Thursday, December 2, 2010

Volume 98; Number 25

www.bladepublishing.net

A community newspaper serving Browerville, MN and surrounding areas. USPS 067-560

High School Band festive fundraiser
Pictured above are a few of the Browerville High School band officers and members unload-
ing poinsettias, wreaths, hanging baskets, and bird seed from one of their recent fund raisers.
Story and more photos inside. Photos by Tarissa Host.
75¢
Bringing Blue Zones
to an area near you
“Albert Lea, Minnesota did it and so can Morrison County!” pro-
claimed the flyer promoting “Blue Zones™- 9 All-Star Secrets to
Living Longer, Living Better.” The program sponsored by Horizon
Health, the Healthy Communities Collaborative of Morrison County
and SHIP (Statewide Health Improvement Program) was presented
in Pierz and Little Falls on Wednesday, October 27. Albert Lea’s
Community Development Director Bob Graham brought his city’s
experience to the discussion. Involved in creating and developing the
National Vitality Center, Graham shared the 9 All-Star Secrets to
about 45 interested people in each of the Morrison County locations.
Blue Zones were identified by a team led by Dan Buettner. The
team identified pockets around the world where people are living sig-
nificantly longer than most areas of the world. “We found people who
reach age 100 at 10 times greater than in the United States, where
people suffer a fraction of the rate of heart disease and cancer than
we do and where people are getting the extra 10 years that we’re
missing,” said Buettner.
Buettner has identified 9 behaviors common to people in all of the
Blue Zones. The Vitality Project, an outreach program developed
from research in the Blue Zones and sponsored by AARP and the
United Health Foundation, is taking this information to interested
communities. The 9 behaviors include: Move, Know your purpose in
life, Down shift, the 80% rule (stop eating when you’re 80% full),
Plant-Power (eat more vegetables), Red Wine, Belong to a healthy
social network, Beliefs, Your Tribe (make family a priority).
Albert Lea was chosen in 2008 as the first pilot city in the world
to collectively live longer and better by applying the 9 behaviors. “We
gathered the community movers and shakers to learn about it,” said

Lions Club donates
to Browerville Area Food Shelf
Browerville Lions Club members Harvey Christensen and Terry Boone, along with other vol-
unteers helped unpack the new stainless steel refrigerator and freezer units at the Browerville
Food Shelf last week. The new appliances were funded by a generous donation from the
Browerville Lions Club.
Graham. “It’s not rocket science; just do it,” he said, adding that any-
one can be successful at it. He said Albert Lea was chosen because it
was just like the rest of the United States with increasing rates of
obese and overweight residents. Albert Lea was also motivated to
lead its residents to better health when they learned that with cur-
rent health trends their children wouldn’t have the longevity that
they do, that obesity, diabetes and heart disease will reduce their life
expectancy lower than their own.
“We wanted 5,000 people to gain 10,000 years of good health,” said
Graham of the Albert Lea challenge. With a population of just over
18,000 people, they more than met their goal when 25% of the popu-
lation, in one year’s time, increased their life expectancy by 3.2 years
each.
How did they do it?
According to www.bluezones.com/albertlea, restaurants changed
their menus to offer more healthy choices. Schools implemented
seven wellness policy changes to reduce snack foods and increase
activity. Businesses changed their environment and policies to
encourage healthier behaviors. Volunteers planted 70 community
garden plots. Biking and hiking paths were connected throughout
the community to encourage more walking social groups called
Walking Moais. Kids also walked more with a project called a
Walking School Bus in which the kids walked the last mile to school
every day under the supervision of parent and senior volunteers.
Graham offered additional tips: make good foods visible in the
refrigerator, don’t eat family style which encourages over-eating
(dish up a plate in the kitchen and dine in the dining room), change
social networks to associate with other like-minded health enthusi-
asts, make your community convenient for walking.
In addition to increasing life expectancy, participants in Albert
Lea also lost an average of 3 pounds each, employers reported a 21%
drop in absenteeism, and city employees experienced a 49% decrease
in health care costs.
While folks in the Blue Zones naturally live a healthy lifestyle
that results in long lives, the Vitality Project believes anyone can
make the necessary changes to lead a Blue Zone life. After the pre-
sentations, twenty Morrison County residents signed on to form a
committee to formulate a plan to make similar local changes.

WEEKLY WEATHER REPORT

Wed. Dec. 1 Thur. Dec. 2 Fri. Dec. 3 Sat, Dec. 4 Sun. Dec. 5 Mon. Dec. 6 Tue. Dec. 7
Mostly Cloudy Partly Cloudy Snow Snow Partly Cloudy Partly Cloudy Clouds/Sun
18°/5° 15°/0° 22°/17° 24°/10° 16°/12° 14°/2° 18°/3°