The health benefits of socialising might be greater than we think. This is illustrated by the “Roseto Effect”.
In 1960, a local physician observed that Roseto, a small town in Pennsylvania, USA, had barely any cases of heart disease in locals under sixty-five.
Roseto residents were enjoying mortality rates 30-35% lower than other towns where Americans suffered heart attacks at far higher levels.
Genetics was ruled out, as was food choice: the locals loved sugary treats, ate fatty foods, drank lots of alcohol, smoked and worked gruelling hours at a quarry or local factories. Also many were obese.
Years later, research revealed that Roseto’s unusual healthiness was due to outstanding sociality, with roots in its history.
Immigrants from the Italian town of Roseto Valfortore founded the town in the late nineteenth century.
When they settled in Roseto, the locals continued their traditional lifestyle with frequent gatherings with lots of food and wine, and they looked after each other and the upkeep of the town.
However, it wasn’t long before the younger adults started to swap their community-focused way of life for the “American dream”, chasing luxuries and trying to get ahead of the Joneses.
And by the late 70s, Roseto’s health outcomes resembled that of any other US town.
The Roseto Effect shows how a community-based lifestyle and good relationships positively benefit our physiologies by at least as much as consuming good food.
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