Who lives the longest and why? Let’s take a look at the top countries with the healthiest
citizens, based on a variety of factors and find out exactly what they’re doing right.
10. First up with a life expectancy of 81.5 years is the Netherlands. The Netherlands
is widely regarded to offer one of the highest standards of living in the world. This is
largely due to the countries’ relatively low food prices and a diet that places emphasis
on vegetables, fruit and dairy products. A popular and highly nutritious meal in the
Netherlands is a Dutch Pea Soup called Snert, stuffed full of vegetables.
9. At 9 is Canada. Amazingly Canada has one of the lowest number of doctors per capita
of any country in this video. With only 2.1 doctors for every 1,000 citizens. Yet Canadians
enjoy one of the highest life expectancies in the world at an average of 82.5 years.
8. At 8 is Australia, with a life expectancy of 83. Australians have one of the best health
care systems in the world. Down under, insurance companies are required to charge policyholders
the exact same premium, regardless of their age, gender or history. Meaning no matter
who you are or what you’ve done you will pay the same as everyone else for your health
insurance.
7. At 7 is Switzerland, the Swiss have a life expectancy of 82.8 . The Swiss healthcare system
has been named the best in the world on many occasions. Naturally this helps, but the Swiss
are also lucky enough to be nestled right in the heart of the Alps which means sports
such as hiking and skiing are prevalent, helping to keep the Swiss people fit and healthy all
year round.
6. At 66 is Germany. Germans pay handsomely for their healthcare. 11.3% of the country’s
GDP is spent on healthcare. There is no waiting for appointments in Germany and until very
recently you didn’t even have to pay for your taxi ride to the hospital.
5. At is Finland. This may come as a surprise, because 35 years ago Finland was one of the
world’s unhealthiest nations. And the country actually held the global record for the highest
numbers of heart disease. But this shocked the Finnish Government into action. The Government
launched a full blown campaign to dramatically improve people’s health by encouraging an
active lifestyle and promoting fruit and vegetable intake. And it worked, present day Finland
is a very different place and rates of cardiovascular heart disease have since dropped by over 65%.
4. at 4 is Sweden. Sweden can owe most of it’s success to an emphasis on staying active.
The Swedish government invests a lot of money in building new cycle routes and encouraging
people to get out of their cars and cycle instead. Some Swedish GPs even give patients
“exercise on prescription”. Sweden also has one of the lowest air pollution rates
in the world.
3. At 3 is Iceland. With all the countries beautiful mountains, glaciers, volcanoes,
and waterfalls it’s no surprise that the Icelandic love to spend plenty of time enjoying
the great outdoors. But the main reason Iceland is so high on this list is because they eat
practically zero processed food, choosing to eat exclusively locally grown food, even
their organic food is considerably less processed than in the US and UK, Icelandic food is considered
by many to be the purest on the planet. People don’t buy their produce from industrial
farms in Iceland, they instead buy from local family farms. The country has a strong lineage
of hunting, fishing and foraging, it’s what’s sustained Iceland for centuries, and to a
large extent still does to this day. And to top it off Iceland is also one of the least
polluted countries in the world.
2. At 2 is Japan. Japan has been considered for many years to be the world’s healthiest
country. Obesity is virtually non-existent in the country. And they owe it to the Japanese
tradition of exercising strict portion control and eating a wide variety of foods. The Japanese
also choose the right foods to eat, such as nutrient-rich soy and they are one of the
world’s largest consumers of omega-3 rich fish. A typical meal in Japan consists of
up to six teacup-sized portions of different foods, and a lot of vegetables. The Japanese
aim to eat at 30-40 different things every day, so they get a large variety of nutrients
and vitamins. Seaweed is also a major component in the Japanese diet, highly regarded by the
Japanese for its health properties. Up to 6 varieties of seaweed are eaten every day
by the average Japanese citizen. The Japanese enjoy a life expectancy of 84.6.
1. At 1 is Okinawa Island. Okay it’s not actually a country, it’s a small island
belonging to Japan, south of the Japanese mainland. Okinawa Island has the highest percentage
of centenarians, that’s people over 100 years old, of anywhere in the world. It’s
considered by many to be the healthiest place in the world. They share the same healthy
diet of fish, rice and vegetables as the rest of Japan, but the Okinawans, have another
ace up their sleeves, they claim the biggest reason for their longevity is their happiness
and lack of stress. A lot of elderly in the West are struggling to survive on small pensions
with physical pains and find the whole process of ageing generally quite stressful. But not
the Okinawans, they stay active even at 100 plus and have a child-like zeal towards life,
stress just doesn’t seem to exist on Okinawa Island.
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