Sacramento County Public Health Announces Focus Areas for Blue Zones Well-Being Initiative

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Nov. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Sacramento County Public Health has identified North Sacramento and South Sacramento as the areas of focus for Blue Zones Activate in Sacramento County. A countywide Well-Being and Happiness Driver Analysis leveraging the Gallup Well-Being Index and proprietary analytics in conjunction with the Well-Being Centre at Oxford University in the U.K. identified the areas as those with the highest opportunity for impact. Parts of the following neighborhoods will be the focal points of Blue Zones activation in Sacramento County: Robla, Del Paso Heights, Hagginwood, Woodlake, Arden-Arcade, Lemon Hill, Parkway, Meadowview, and Florin.

In July, Sacramento County Public Health announced the launch of the Blue Zones Activate initiative, which uses an evidence-based approach to make healthy choices easier in all the places people spend the most time. The effort begins with an assessment of the County that will help determine how to make it a dementia-friendly community and a healthier place to live, work, and thrive. The California Governor's Task Force on Alzheimer's Prevention allocated funding to Sacramento County Public Health to partner with Blue Zones to improve the lives and well-being of County residents with an emphasis on those of greatest need. In addition, the partnership will create a breakthrough innovation for brain health; Blue Zones will include Alzheimer's and dementia-focused policy and place-based designs and solutions in their final report.

"We are thrilled to partner with Blue Zones in this transformative initiative for Sacramento County. By focusing on North and South Sacramento, areas with the greatest potential for impact, we are taking a significant step towards creating a community where healthy choices are accessible to all," says District 1 Supervisor Phil Serna. "This collaboration aligns with our commitment to enhancing the well-being of our residents, especially those in greatest need."

Key Findings:

• The highest life expectancy in Sacramento County is 82.7 years and the lowest is 72.39, more than a ten-year difference. The average life expectancy in the United States is 77.28 years. (Source: Gallup)
• Life satisfaction in Sacramento County ranges from the highest areas with 8.28 and the lowest at 6.259. The average life satisfaction in the United States is 7.07 and the average in California is 7.09. (Source: Gallup)
• Deaths due to Alzheimer's disease have more than doubled from 387 in 2011 to 814 in 2021.

"The data underscores the urgent need for action in our community. With a ten-year difference in life expectancy and varying levels of life satisfaction, it's clear that we must address these disparities," adds District 2 Supervisor Patrick Kennedy. "The Blue Zones Activate initiative presents an opportunity to make lasting improvements in the lives of our residents. Together with Blue Zones, we're dedicated to creating a healthier, more vibrant Sacramento County for all."

The Blue Zones Approach

Blue Zones employs a proven solution in collaboration with communities to help people live better and longer lives. The company's work is based on research and principles developed by National Geographic Fellow and New York Times bestselling author Dan Buettner, who identified the cultures of the world – or blue zones – with the healthiest, longest-living populations. People in the original blue zones regions of the world had fractional rates of Alzheimer's disease compared to the United States.

The Blue Zones approach focuses on the single largest determinant of health: where people live. Instead of focusing on just individual behavior change, Blue Zones helps communities make permanent changes to systems and surroundings so it's easier for residents to eat wisely, move naturally, develop the right outlook, and connect more with others and their purpose as they move throughout their day. By improving the Life Radius^® – the area close to home where most Americans spend 90% of their lives – Blue Zones transformations have resulted have been able to dramatically improve overall population health and well-being, raise employee and student productivity, and boost economic vitality and development. In Sacramento, Blue Zones will be working with global experts to extend the Blue Zones Project model to improve brain health in the areas of greatest need and opportunity.

"Data shows improving well-being at the community level leads to healthier and happier residents and a more productive workforce," said Ben Leedle, CEO of Blue Zones and Co-founder of Blue Zones Project. "The Blue Zones Project model incorporates the Power 9^®, lifestyle habits from the world's blue zones that support their low brain disease rates. In Sacramento, we are advancing our approach with the latest science aimed at creating a dementia-friendly community. We are excited to work with Sacramento County Public Health and other leaders in this advanced, forward-thinking approach to improving brain health at the population level."

The Blue Zones team is working with the County and local leaders and organizations in assessing the strengths, needs, and challenges that residents are facing today. Blue Zones will then create a transformation plan that, once implemented, can drive widespread improvements in well-being, reductions in healthcare costs, and improve economic vitality in the region. For more information, visit bluezones.com/activate-sacramento.

About Blue Zones^®
Blue Zones employs evidence-based ways to help people live better, longer. The company's work is rooted in explorations and research done by National Geographic Fellow Dan Buettner in Blue Zones regions around the world, where people live extraordinarily long and/or happy lives. The original research and findings were released in Buettner's bestselling books The Blue Zones Solution, The Blue Zones of Happiness, The Blue Zones, Thrive, Blue Zones Kitchen, Blue Zones Challenge, and Blue Zones American Kitchen —all published by National Geographic books. Using original Blue Zones research, Blue Zones works with cities and counties to make healthy choices easier through permanent and semi-permanent changes to our human-made surroundings. Participating communities have experienced double-digit drops in obesity and tobacco use and have saved millions of dollars in healthcare costs. For more information, visit bluezones.com.

About Sacramento County Public Health
The mission of Sacramento County Public Health is to promote, protect, and assure conditions for optimal health and public safety for residents and communities of Sacramento County through leadership, collaboration, prevention, and response. Sacramento County Public Health provides health education and primary prevention services and is a central part of a comprehensive network of public health services responsible for providing accurate health information to the local communities. Public Health monitors the health status of Sacramento's residents, sets health priorities, and evaluates the effectiveness of health initiatives. For more information, visit http://www.scph.com.

Contacts:
Samantha Mott
[email protected]
916-642-5508

Naomi Imatome-Yun
[email protected]
917.952.8534

SOURCE Blue Zones