migration patterns. Young people tended to move out of the area, while the elderly moved in.
Although the Vilcabambans did not enjoy greater longevity than the rest of the world, they did have one consolation. Researchers noted that the Vilcabamban lifestyle, which included hard work in a high altitude combined with a low-calorie, low-animal-fat diet, did seem to keep the villagers healthy and vigorous in their old age.
Changing environment
Foreigners and other tourists are increasingly buying property in the region for spa and vacation homes. Tourists have created problems for the locals, including rising prices as well as increasing drug and alcohol use. Some locals say that the peace and simplicity of their lives, to which they attributed their longevity, has been lost.[8]See also
External links
Maternal Haplogroup B
mtDNA HVR-1 Results
16001
ATTCTAATTT AAACTATTCT CTGTTCTTTC ATGGGGAAGC AGATTTGGGT
16051
ACCACCCAAG TATTGACTCA CCCATCAACA ACCGCTATGT ATTTCGTACA
16101
TTACTGCCAG CCACCATGAA TATTGTACGG TACCATAAAT ACTTGACCAC
16151
CTGTAGTACA TAAAAACCCA ATCCACATCA AAcCCCCCcC CCCATGCTTA
16201
CAAGCAAGTA CAGCAAcCAA CCCTCAACTA TCgCACATCA ACTGCAACTC
16251
CAAAGCCACC CCTCACCCAC TAGGATACCA ACAAACCTAt CCACCCTTAA
16301
CAGTACATAG TACATAAAGC CATTTACCGT ACATAGCACA TTACAGTCAA
16351
ATCCCTTCTC GTCCCCATGG ATGACCCCCC TCAGATAGGG GTCCCTTGAC
16401
CACCATCCTC CGTGAAATCA ATATCCCGCA CAAGAGTGCT ACTCTCCTCG
16451
CTCCGGGCCC ATAACACTTG GGGGTAGCTA AAGTGAACTG TATCCGACAT
16501
CTGGTTCCTA CTTCAGGGcC ATAAAGCCTA AATAGCCCAC ACGTTCCCCT
16551
TAAATAAGAC ATCACGATG
J
T Rojas' mtDNA HVR-1 differs from the Cambridge Reference
Sequence (CRS) at the following sequence locations in the HVR-1.
(For
all other locations, refer to the DNA sequence above)
| Location | Mutation Type | Nucleotide Change |
|---|---|---|
| 16183 | Substitution | A > C |
| 16189 | Substitution | T > C |
| 16217 | Substitution | T > C |
| 16233 | Substitution | A > G |
| 16290 | Substitution | C > T |
| 16519 | Substitution | T > C |
