0:00:02 > 0:00:06# Happy birthday to you Happy birthday to you... #
0:00:06 > 0:00:09Welcome to a rare and unusual birthday party.
0:00:09 > 0:00:13# Happy birthday, dear Doris Happy birthday... #
0:00:13 > 0:00:18Doris Griffiths, born in Neath in 1910, is 105 today.
0:00:18 > 0:00:21Thank you all very much. Thank you all.
0:00:21 > 0:00:22APPLAUSE
0:00:25 > 0:00:29Doris is one of more than 600 people over 100 years old
0:00:29 > 0:00:35living across Wales in 2015, the highest number ever recorded.
0:00:35 > 0:00:40What I want to know is what's the magic, what's the secret?
0:00:40 > 0:00:42I have what I want to eat
0:00:42 > 0:00:45and my favourite breakfast is a nice bit of toast.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51But while Doris is living proof that a growing minority of people in Wales
0:00:51 > 0:00:54are living healthier, longer lives,
0:00:54 > 0:00:58what can I do to help guarantee the same for me and my young family?
0:01:00 > 0:01:03It is part of being a mum that you want to give them
0:01:03 > 0:01:07the best possibilities in life right from the minute they're born,
0:01:07 > 0:01:09especially when an alarming number of us
0:01:09 > 0:01:12are already struggling at an early age.
0:01:12 > 0:01:13I could have a heart attack any day.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16I just feel like I could be a bit of a ticking time bomb.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21So what is it about Welsh life and Welsh lifestyles that's got
0:01:21 > 0:01:25Doris Griffiths to the grand old age of 105,
0:01:25 > 0:01:31while 31-year-old Lee Tantem fears that every day could be his last?
0:01:31 > 0:01:35I'm Michela Chiappa and I'm a proud Welsh woman with strong Italian roots
0:01:35 > 0:01:38and I'm hoping to use those roots to try
0:01:38 > 0:01:41and solve the secrets to a long and healthy life.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46'It's a journey that will take me across the valleys of South Wales...'
0:01:46 > 0:01:49How does it feel to be Merthyr's only centenarian?
0:01:49 > 0:01:52That's a pretty cool achievement.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56'..and then on to Sardinia and the valley with the highest percentage
0:01:56 > 0:01:58'of 100-year-olds in Europe.'
0:01:58 > 0:02:00HE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:02:02 > 0:02:05I just asked what is the secret of living until he's 100,
0:02:05 > 0:02:09and he said it's not to die before.
0:02:09 > 0:02:10So what is the answer?
0:02:10 > 0:02:14Have we any choice in avoiding an early grave?
0:02:14 > 0:02:16Well, I've travelled from South Wales to Sardinia
0:02:16 > 0:02:21to search for the secret of living a long life and a happy one.
0:02:21 > 0:02:25So stay with me in the hope of answering a life-and-death question -
0:02:25 > 0:02:26how can we live to 100?
0:02:38 > 0:02:42Merthyr in the South Wales valleys, the town where I was born
0:02:42 > 0:02:47and raised, and where much of my family still live today.
0:02:47 > 0:02:50Although as my surname Chiappa probably suggests,
0:02:50 > 0:02:54Merthyr is not where we originally came from.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58My family moved from Italy to Wales to set up this business
0:02:58 > 0:03:01here in Merthyr over 50 years ago and the one thing
0:03:01 > 0:03:06they all talk about is how similar the Welsh and the Italians are.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10We all love food, family and community,
0:03:10 > 0:03:15but one thing has definitely changed and that is how long we live.
0:03:16 > 0:03:17During my lifetime,
0:03:17 > 0:03:21life expectancy in Italy has risen by an average of 15 years
0:03:21 > 0:03:24and while the same is true of the more prosperous parts of Wales,
0:03:24 > 0:03:28in many towns and valleys throughout South Wales,
0:03:28 > 0:03:31life expectancy is among the lowest in Western Europe.
0:03:33 > 0:03:37For example, people from my hometown of Merthyr will live on average
0:03:37 > 0:03:4110 years less than someone living in the affluent areas of Cardiff.
0:03:43 > 0:03:45So what's going on?
0:03:45 > 0:03:49Well, we've all heard the stats - Wales is the most overweight nation
0:03:49 > 0:03:53in Europe with the highest rates of diabetes, cancer and heart disease.
0:03:53 > 0:03:58So I'm going to begin my quest to discover the secrets to a longer life
0:03:58 > 0:04:02by looking at the human face of the problems that prevent us living one.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09So this is Lee and Leanne Tantem with Lee's son Adam
0:04:09 > 0:04:11and six-month-old Maisie.
0:04:11 > 0:04:14They live near Pontypridd in the Rhondda Valley.
0:04:14 > 0:04:18Lee works full-time and Leanne is currently on maternity leave.
0:04:18 > 0:04:23Both are in their 30s and both are worried about their health.
0:04:24 > 0:04:27Just like the majority of us they try to eat well,
0:04:27 > 0:04:31but the combination of a hard-working, busy lifestyle
0:04:31 > 0:04:35and temptations of takeaways and convenience foods are strong.
0:04:35 > 0:04:36Ta-da!
0:04:37 > 0:04:40Me and Leanne met in Slimming World.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43We were both doing really, really well.
0:04:43 > 0:04:48I'd lost about two stone, Leanne had lost three,
0:04:48 > 0:04:52and then we got together and we got comfy and the cosy nights in
0:04:52 > 0:04:57with takeaways and chocolate in front of films and...
0:04:57 > 0:04:59Well, for me, I've put on all of it and more,
0:04:59 > 0:05:01so we're both to blame, really.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05We'd both be slim now if we hadn't met, I expect.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08# Giddy-up, we're homeward bound... #
0:05:08 > 0:05:09You know how it is,
0:05:09 > 0:05:12you start feeling a bit comfortable with each other.
0:05:12 > 0:05:17We started eating sort of more takeaways and not really sticking to
0:05:17 > 0:05:21a plan and it just kind of escalated from there, really.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23Our lifestyle isn't very good.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26To be fair, we could probably do with a bit more exercise.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29I've got a very bad relationship with food.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33Food is something I enjoy very much, maybe too much,
0:05:33 > 0:05:35from quite a young age.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38I suppose food was my first love.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42It's not that the Tantems can't cook,
0:05:42 > 0:05:46they can, and they do rustle up whole meals from scratch.
0:05:46 > 0:05:49It's just that, like so many of us,
0:05:49 > 0:05:52they regularly fall back on the easier options.
0:05:53 > 0:05:57We've got our processed food. Hash browns, not proud of it.
0:05:57 > 0:05:58Turkey drummers...
0:06:00 > 0:06:02..Magnums.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04I like processed food, don't get me wrong,
0:06:04 > 0:06:06but it's not good and I don't...
0:06:06 > 0:06:11I know I do, but I don't like giving it to the kids. I like to...
0:06:11 > 0:06:14Hang on a second, I'm a bit out of breath now.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18See, that's just from bending over there and wrestling with that.
0:06:19 > 0:06:21It's not good. It's not good, is it?
0:06:21 > 0:06:23We've got a few health problems in the family.
0:06:23 > 0:06:28My father's side of the family, there's diabetes.
0:06:28 > 0:06:31My mum's had two heart attacks over the last 10 years.
0:06:31 > 0:06:37My dad, then, he suffers with angina on top of a ton of other things
0:06:37 > 0:06:41and I just feel like I could be a bit of a ticking time bomb.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45I could have a heart attack any day and I really need to do
0:06:45 > 0:06:48something to make sure I don't, so my lifestyle has to change.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55So Leanne and Lee can cook but, like many of us,
0:06:55 > 0:06:59life often gets in the way of a healthy diet.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01But their story has definitely spurred me on
0:07:01 > 0:07:03my journey of discovery.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08In particular, is the answer to a long and healthy life really just
0:07:08 > 0:07:13a matter of cutting out takeaways, processed foods and sugary treats?
0:07:13 > 0:07:17Well, if you're doing it to excess, then absolutely.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21But, by the same token, I'm currently far from convinced
0:07:21 > 0:07:23that a life of mung beans and salad
0:07:23 > 0:07:27is a sure-fire recipe for reaching 100.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30My family, for instance, have always indulged in a little of
0:07:30 > 0:07:34"la dolce vita" and it's never done us any harm.
0:07:34 > 0:07:38Cakes, cream, mascarpone, wine, pasta, cheese.
0:07:38 > 0:07:39We've never overdone it.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42CHILD MUMBLES But we've always indulged a little.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44- Mm.- Mm. 'And regularly.'
0:07:44 > 0:07:45THEY MUMBLE
0:07:45 > 0:07:48And reaching our eighties and nineties is a common feature
0:07:48 > 0:07:52with us, so I believe that a little bit of what you fancy
0:07:52 > 0:07:55is definitely one of the ingredients in the recipe.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59Although, I guess, the only way to begin to work out
0:07:59 > 0:08:04the secrets of longevity is to go straight to the source, as it were.
0:08:04 > 0:08:09Here in Wales, there are currently 679 centenarians,
0:08:09 > 0:08:11but, as life's too short to visit them all,
0:08:11 > 0:08:13I'm going to visit just three of them.
0:08:15 > 0:08:19Starting with an invite to a birthday party.
0:08:19 > 0:08:23I'm going to a birthday party later on of a lady who's 105,
0:08:23 > 0:08:26Doris in Neath. And, for her, I'm going to make my grandmother,
0:08:26 > 0:08:30my nonna's, very special crostata recipe.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32It's basically a jam tart,
0:08:32 > 0:08:35but it is a dish that my nonna always used to have in her kitchen.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38It was like magic. The minute that last slice would go,
0:08:38 > 0:08:41another one would appear. And it was something she always had there
0:08:41 > 0:08:44on the side for anybody, the kids, the adults,
0:08:44 > 0:08:46a sweet treat with a cup of tea.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50My nonna's house was never without a tart or a cake.
0:08:50 > 0:08:54It was always home-baked, never shop-bought,
0:08:54 > 0:08:58with home-made jams from well-worn family recipes
0:08:58 > 0:09:00that I'll be handing down to my children,
0:09:00 > 0:09:02as they were handed down to me.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05Steady, yeah? Grazie. Mettere il forno.
0:09:05 > 0:09:07CHILD TALKS
0:09:07 > 0:09:11'And, as I bring my crostata to Doris Griffith's 105th birthday party,
0:09:11 > 0:09:15'it wouldn't surprise me to find that, just like my nonna,
0:09:15 > 0:09:19'Doris has always enjoyed a regular slice of something sweet.'
0:09:19 > 0:09:20PIANO PLAYS
0:09:20 > 0:09:23# Happy birthday to you
0:09:23 > 0:09:27# Happy birthday to you
0:09:27 > 0:09:32# Happy birthday, dear Doris
0:09:32 > 0:09:37# Happy birthday to you. #
0:09:38 > 0:09:40- Thank you all very much. - Ey!
0:09:40 > 0:09:42APPLAUSE AND CHEERING
0:09:42 > 0:09:43Go on, blow them out.
0:09:44 > 0:09:49Thank you all very much. It's been a big surprise for me and, yep...
0:09:49 > 0:09:53I didn't... It makes a difference, when you're on your own.
0:09:53 > 0:09:55- ALL:- Ah! - To see all these people and say
0:09:55 > 0:09:57where on earth they've all come from.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00LAUGHTER
0:10:00 > 0:10:03So, watching Doris, lively, sprightly, engaged in her
0:10:03 > 0:10:07surroundings, I wondered if longevity is simply predestined.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09Written in our genes.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11CHOIR SINGS
0:10:11 > 0:10:15So I was surprised to learn that Doris, born in Neath in 1910,
0:10:15 > 0:10:17was the only one of five children to survive
0:10:17 > 0:10:20either an infant death or a miscarriage.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22CHOIR SINGS
0:10:22 > 0:10:25Educated at Gnoll School in Neath, she entered domestic service
0:10:25 > 0:10:31at the age of 14 and spent the next 51 years working as a cleaner,
0:10:31 > 0:10:34a receptionist and in the kitchens, back at her old school.
0:10:37 > 0:10:42She married Ivor at 21 and had the first of her four children at 25.
0:10:42 > 0:10:46And, outside of work and family, life revolved around the chapel,
0:10:46 > 0:10:50where she sang in the choir and became a Sunday school teacher.
0:10:50 > 0:10:52CHOIR SINGS
0:10:52 > 0:10:56After Ivor passed away 39 years ago in 1976,
0:10:56 > 0:11:01Doris continued to live in their home right up until last year.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04In every particular, her life, her upbringing,
0:11:04 > 0:11:10her story is echoed in any home, in any town in any of the Welsh valleys.
0:11:10 > 0:11:15So what made Doris the rare exception that made it to this incredible age?
0:11:15 > 0:11:19What I want to know is, what's the magic? What's the secret?
0:11:19 > 0:11:21Well, I don't know that there's any secret.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25I live quite cheap and easy.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28I have what I want to eat
0:11:28 > 0:11:32and my favourite breakfast is a nice bit of toast.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34- Nothing better.- And then, I...
0:11:34 > 0:11:36Sometimes, I have a bit of cheese with it.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38Or an egg, you never know.
0:11:41 > 0:11:42Anything goes with me.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45I eat quite a bit.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47- Always on the meal times.- OK.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50- Three...- Three times a day? - I don't eat between meals at all.
0:11:50 > 0:11:54Very rarely. It's just ordinary living, sort of thing.
0:11:54 > 0:11:56And your support networks?
0:11:56 > 0:12:00Your family, your friends, having people that can help you
0:12:00 > 0:12:01- and you can depend on.- Yeah.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04- Do you think that's an important thing?- Ooh, yes.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07I mean, if you've got your family with you,
0:12:07 > 0:12:09you've got some backbone, haven't you?
0:12:09 > 0:12:13Living is easy, if you're willing to do it.
0:12:13 > 0:12:14So a positive mind, maybe?
0:12:14 > 0:12:17Because, I mean to say, life...
0:12:17 > 0:12:21I don't know, sometimes people talk as if life is awful to live.
0:12:21 > 0:12:22Awful hard to live.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25I don't think so. It's what you make it.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29And, I mean, if you want to make it a good life, it's up to you.
0:12:29 > 0:12:33But if they want to upset it, well, that's their fault, isn't it?
0:12:33 > 0:12:37So I need to say, it's you are the important person all the time.
0:12:37 > 0:12:41And it's you - I've got to make it, nobody else.
0:12:41 > 0:12:43'What an extraordinary woman.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46'Wise, funny, straight talking.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48'But what did I learn from Doris?
0:12:48 > 0:12:52'Well, diet wise, eat whatever you want seems to have been her motto.
0:12:52 > 0:12:53'But keep it simple.
0:12:53 > 0:12:57'Don't overindulge - common dietary sense, really.'
0:12:57 > 0:13:00Although she did confess to having a little soft spot for some cheese,
0:13:00 > 0:13:03which goes with my "a little bit of what you fancy" theory.
0:13:03 > 0:13:08She did also make it very clear how important a strong network
0:13:08 > 0:13:10of family and friends is, which was also something
0:13:10 > 0:13:12I was expecting to hear.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16What really struck me about Doris was her absolute belief
0:13:16 > 0:13:19that it's YOUR responsibility
0:13:19 > 0:13:22to be true to yourself and your own life.
0:13:22 > 0:13:26I suppose it's what we call having a positive mental attitude.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29But, surely, you can't just will yourself to 100?
0:13:31 > 0:13:34Although there must be an element of this in the next person
0:13:34 > 0:13:37I'm going to meet, because he really is unique.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41Not only is he the sole centenarian, male or female,
0:13:41 > 0:13:43in my hometown of Merthyr,
0:13:43 > 0:13:45but he's outlived the average male life expectancy
0:13:45 > 0:13:48for the area by 30 years.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51And his name is...
0:13:51 > 0:13:52Eric Antwerp Jones.
0:13:54 > 0:13:58So, Eric, how does it feel to be Merthyr's only centenarian?
0:13:58 > 0:14:01That's a pretty cool achievement.
0:14:01 > 0:14:03Well, I don't know.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05I feel great, myself.
0:14:05 > 0:14:09What do you think are the secrets to your success?
0:14:09 > 0:14:13Well, I don't think there's anything secret about it at all.
0:14:13 > 0:14:18I've just done what I wanted to do when I felt like doing it.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20You know...
0:14:20 > 0:14:22I've enjoyed every minute of it.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25Do you think it's about being healthy?
0:14:25 > 0:14:28Do think it's about having a tipple every now and again?
0:14:28 > 0:14:30Is it always just purely enjoying life and being positive?
0:14:30 > 0:14:34I'll have a tipple now and again, yes.
0:14:34 > 0:14:35In terms of living a long life,
0:14:35 > 0:14:37do you think it's important to work hard?
0:14:37 > 0:14:40You've clearly worked very, very hard through your life.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43Well, I always worked. Never been without a job.
0:14:43 > 0:14:49At 14 years of age, I started work, underground, down the pit.
0:14:49 > 0:14:50MINE WHISTLE BLOWS
0:14:50 > 0:14:55In 1928, just like tens of thousands of Valley boys of his generation,
0:14:55 > 0:15:00Eric left school one Friday and was working down the pit by Monday.
0:15:00 > 0:15:04His escape from that dirty, dank and dangerous world
0:15:04 > 0:15:07came five years later, when he joined the Welsh Guards.
0:15:08 > 0:15:101935, I think it is.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14- Gosh, very smart. - I'm over there somewhere.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17Serving with distinction throughout World War II,
0:15:17 > 0:15:19he rose to the rank of sergeant.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24On the domestic front, Eric married his sweetheart, Ena,
0:15:24 > 0:15:28in 1940 and they went on to have two children, Linda and Hywel.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33After the war, Eric became a Merthyr police officer,
0:15:33 > 0:15:37retiring in 1966 and taking up further working stints
0:15:37 > 0:15:40as a hospital porter and a factory worker,
0:15:40 > 0:15:43before finally putting up his feet
0:15:43 > 0:15:48after 54 years of solid work in 1982.
0:15:48 > 0:15:53Ena died just short of their golden wedding anniversary in 1990
0:15:53 > 0:15:56and now Eric lives with his son Hywel in Merthyr,
0:15:56 > 0:16:00the town he has never left, in spite of a number of opportunities.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03They say there's something about Merthyr, it brings people back
0:16:03 > 0:16:06- and people don't want to leave. - I didn't want to leave Merthyr.
0:16:06 > 0:16:08- A Merthyr boy through and through? - Oh, yes.
0:16:08 > 0:16:10I've never been anywhere else.
0:16:10 > 0:16:14I was born in Merthyr and my family run The Station Cafe.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17- Yeah?- Yeah. Tony and Frank Viazzani. - Tony? Good God!
0:16:17 > 0:16:19Tony Viazzani.
0:16:19 > 0:16:23- Yeah, he was my dad's uncle. - Tony? Good God, aye.
0:16:25 > 0:16:26I knew Tony well.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29- And my grandmother was Louisa, his sister.- Yeah.
0:16:29 > 0:16:31Cos that was a real sense of community, wasn't it,
0:16:31 > 0:16:33- the station caff? - Oh, yes. Oh, yes.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36When everything went quiet at night in Merthyr,
0:16:36 > 0:16:38everybody seemed to gather in Viazzani's!
0:16:38 > 0:16:40SHE LAUGHS
0:16:40 > 0:16:43- It was a big family enterprise, wasn't it?- Oh, yes. Oh, yes.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45So I'm going to put you on the spot now.
0:16:45 > 0:16:48If you had to pick three things, I want three pieces of advice
0:16:48 > 0:16:51for living a long life, what would they be?
0:16:51 > 0:16:53Oh, dear. Well, one thing -
0:16:53 > 0:16:58if you are interested in a particular sport, follow it.
0:16:58 > 0:17:02It had a great part, sport, in my life.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04Family life, of course.
0:17:04 > 0:17:05Look after your family.
0:17:05 > 0:17:07And the last one?
0:17:07 > 0:17:10Be positive? Always enjoy life?
0:17:10 > 0:17:13I always did enjoy life. Always did.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16- That's great.- Always did enjoy life.
0:17:22 > 0:17:25I know we're still at an early stage in this journey,
0:17:25 > 0:17:27but having chatted to both Doris and Eric,
0:17:27 > 0:17:30their lifestyles actually have a lot in common.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32They both work hard, live simply,
0:17:32 > 0:17:37have cherished families and enjoy wholesome hobbies, but with the
0:17:37 > 0:17:41odd overindulgence here and there - isn't that how we all live anyway?
0:17:41 > 0:17:45Well, actually, no, because life in 21st-century Wales,
0:17:45 > 0:17:49particularly working life, is no longer driven by the physical
0:17:49 > 0:17:53labours of domestic service, manufacture or industry.
0:17:53 > 0:17:57For almost 70% of us, our nine-till-five existence
0:17:57 > 0:18:01is an office-bound, deskbound sedimentary experience.
0:18:01 > 0:18:06We don't get the natural workout of a coalminer, a bobby on the beat
0:18:06 > 0:18:10or a maid in service who spend their days on their feet.
0:18:10 > 0:18:14And then most of us come home from a mentally draining day at the
0:18:14 > 0:18:18office, too tired to use that gym subscription we took out in January.
0:18:18 > 0:18:22And so we slump in front of the TVs with our microwave dinners.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Surely, this is no recipe for longevity.
0:18:29 > 0:18:33My final expert on living a long life lives about 20 miles away
0:18:33 > 0:18:37and, apparently, I'm not to pick a fight with him.
0:18:42 > 0:18:46This is Ronald Prince. 100 years old and still fighting fit.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52Ronald, from Aberdaron near Pontypool,
0:18:52 > 0:18:55works out in the gym every week.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59Aside from always living an active life,
0:18:59 > 0:19:03he believes there is something else behind his longevity.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07Age is partly due to genes.
0:19:07 > 0:19:13As the doctor once said to me, he said, "If you want to live long,
0:19:13 > 0:19:16you've got to choose your parents very carefully."
0:19:17 > 0:19:22- Do you think it's all about genes or...?- It's a mixture, isn't it?
0:19:22 > 0:19:26It's partly genes and partly diet.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28Ron's parents both died in the 1960s
0:19:28 > 0:19:32when the average life expectancy in the valleys
0:19:32 > 0:19:35was 67 for men and 74 for women.
0:19:35 > 0:19:40Ron's father died at 82, his mother, 85,
0:19:40 > 0:19:44by which time Ron himself had already led a full and productive life.
0:19:46 > 0:19:50Born in Abercarn in 1915, he attended Abercarn School
0:19:50 > 0:19:53and then secondary, leaving at 16
0:19:53 > 0:19:58to work as an apprentice radio engineer in Newport.
0:19:58 > 0:20:01During World War II, he worked the land in Pembrokeshire where
0:20:01 > 0:20:05he was also a caretaker at a hostel for Land Girls.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07Here, he met his future wife, Grace,
0:20:07 > 0:20:10who was working as a nurse in a children's TB hospital.
0:20:12 > 0:20:17Married in 1947, they went on to have two daughters, Mary and Sue,
0:20:17 > 0:20:20and Ronald spent the remainder of his working life
0:20:20 > 0:20:25with the Chaloner Bros, an electronics shop in Pontnewynydd.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29He retired in his 70s when the shop itself closed,
0:20:29 > 0:20:32not that Ron has ever truly sat back and put up his feet.
0:20:33 > 0:20:35In his extensive garden,
0:20:35 > 0:20:39Ron continues to grow his own organic vegetables.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43Fresh food that forms the bulk of his meals.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45This isn't just about having some free food in your garden.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48This is some serious work that keeps you not just
0:20:48 > 0:20:51healthy from the food, but busy, active, because...
0:20:51 > 0:20:55I try the vegetables and they've certainly
0:20:55 > 0:20:59got a much better taste than what you buy in the supermarket.
0:20:59 > 0:21:02- Do you like them raw? - Yes, I'll have a go.
0:21:03 > 0:21:08There's nothing like the ones you grow yourself. The taste.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12What, in your opinion, do you think is the secret to living longer?
0:21:12 > 0:21:15You've said genes and diet but from what you've described to me,
0:21:15 > 0:21:19there's more going on here. Busy life, keeps you active?
0:21:19 > 0:21:22Well, it's a mixture, isn't it, really?
0:21:22 > 0:21:25And I've been very fortunate with the family
0:21:25 > 0:21:31and a very good wife. We were married about 67 years.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35She died three years ago and I've got two very good daughters,
0:21:35 > 0:21:39so I've been very fortunate in my family.
0:21:41 > 0:21:45Family, busy industrious lives, genes and a good diet.
0:21:45 > 0:21:49These are the common themes in all three of my centenarians' lives.
0:21:50 > 0:21:55And there's something else - each of them has such a positive outlook.
0:21:55 > 0:21:59They enjoy and embrace their lives so I wonder,
0:21:59 > 0:22:02is the key to longevity as much about your psychological health
0:22:02 > 0:22:06as it is about your physical wellbeing?
0:22:06 > 0:22:11And if that's the case, are some people just born happy and contented?
0:22:11 > 0:22:13Is there a happy gene?
0:22:13 > 0:22:18Or is it about our upbringing, our surroundings, our families?
0:22:18 > 0:22:19In search of an answer,
0:22:19 > 0:22:22I'm heading to visit Professor Vanessa Burholt
0:22:22 > 0:22:25at Swansea University's Centre For Innovative Ageing.
0:22:25 > 0:22:30Professor Burholt is a world authority on gerontology,
0:22:30 > 0:22:33the scientific study of old age.
0:22:33 > 0:22:35- Hi, Vanessa.- Hi, Michela!
0:22:35 > 0:22:39What, in your opinion, are the top factors when it comes to longevity?
0:22:39 > 0:22:40Well, some colleagues in the US
0:22:40 > 0:22:42have helped us out answering that question.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44This isn't from my own research,
0:22:44 > 0:22:47but they've done a meta-analysis of all of the published studies
0:22:47 > 0:22:52that look at mortality so the rates at which people die, really.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55And top of their list is actually social support
0:22:55 > 0:23:00so over 7 1/2 years, you're more likely to survive rather than die
0:23:00 > 0:23:05if you have good social support, rather than poor social support.
0:23:05 > 0:23:10That has a bigger effect than quitting smoking on mortality.
0:23:10 > 0:23:15- Wow!- And a bigger effect than obesity so that's related to nutrition
0:23:15 > 0:23:19and some of the diseases associated with mortality as well.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23So you're saying the most important thing for an individual
0:23:23 > 0:23:25- is social support?- It could be.
0:23:25 > 0:23:27That's been identified in this study,
0:23:27 > 0:23:30but I think we need to paint quite a holistic picture
0:23:30 > 0:23:32of all the parts that might fit together.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35Why is it that family may have that influence on mortality?
0:23:35 > 0:23:38So it could be around the influence they have
0:23:38 > 0:23:41on providing support to people who need support,
0:23:41 > 0:23:42providing a sense of identity,
0:23:42 > 0:23:44what sort of role you have in life
0:23:44 > 0:23:47when your family and friends are around, that supports that.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50But it also might be to do with loneliness,
0:23:50 > 0:23:52whether or not experiencing loneliness
0:23:52 > 0:23:56places certain stresses on the brain that cause you to die earlier.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59'So that's very interesting.
0:23:59 > 0:24:01'All three of my Welsh centenarians,'
0:24:01 > 0:24:05they're all surrounded by a strong family support network,
0:24:05 > 0:24:07just as Professor Burholt has suggested.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10And if I think of my upbringing,
0:24:10 > 0:24:14family has always been at the heart of life in the Chiappa household.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24'I think the main reason I've got so interested in longevity
0:24:24 > 0:24:29'and living to be 100 is that I'm a mum now with two beautiful daughters.
0:24:29 > 0:24:35'Fiamma is two and little Serafina is all of 12 weeks old.
0:24:37 > 0:24:42'I read recently that babies born after 2013, which both of mine were,
0:24:42 > 0:24:46'will have a one in three chance of living to 100.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49'That's an extraordinary statistic,
0:24:49 > 0:24:50'but it does come with a worry
0:24:50 > 0:24:54'that I, as a parent, might somehow impede that chance.'
0:24:54 > 0:24:57It does make you think, having children, though,
0:24:57 > 0:25:00about what can you do to give them a good chance in life,
0:25:00 > 0:25:02to give them a great start
0:25:02 > 0:25:06and hopefully live on for many years into the future.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09It certainly is getting me thinking right now
0:25:09 > 0:25:14about not just nutrition, but other factors.
0:25:14 > 0:25:19It does start from day dot, really, and is part of, I guess,
0:25:19 > 0:25:22being a mum that you want to give them the best possibilities
0:25:22 > 0:25:25in life right from the minute they are born.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27'And yes, good wholesome food
0:25:27 > 0:25:30'is certainly a part of that equation for me,
0:25:30 > 0:25:34'which is why I'm going to use some of Ronald's home-grown produce
0:25:34 > 0:25:37'to make a broad bean pesto for tonight's supper.
0:25:39 > 0:25:41'But don't get me wrong,
0:25:41 > 0:25:42'I'm not one of those paranoid mums
0:25:42 > 0:25:44'who won't feed their kids certain foods
0:25:44 > 0:25:46'because they're worried about the sugar content.
0:25:46 > 0:25:50'Fiamma does have treats - home-made cakes, ice cream.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52'For me, it's about the balance.
0:25:52 > 0:25:56'Although it will be interesting to see how this pesto goes down!'
0:25:56 > 0:25:59Broad beans are certainly not one of my favourite vegetables
0:25:59 > 0:26:02because they are quite bland and they are quite hard and tough,
0:26:02 > 0:26:06but in there, that is absolutely delicious.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09We have one brilliant pesto sauce,
0:26:09 > 0:26:13inspired by one of Wales's centenarians.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16'So it's broad bean pesto pasta for supper
0:26:16 > 0:26:19'and there's three generations of Chiappas at the table tonight
0:26:19 > 0:26:22'and I'm going to take this opportunity
0:26:22 > 0:26:25'to grill Dad about our own family's longevity.
0:26:25 > 0:26:30- Grazie!- What was Nonno Pino's words of wisdom, Dad,
0:26:30 > 0:26:31for living a long life?
0:26:31 > 0:26:37I think my Dad's words of wisdom for living a long life
0:26:37 > 0:26:40was to have an active life and a happy life
0:26:40 > 0:26:43and a very strong family life.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45The family was everything to Nonno
0:26:45 > 0:26:48and he was a very, very active man up until the day he died.
0:26:48 > 0:26:50He was very, very active.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52He would be out in the workshop.
0:26:52 > 0:26:57- You say that now, that you have not the energy like your dad had.- No.
0:26:57 > 0:26:59My dad's family, they had nothing.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03They were really peasant farmers and they had nothing
0:27:03 > 0:27:04and yet they were happy.
0:27:04 > 0:27:07Even though they were peasants living on very little,
0:27:07 > 0:27:09they lived quite a long life, considering.
0:27:09 > 0:27:10They lived VERY long lives.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13- How old was Nonna Maria? - She was gone at 93, I think,
0:27:13 > 0:27:15when she died, my dad's mum.
0:27:15 > 0:27:20My mum's mum died, she'd gone 90 and we all lived together...
0:27:20 > 0:27:24- Louise's mum...- Louise's mum, I think, was nearly 100.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26She did hit 100, didn't she?
0:27:26 > 0:27:32My grandfather's sister, she would still, in her 80s and 90s,
0:27:32 > 0:27:38jump over her garden fence to go and get her eggs from the chickens.
0:27:38 > 0:27:43She'd get up at three in the morning when we'd come in from a night out
0:27:43 > 0:27:45and be like, "Right, let me cook you a plate of pasta
0:27:45 > 0:27:47"and I'll make you a plate of spaghetti."
0:27:47 > 0:27:50She was the most active lady I've probably ever met,
0:27:50 > 0:27:52right until her last days.
0:27:52 > 0:27:58Listen, if I had the recipe for a long life, I'd be a very rich man.
0:27:58 > 0:28:01I'll have a bit of wine, Dad.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04'Do you know what, my dad might never get to be a very rich man,
0:28:04 > 0:28:08'but he's just said something absolutely priceless to me.
0:28:08 > 0:28:11'And it's left me with the strong suspicion
0:28:11 > 0:28:13'that I might have been asking the right questions,
0:28:13 > 0:28:15'but in the wrong place.
0:28:15 > 0:28:19'I think the real answers to longevity are not here in Wales -
0:28:19 > 0:28:23'they lie in my own ancestral roots back home in Italy.'
0:28:28 > 0:28:32Welcome to Europe's greatest longevity hotspot!
0:28:32 > 0:28:35A place where people live longer, healthier lives
0:28:35 > 0:28:38than anywhere else across the whole continent.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41Where the levels of cancer, diabetes and heart disease
0:28:41 > 0:28:44are a fraction of what they are in Wales
0:28:44 > 0:28:47and where there are more centenarians than anywhere else
0:28:47 > 0:28:48in the northern hemisphere.
0:28:49 > 0:28:55This is the province of Ogliastra on the Italian island of Sardinia -
0:28:55 > 0:29:00a place where there so many octogenarians, nonagenarians
0:29:00 > 0:29:05and centenarians roaming the streets, that a mere tricenarian,
0:29:05 > 0:29:09someone in their 30s like me, is a bit of a novelty.
0:29:09 > 0:29:13So, what's going on? Well, that's why I'm here.
0:29:13 > 0:29:16So I'm going to go out and I want to meet some of those locals
0:29:16 > 0:29:19to work out what's the recipe for living a long life
0:29:19 > 0:29:24and hopefully then I can take those secrets back to Wales.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27With a population of around 59,000 people
0:29:27 > 0:29:30scattered across its hillsides and small towns,
0:29:30 > 0:29:34the province of Ogliastra is the same size as the borough of Merthyr,
0:29:34 > 0:29:38but, unlike Merthyr, one in three of its inhabitants
0:29:38 > 0:29:40currently live into their 90s.
0:29:40 > 0:29:44And while there's only one centenarian in the whole of Merthyr,
0:29:44 > 0:29:49there are 33 alone in Ogliastra's municipal town of Villagrande,
0:29:49 > 0:29:53which has an overall population of just 4,000 people.
0:29:55 > 0:29:58So, is it the sun? The fabled Mediterranean diet?
0:29:58 > 0:30:02Or is there a hidden fountain of youth somewhere on the island?
0:30:02 > 0:30:05'Well, I am about to find out,
0:30:05 > 0:30:09'starting with a visit to Eugenio,
0:30:09 > 0:30:13'who, at just 100 years and 39 days,
0:30:13 > 0:30:16'is Villagrande's youngest centenarian.'
0:30:16 > 0:30:20HE SPEAKS IN ITALIAN
0:30:22 > 0:30:26I just asked what is the secret of him living until he's 100
0:30:26 > 0:30:28and he said, "It's not to die before!"
0:30:31 > 0:30:36THEY SPEAK IN ITALIAN
0:30:36 > 0:30:37When it comes to food,
0:30:37 > 0:30:40he says he doesn't eat evening meals any more, but...
0:30:40 > 0:30:48THEY SPEAK IN ITALIAN
0:30:48 > 0:30:49I said what are his favourite meals?
0:30:49 > 0:30:55He said, "A good plate of pasta," and it's nice to see how Italians...
0:30:55 > 0:30:59You know, pasta is always that first dish you might give to a baby,
0:30:59 > 0:31:03but even as you get older, it still remains a favourite.
0:31:03 > 0:31:06SHE SPEAKS IN ITALIAN
0:31:06 > 0:31:08'Signor Eugenio and I spent the next 20 minutes
0:31:08 > 0:31:10'talking through his life story.'
0:31:10 > 0:31:12HE SPEAKS IN ITALIAN
0:31:12 > 0:31:14'It was a story that had many resonances
0:31:14 > 0:31:17'with the centenarians back in Wales.'
0:31:19 > 0:31:22I just asked Signor Eugenio what is the secret to long life
0:31:22 > 0:31:26and was being active, working hard part of it and he said
0:31:26 > 0:31:29he was one of eight children, four girls and four boys, and his father
0:31:29 > 0:31:31always said the girls had to go
0:31:31 > 0:31:35until prima elementare to school, the first year.
0:31:35 > 0:31:38The boys had to go up to the fifth because it was really important
0:31:38 > 0:31:41they learn to write, especially if they had to go off to war.
0:31:41 > 0:31:43He lasted until the first year.
0:31:43 > 0:31:47He did one day of his second, packed it in and basically
0:31:47 > 0:31:51went and worked the land for his family, which was olive farming,
0:31:51 > 0:31:56wheat and wine and he said, "We certainly enjoyed the years
0:31:56 > 0:31:59"of the wine harvest and had a good life,"
0:31:59 > 0:32:03so clearly he made a good choice to pack in the studies
0:32:03 > 0:32:07and come and work the land and that is, I think, evidence
0:32:07 > 0:32:10that that active lifestyle, that natural way of keeping fit,
0:32:10 > 0:32:12has obviously served him well.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15But he did just tell me he is waiting
0:32:15 > 0:32:18to go to bed down the road in the cemetery.
0:32:18 > 0:32:20But he's clearly lasting well
0:32:20 > 0:32:24and he's enjoying living those stories and those memories.
0:32:24 > 0:32:30THEY SPEAK IN ITALIAN
0:32:30 > 0:32:32'What a beautiful man!
0:32:32 > 0:32:36'Although I'm not sure that Eugenio's recipe of leaving school early
0:32:36 > 0:32:39'and spending your days making wine is the message
0:32:39 > 0:32:43'I should be taking back to Wales, tempting as that sounds.
0:32:43 > 0:32:46'I want to take back some hard, practical facts
0:32:46 > 0:32:48'so I've arranged to meet Dr Gianni Pes,
0:32:48 > 0:32:52'a molecular biologist at the University of Sassari.
0:32:52 > 0:32:54'A world world-renowned expert,
0:32:54 > 0:32:58'he's been studying longevity on Sardinia for over 15 years.
0:32:58 > 0:33:04'In fact, it was Dr Pes and his colleague Michel Poulin
0:33:04 > 0:33:06'who coined the famous term "blue zone",
0:33:06 > 0:33:09'which denotes a region where the average life expectancy
0:33:09 > 0:33:13'is considerably higher than elsewhere in the world.
0:33:13 > 0:33:16'And he's brought me to Villagrande's city hall to reveal to me
0:33:16 > 0:33:18'the fruits of his blue zone studies.'
0:33:18 > 0:33:21Are there only four at the moment in the world?
0:33:21 > 0:33:22At the moment, only four, yes.
0:33:22 > 0:33:25Nicoya, Sardinia, Icaria and Okinawa.
0:33:27 > 0:33:30'While studies continue into the other three longevity hotspots,
0:33:30 > 0:33:35'it's the sheer wealth of historical records here on Sardinia that means
0:33:35 > 0:33:38'Dr Pes and his colleagues have been able to draw some of the most
0:33:38 > 0:33:42'comprehensive conclusions about what causes longevity.'
0:33:42 > 0:33:47This is the civil archive that started in 1866,
0:33:47 > 0:33:53then we have the parish archives that date back to the 16th century
0:33:53 > 0:33:55so there is the possibility
0:33:55 > 0:34:01to reconstruct any family tree for four centuries.
0:34:01 > 0:34:05Absolutely unique in the world and this is very important
0:34:05 > 0:34:10because it makes easier to do the genetic study as well.
0:34:10 > 0:34:14'Interestingly, Dr Pes's genetic studies
0:34:14 > 0:34:17'have led him to a wholly unexpected conclusion.'
0:34:17 > 0:34:19When I started 15 years ago,
0:34:19 > 0:34:22I thought that the genetic component was very important,
0:34:22 > 0:34:25but, progressively, I've changed my mind
0:34:25 > 0:34:28and now think that 80% of longevity
0:34:28 > 0:34:31is explained by environmental
0:34:31 > 0:34:34- or lifestyle factors instead of genetics.- OK.
0:34:34 > 0:34:38'So if genes are only 20% of the longevity equation,
0:34:38 > 0:34:42'what, according to Dr Pes, are the other factors?'
0:34:42 > 0:34:48Physical activity, good nutrition, social support,
0:34:48 > 0:34:54a purpose in life - that includes also spirituality, if you want -
0:34:54 > 0:35:02- and the fifth one, OK, is just by chance.- OK.
0:35:02 > 0:35:05Chance, eh? The roulette of life.
0:35:05 > 0:35:10Luckily for me and Villagrande, there are no buses to be run over by.
0:35:10 > 0:35:13Although wandering the streets,
0:35:13 > 0:35:17I can see casual evidence of what Gianni has told me.
0:35:17 > 0:35:19On the healthy nutrition front,
0:35:19 > 0:35:21it's really interesting to know there are no big supermarkets
0:35:21 > 0:35:25in the town, but everyone seems to have a patch of ground
0:35:25 > 0:35:28where they grow their fruit and veg
0:35:28 > 0:35:30or raise a couple of chickens or pigs.
0:35:30 > 0:35:33There are no takeaways, no processed foods.
0:35:33 > 0:35:37Everything appears to be fresh and locally produced.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40Life couldn't be any different back home in Wales,
0:35:40 > 0:35:42where we've got kebab shops, burger bars
0:35:42 > 0:35:46and processed supermarket ready meals available on every corner.
0:35:46 > 0:35:49And where basic kitchen skills,
0:35:49 > 0:35:52no longer part of our schools' core curriculum, are so lacking
0:35:52 > 0:35:56that many of us wouldn't know how to cook a spinach leaf,
0:35:56 > 0:35:57let alone grow one.
0:35:57 > 0:36:00Dr Pes's other key ingredients
0:36:00 > 0:36:03were also readily observed on the streets of Villagrande.
0:36:03 > 0:36:06Physical activity - cut into the hillside,
0:36:06 > 0:36:09these higgledy-piggledy streets
0:36:09 > 0:36:14provide a daily workout for the calves and cardiovasculars.
0:36:14 > 0:36:16There's plenty of social support and interaction
0:36:16 > 0:36:22and what I've noticed is how the young and the old mix freely.
0:36:22 > 0:36:26Spirituality? Well, that's a given - we're in Italy!
0:36:26 > 0:36:30But the one thing Gianni said that really struck me was about having
0:36:30 > 0:36:35a purpose in life - something to get you out of bed every morning.
0:36:35 > 0:36:40Apparently, the people of Ogliastra province never really retire.
0:36:40 > 0:36:44They might slow down, but otherwise, they just keep on going,
0:36:44 > 0:36:48getting up every morning to do whatever it is they've got to do.
0:36:49 > 0:36:52This is particularly true of the men
0:36:52 > 0:36:54and what's unique about Sardinia as a blue zone is that,
0:36:54 > 0:36:57unlike the other three longevity hotspots,
0:36:57 > 0:37:01there are as many male centenarians here as there are female.
0:37:01 > 0:37:03So, the work-life balance?
0:37:03 > 0:37:06Maybe it's really an unhealthy myth
0:37:06 > 0:37:09and actually the secret is to keep on working until you drop,
0:37:09 > 0:37:13which allegedly is what the peasant farmers of Ogliastra do.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16So we're heading out of Villagrande
0:37:16 > 0:37:19to see the evidence of Gianni's research
0:37:19 > 0:37:23and how working in the outdoors and having a very active lifestyle
0:37:23 > 0:37:27is really one of the strong contributing factors to longevity.
0:37:29 > 0:37:33In the hills above Villagrande on 26 acres of scrubland,
0:37:33 > 0:37:3781-year-old Francesco Messina rears over 300 head
0:37:37 > 0:37:44of dairy ewes, goats, cows and pigs.
0:37:46 > 0:37:51Rising with the sun, he works seven days a week, 365 days a year,
0:37:51 > 0:37:55as have generations of Messina menfolk before him.
0:37:55 > 0:37:59HE SPEAKS IN ITALIAN
0:37:59 > 0:38:02He lives here on this land. He sleeps here.
0:38:02 > 0:38:06He says sometimes he sleeps here in the open at this time of year,
0:38:06 > 0:38:10it's so warm, there's nothing better than the fresh air.
0:38:10 > 0:38:14He's 81 now, but basically his dad, his grandad,
0:38:14 > 0:38:19his great-grandad all were farmers and shepherds.
0:38:19 > 0:38:23His grandad lived till he was 86 and his father lived till he was 89,
0:38:23 > 0:38:28all doing this life as shepherds and as farmers, working the land.
0:38:28 > 0:38:30SHE SPEAKS IN ITALIAN
0:38:30 > 0:38:32They haven't modernised any of the machinery.
0:38:32 > 0:38:35They milk all the sheep, the goats, everything by hand.
0:38:35 > 0:38:38'This is Francesco's nephew Gianluca.
0:38:38 > 0:38:42'He's only 54 so he's still a kid,
0:38:42 > 0:38:48'but he's just milked all 217 of the ewes by hand, as he does every day.'
0:38:48 > 0:38:55THEY SPEAK IN ITALIAN
0:38:55 > 0:38:58So this was all the milk from all these sheep tonight
0:38:58 > 0:39:00and this is going to go to make some cheese.
0:39:00 > 0:39:04THEY SPEAK IN ITALIAN
0:39:04 > 0:39:08So for all those sheep, it takes about an hour to milk them.
0:39:08 > 0:39:11'And while work's undoubtedly hard, the living is no easier either.'
0:39:11 > 0:39:17THEY SPEAK IN ITALIAN
0:39:17 > 0:39:19So, up until 20, 30 years ago,
0:39:19 > 0:39:23he spent his life in similar huts like this.
0:39:23 > 0:39:26He said it's a hard life, but equally it is one he's been brought up on,
0:39:26 > 0:39:29one that he's used to so why would he have any other way?
0:39:29 > 0:39:37THEY SPEAK IN ITALIAN
0:39:40 > 0:39:44I said if life is hard, why hasn't he gone to live in the town?
0:39:44 > 0:39:47And he said, "Well, it's my job and, more than anything,
0:39:47 > 0:39:51"I love my job and I love working with the animals,
0:39:51 > 0:39:54"from cows, sheep, pigs. I'm here in nature."
0:39:54 > 0:39:57HE SPEAKS IN ITALIAN
0:39:57 > 0:39:59In his opinion,
0:39:59 > 0:40:02most of the centenarians were farmers or shepherds
0:40:02 > 0:40:04and they lived a life like this in the land
0:40:04 > 0:40:08so this would have been where they lived. They'd sleep on hard floors.
0:40:08 > 0:40:12A very simple life, they'd cook on the fire, work the land in the day
0:40:12 > 0:40:14and stay in here at night.
0:40:16 > 0:40:19It's been really lovely coming up here,
0:40:19 > 0:40:23to finally see a real shepherd from this area.
0:40:23 > 0:40:25I'm not sure if it's really for me.
0:40:25 > 0:40:29I don't know if I could do what he is doing,
0:40:29 > 0:40:32live out here literally on the land.
0:40:32 > 0:40:35But it definitely has made me think about how important it is
0:40:35 > 0:40:38to live an active lifestyle. A LIFESTYLE.
0:40:38 > 0:40:41Not just going to the gym and doing exercise every day,
0:40:41 > 0:40:43but making it part of your life.
0:40:43 > 0:40:46And also, slowing down your pace of life.
0:40:46 > 0:40:48Not worrying about too many things,
0:40:48 > 0:40:50the speed and the pace of life that we live today.
0:40:50 > 0:40:53Really taking a step back and thinking,
0:40:53 > 0:40:56you know, "Do we really need to do all that we do?"
0:40:56 > 0:40:59And will that affect your lifespan in future?
0:41:02 > 0:41:05During the past 24 hours, I've got so much more clarity
0:41:05 > 0:41:09about the varied ingredients it takes to live to be 100.
0:41:10 > 0:41:14But I left Francesco's smallholding with one nagging thought.
0:41:14 > 0:41:17His way of life died out in the Welsh valleys
0:41:17 > 0:41:19when the first mineshaft was sunk.
0:41:19 > 0:41:22And it's under threat in Sardinia, too, as increasingly,
0:41:22 > 0:41:25people leave the tough life in the hills
0:41:25 > 0:41:27for the easier life of the towns.
0:41:27 > 0:41:32But does this mean abandoning the life-prolonging traditions
0:41:32 > 0:41:34and values of the countryside?
0:41:34 > 0:41:37Or is there a healthy compromise?
0:41:37 > 0:41:41The following morning, I got up early to spend my final day in Sardinia
0:41:41 > 0:41:45with a family who firmly believe you can have it all.
0:41:48 > 0:41:50Ciao! Buongiorno!
0:41:50 > 0:41:52ALL GREET EACH OTHER
0:41:52 > 0:41:54Meet Mariangela and Marco Mareo,
0:41:54 > 0:41:58a husband-and-wife team who run what is best described
0:41:58 > 0:42:00as a family cooperative.
0:42:00 > 0:42:03Marco and Mariangela live in Villagrande,
0:42:03 > 0:42:06sharing a house with their two teenage children,
0:42:06 > 0:42:10Gabriele, 17 and Lucia, 21.
0:42:10 > 0:42:13And they share their lives with their parents.
0:42:13 > 0:42:18Marco's dad, who's 89 and Mariangela's dad, who's 76,
0:42:18 > 0:42:22Marco's mum, 80, and Mariangela's mum who's 73.
0:42:22 > 0:42:27As a unit, the extended Mareo family grow, rear,
0:42:27 > 0:42:30make, cook and bake everything they eat.
0:42:30 > 0:42:34It's a very typical family set-up here in the Ogliastra Valley.
0:42:36 > 0:42:39But this good life is also a tough life,
0:42:39 > 0:42:43requiring hard work throughout long days and weekends.
0:42:43 > 0:42:46Both Marco and Mariangela have jobs.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48Marco's a forestry worker
0:42:48 > 0:42:51and Mariangela runs a small B&B at the family home.
0:42:51 > 0:42:56So, their day begins around 7am milking the goats.
0:42:56 > 0:42:58HE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:43:03 > 0:43:06He said this is something they have learned from their parents,
0:43:06 > 0:43:08their grandparents and their great-grandparents.
0:43:08 > 0:43:10I said, how old was he when he learnt to milk?
0:43:10 > 0:43:13And he said about six, seven years of age.
0:43:13 > 0:43:16SHE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:43:16 > 0:43:20HE REPLIES IN ITALIAN
0:43:23 > 0:43:27I asked him, you know, is this really important for him
0:43:27 > 0:43:31to do and pass down to his children? He said, "Absolutely.
0:43:31 > 0:43:33"Otherwise, it's going to get lost."
0:43:33 > 0:43:36The memory he has, not just from his parents,
0:43:36 > 0:43:37but from his grandparents
0:43:37 > 0:43:41was they always used to teach him to respect nature.
0:43:41 > 0:43:43And if you respect nature, it will respond,
0:43:43 > 0:43:47and it will keep you healthy and well into the future.
0:43:48 > 0:43:50While the goats hop down the hill
0:43:50 > 0:43:53to spend the day grazing by the river bank,
0:43:53 > 0:43:56we head back to the house to turn the milk into some cheese.
0:43:59 > 0:44:01The whole process they're doing today
0:44:01 > 0:44:03to make this cheese is completely natural.
0:44:03 > 0:44:07They are not using any additives, preservatives.
0:44:07 > 0:44:13The thickening agent to make the milk the cheese is this...
0:44:13 > 0:44:14the goat's stomach.
0:44:14 > 0:44:18Their goats keep the family in milk, yoghurt and cheese
0:44:18 > 0:44:22the whole year round. They never need to pop to the supermarket
0:44:22 > 0:44:24because they never run out.
0:44:24 > 0:44:29What's more, goat's milk has a higher nutritional value than cow's milk,
0:44:29 > 0:44:32and studies suggest the milk helps lower the risk
0:44:32 > 0:44:35of cardiovascular disease and colon cancer.
0:44:35 > 0:44:38Not that the family need to be told all of this -
0:44:38 > 0:44:41for them, it's a way of life that young Gabriele
0:44:41 > 0:44:44is set to continue into the next generation.
0:44:44 > 0:44:49For me, there's nothing better than seeing a young family
0:44:49 > 0:44:55still using old methods to create some amazing food from the land.
0:44:55 > 0:44:58You know, this has been home-made, and look...
0:44:58 > 0:45:00SHE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:45:00 > 0:45:0517 years of age and he knows how to kill a goat, feed a goat,
0:45:05 > 0:45:09milk a goat, and create the most delicious cheese fresh from the land.
0:45:09 > 0:45:12Brilliant stuff.
0:45:12 > 0:45:17'The one thing I am quickly realising is that there is no fast food here.
0:45:17 > 0:45:20'The whole day revolves around preparing meals for the table.'
0:45:20 > 0:45:24The Mareos are not farmers, they're just ordinary, working people
0:45:24 > 0:45:29with a plot of land on which they raise all of the food they consume.
0:45:29 > 0:45:32They don't go to the supermarket or call in a takeaway,
0:45:32 > 0:45:37they just beaver away as a family to create fresh, wholesome food
0:45:37 > 0:45:40that also keeps them exceptionally active.
0:45:40 > 0:45:42Talk about that for a spinach leaf!
0:45:42 > 0:45:45This is serious work. You know, you've got to work the land,
0:45:45 > 0:45:48you've got to sow the seeds, help them grow,
0:45:48 > 0:45:49you've got to stop the snails eating them,
0:45:49 > 0:45:52you've got to collect them, clean them, cook them.
0:45:52 > 0:45:54Serious work for a plot this size.
0:45:54 > 0:45:57You don't do it on your own, it's a whole family thing.
0:45:57 > 0:46:00And Mariangela said, when they collect the potatoes
0:46:00 > 0:46:02it's almost like a party. "We all come here,
0:46:02 > 0:46:05"we've each have got our jobs, and it's a real social occasion."
0:46:05 > 0:46:09So, you can really see, I guess, how strong those social networks are.
0:46:09 > 0:46:11Here we've got the beans.
0:46:11 > 0:46:16I've heard, and a lot of people have talked about the importance of beans
0:46:16 > 0:46:18for contributing to longevity
0:46:18 > 0:46:22and beans were often a substitute to meat for the poor families.
0:46:22 > 0:46:24Because they've got a lot of protein in,
0:46:24 > 0:46:26and for those families that didn't have meat,
0:46:26 > 0:46:29or maybe at certain times of the year,
0:46:29 > 0:46:31the animals weren't ready to eat,
0:46:31 > 0:46:35it provided them with those important nutrients to keep them going
0:46:35 > 0:46:37for the hard and tough months.
0:46:37 > 0:46:39SHE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:46:39 > 0:46:41'There's one more place I want to visit
0:46:41 > 0:46:45'before I taste the family's produce. That's their cantina.
0:46:45 > 0:46:49'An Italian larder that's like an Aladdin's cave for foodies.
0:46:49 > 0:46:54'Cheeses, wines, pulses, olives, smoked meats and sausages,
0:46:54 > 0:46:57'all of it produced and preserved by the family.'
0:46:57 > 0:47:00SHE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:47:07 > 0:47:09..McDonald's, fast food.
0:47:09 > 0:47:12HE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:47:14 > 0:47:17So, I said, obviously, in our world of today,
0:47:17 > 0:47:21processed foods are all around us, and with added preservatives,
0:47:21 > 0:47:23what's their feelings on that?
0:47:23 > 0:47:27And they were like, all we use when curing the meat is salt and pepper.
0:47:27 > 0:47:31They use no preservatives, nothing,
0:47:31 > 0:47:34it's all pure stuff.
0:47:34 > 0:47:36SHE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:47:36 > 0:47:39I'm going to their house, I want to eat some of this stuff.
0:47:39 > 0:47:41THEY SPEAK ITALIAN
0:47:41 > 0:47:45The family have offered to rustle up a typical Sardinian supper for me.
0:47:45 > 0:47:48So, while Marco gets on with the man's work of roasting a goat haunch,
0:47:48 > 0:47:52I'm going to join the rest of the family in the kitchen.
0:47:52 > 0:47:56I am so excited about today, because just like in my family,
0:47:56 > 0:48:01where you've got everyone in the family roped in to do different jobs,
0:48:01 > 0:48:04we're here with Mariangela, and she's got her mum,
0:48:04 > 0:48:06her daughter, her son's behind,
0:48:06 > 0:48:08and this is what is very, very typical.
0:48:08 > 0:48:10Particularly in this family.
0:48:10 > 0:48:12THEY SPEAK ITALIAN
0:48:12 > 0:48:15Although, what I wasn't expecting
0:48:15 > 0:48:17was the dish we were about to prepare.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20The local speciality, minestrone soup
0:48:20 > 0:48:22that not only takes six hours to make
0:48:22 > 0:48:26but is heavy on the carbs and has a high fat content.
0:48:26 > 0:48:29No olive-oil-rich Mediterranean diets here!
0:48:29 > 0:48:33So, basically, it is a heavy dish, you've got beans, you got potatoes,
0:48:33 > 0:48:36you've got pasta in it, and the cheese and all these flavours.
0:48:36 > 0:48:38But Mariangela said that traditionally,
0:48:38 > 0:48:42this was often fed to the farmers, the men that were away from home
0:48:42 > 0:48:44feeding all these animals up in the hills and, often,
0:48:44 > 0:48:46they would come back after a week,
0:48:46 > 0:48:49and this was a real dish that would fill their bellies
0:48:49 > 0:48:52and make them feel like it's great to be home.
0:48:52 > 0:48:56They needed it, as well, because they'd been away for that time.
0:48:56 > 0:49:00CONVERSATION IN ITALIAN
0:49:02 > 0:49:05I asked, "Is this a typical job that the man does?"
0:49:05 > 0:49:06He said, "Absolutely."
0:49:06 > 0:49:10And it has been passed down from generations to generations.
0:49:10 > 0:49:13The women often do the first course, the pastas, the risottos.
0:49:13 > 0:49:15And it's the men that look after the meat.
0:49:15 > 0:49:18He said, for him it's very important to pass this down.
0:49:18 > 0:49:23His son knows how to kill, how to prepare the meat, and to cook it.
0:49:23 > 0:49:25So, you can see he's very proud of that.
0:49:28 > 0:49:32'Come meal-time, what I took for a cosy, family get-together
0:49:32 > 0:49:36'seems to be transforming into a village festa.'
0:49:36 > 0:49:39I don't know what is going on,
0:49:39 > 0:49:43but I believe a family of five, six people
0:49:43 > 0:49:48has suddenly multiplied into what looks like 25.
0:49:48 > 0:49:52It doesn't look like this is going to be a small thing.
0:49:52 > 0:49:56It's going to be pretty much a massive feast with half the village!
0:49:56 > 0:49:59But, hey, I suppose that's Italian families for you.
0:49:59 > 0:50:01LIVELY CHATTER IN ITALIAN
0:50:01 > 0:50:03HE TOASTS IN ITALIAN
0:50:03 > 0:50:06LAUGHTER AND CHATTER
0:50:06 > 0:50:09So, this is clearly, in my opinion, what Italians are all about.
0:50:09 > 0:50:12And particularly, here in Villagrande.
0:50:12 > 0:50:14It starts from working the land, cultivating your own produce
0:50:14 > 0:50:18and then cooking and eating altogether.
0:50:20 > 0:50:23It doesn't really get much better than this.
0:50:23 > 0:50:28Unadulterated home-made produce consumed at a communal table
0:50:28 > 0:50:31by family and friends while being serenaded by the young folk
0:50:31 > 0:50:34singing traditional old folk songs.
0:50:36 > 0:50:39Simple lives, simple food and simple rituals.
0:50:39 > 0:50:43Passed down and on through generation after generation.
0:50:45 > 0:50:49I've no doubt that every single ingredient of living to be 100
0:50:49 > 0:50:51is here in this room right now.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57If only I could bottle it up and bring it back home.
0:51:00 > 0:51:03And although I leave Sardinia the following morning
0:51:03 > 0:51:07without the elixir of life clasped in my hand,
0:51:07 > 0:51:10I do believe I've got some valuable long-life lessons
0:51:10 > 0:51:13to take back to Wales which I can certainly share
0:51:13 > 0:51:14with the Tantem family.
0:51:18 > 0:51:23So, I'm back where I started on this journey for living a long life,
0:51:23 > 0:51:26here in Wales. I'm going to go and see the Tantems.
0:51:26 > 0:51:28I've learnt a lot and I got a nice big of goodies
0:51:28 > 0:51:30that I'm going to take in to them.
0:51:30 > 0:51:33And where better to share that experience
0:51:33 > 0:51:37than round the dinner table enjoying a Sardinian-inspired supper.
0:51:39 > 0:51:41- Hello!- Hello!- Hello.
0:51:41 > 0:51:44Oh, hello, how are you doing?
0:51:44 > 0:51:48- Good, thank you.- I've got some goodies.- What have we got?- Hello.
0:51:48 > 0:51:52So, if you guys are committed to living a healthier life,
0:51:52 > 0:51:55I reckon, we can have a chat about some things
0:51:55 > 0:51:56that we can make a change already.
0:51:56 > 0:51:59For me, one of the most important things
0:51:59 > 0:52:02that I saw in Sardinia was that there was no processed food.
0:52:02 > 0:52:05Nowhere to be seen. Quite simple, not to eat anything processed.
0:52:05 > 0:52:07Do you think you could do that?
0:52:07 > 0:52:10Yes. We've done it before. We can do it again.
0:52:10 > 0:52:12There's no reason why we can't do it again.
0:52:12 > 0:52:14It's not easy, you know, you've got to be organised.
0:52:14 > 0:52:18You've got to make sure you've got space, time, to prepare things.
0:52:18 > 0:52:21But you said you love freezer meals,
0:52:21 > 0:52:23even though they're bought from the shop.
0:52:23 > 0:52:25We can do that, we can create.
0:52:25 > 0:52:27You love doing shepherd's pie, fish pie.
0:52:27 > 0:52:29They are brilliant freezer meals.
0:52:29 > 0:52:33It's just a matter of making them in bulk, putting them into portions
0:52:33 > 0:52:36and then you can create your own freezer meals,
0:52:36 > 0:52:37but they're home-produced.
0:52:37 > 0:52:41I think, if you could cut out processed food and fizzy drinks...
0:52:43 > 0:52:44How does that sound?
0:52:44 > 0:52:46HE LAUGHS
0:52:46 > 0:52:48Fizzy drinks out of your diet.
0:52:48 > 0:52:51- I don't drink any fizzy drinks(!) - Don't you?- No...
0:52:51 > 0:52:53ALL LAUGH
0:52:53 > 0:52:56I am telling you, you would see a difference.
0:52:56 > 0:52:59And I can show you some really simple recipes that you can prepare
0:52:59 > 0:53:02in five minutes from the stuff that you already buy
0:53:02 > 0:53:05- that will make your lives simple. - Righty-ho.
0:53:05 > 0:53:10Right, we're going to do a super-quick and simple pasta sauce,
0:53:10 > 0:53:12Lee, you're going to do the chopping.
0:53:12 > 0:53:16Finely chop an onion. Splash of olive oil in a pan.
0:53:16 > 0:53:18Then we're going to pop in that onion.
0:53:18 > 0:53:22At this stage, you can put whatever veg you want.
0:53:22 > 0:53:24If you fancied any greens, you could put a bit of broccoli in.
0:53:24 > 0:53:29If you like your freezer, frozen peas, frozen chopped veg,
0:53:29 > 0:53:32you could now toss in a handful and mix that in.
0:53:32 > 0:53:35What I'm going to do, I'm going to speed peel
0:53:35 > 0:53:37some lovely ribbons of carrot,
0:53:37 > 0:53:40you don't need too much, just a little bit of veg.
0:53:40 > 0:53:42Peel lovely bits of courgette in.
0:53:42 > 0:53:45Give that a stir, all together.
0:53:45 > 0:53:48And then, once that has sweated down,
0:53:48 > 0:53:51we are going to add our tin of chopped tomatoes.
0:53:53 > 0:53:57- Right then, into this we're going to put a stock cube.- Smells lovely!
0:53:57 > 0:53:59A little spoon of cream cheese,
0:53:59 > 0:54:02that will just give it a lovely bit of creaminess.
0:54:02 > 0:54:05For me, being Italian, I don't think you can have pasta sauce
0:54:05 > 0:54:09without Parmesan. And, again, this means you use less salt, as well,
0:54:09 > 0:54:10it is just more natural.
0:54:10 > 0:54:13It is expensive, but if you only use a little amount each time,
0:54:13 > 0:54:16you know, that will last you a couple of months.
0:54:18 > 0:54:19That's done.
0:54:20 > 0:54:24You could easily double, if not triple, that quantity.
0:54:24 > 0:54:26And then, that freezes brilliantly,
0:54:26 > 0:54:29so you could freeze this in little individual containers again,
0:54:29 > 0:54:32And there again, you've got your freezer meals that are fresh.
0:54:32 > 0:54:34And basically, when you want to cook it, you just pull it out,
0:54:34 > 0:54:38whack it in the microwave to defrost it and throw it over pasta.
0:54:38 > 0:54:41Did you find out any other secrets to family life in Sardinia?
0:54:41 > 0:54:44Yeah, I mean, I think, for me,
0:54:44 > 0:54:48the things I brought away from Sardinia was the sense of family.
0:54:48 > 0:54:52So, big communities where the family is really important.
0:54:52 > 0:54:56BABY FUSSES Yes, you agree, don't you? Yes!
0:54:56 > 0:55:00And, basically, it's the idea that it's not just eating good food,
0:55:00 > 0:55:02it's the WHOLE process.
0:55:02 > 0:55:04They sit together, they cook together,
0:55:04 > 0:55:07they socialise together and there's this kind of family network.
0:55:07 > 0:55:09So, it's not just the cooking.
0:55:09 > 0:55:11It's the sitting down together,
0:55:11 > 0:55:13enjoying it together around a dinner table.
0:55:13 > 0:55:14That's one thing we have always done.
0:55:14 > 0:55:17- We always sit at the table to eat. - It's important.
0:55:17 > 0:55:21We always make sure that that is something we do every evening.
0:55:21 > 0:55:24It doesn't matter if we end up having a late dinner,
0:55:24 > 0:55:27it is at the table. Always together, always at the table.
0:55:27 > 0:55:31- Smells lovely.- I hope you like it.
0:55:31 > 0:55:33Absolutely gorgeous.
0:55:33 > 0:55:35It's really nice.
0:55:35 > 0:55:38So, how was the pace of life in Sardinia?
0:55:38 > 0:55:41Was it as busy and as chaotic as ours?
0:55:41 > 0:55:42No, definitely not.
0:55:42 > 0:55:45They spend all day cooking one dish that they might eat
0:55:45 > 0:55:48at the end of the day and it's a very slow pace of life,
0:55:48 > 0:55:52but, I just think, we've got to be realistic.
0:55:52 > 0:55:54We live in Wales.
0:55:54 > 0:55:56We don't live in sun-drenched hills
0:55:56 > 0:55:59with vegetable patches the size of a football pitch,
0:55:59 > 0:56:02we do live in communities like we do,
0:56:02 > 0:56:07but I do think, you know, there are factors that we could all do -
0:56:07 > 0:56:11even myself included - to improve our quality of life.
0:56:11 > 0:56:15Trying to walk every day, even if it is only ten minutes to work,
0:56:15 > 0:56:18or even it's on the weekend, you take the kids
0:56:18 > 0:56:20and it's raining, but you put some coats on.
0:56:20 > 0:56:22It shouldn't really make any excuses,
0:56:22 > 0:56:25cos we have got beautiful surroundings that we live in.
0:56:25 > 0:56:28We might actually say, you know what, we just feel so much better,
0:56:28 > 0:56:31and I do believe that I was brought up
0:56:31 > 0:56:34in an Italian household in the Welsh Valleys,
0:56:34 > 0:56:37but the one thing my dad was always adamant about
0:56:37 > 0:56:39it that to be cooked fresh,
0:56:39 > 0:56:42and it had to be all of us around the table.
0:56:42 > 0:56:45They certainly didn't say, don't drink a glass of wine
0:56:45 > 0:56:47in Sardinia, in fact, they all drank wine.
0:56:47 > 0:56:51So, maybe, it's a walk to the pub with your family
0:56:51 > 0:56:54for a glass of wine and then to come home to a home-cooked meal.
0:56:54 > 0:56:56There's nothing wrong with that.
0:56:56 > 0:56:59Salute!
0:57:01 > 0:57:03So, what have I learned from my search
0:57:03 > 0:57:06of finding the secrets of living until you're 100.
0:57:06 > 0:57:08When I first started on this journey,
0:57:08 > 0:57:12I had, at the back of my mind, that one of the factors might be money.
0:57:12 > 0:57:16That somehow, wealth could buy you your help.
0:57:16 > 0:57:19But actually, having visited the Welsh centenarians
0:57:19 > 0:57:20and the hill farmers of Sardinia,
0:57:20 > 0:57:24they actually proved that quite the opposite was true.
0:57:24 > 0:57:26A hard life of honest graft,
0:57:26 > 0:57:28especially if it's in the outdoors,
0:57:28 > 0:57:30can actually help you live to 100.
0:57:30 > 0:57:33And certainly, if you have got a good diet,
0:57:33 > 0:57:36and a strong family unit and a purpose in life.
0:57:36 > 0:57:40But are all these things possible in a 21st-century Wales?
0:57:40 > 0:57:42Well, actually, they are.
0:57:42 > 0:57:44But we have got to work harder to make them work
0:57:44 > 0:57:47because our lifestyle is against us.
0:57:47 > 0:57:49But given all of that, the tools are there for us
0:57:49 > 0:57:51to live a long and healthy life.
0:57:51 > 0:57:53It's just a matter of us utilising them.
0:57:53 > 0:57:56And for that, there is no excuse.
0:57:56 > 0:57:58ALL SING: Happy Birthday
0:57:58 > 0:58:02I keep thinking back to something Doris told me on her 105th birthday.
0:58:02 > 0:58:06Life is what you make it.
0:58:06 > 0:58:09It's you who are the important person all the time,
0:58:09 > 0:58:12and it's you that's got to make it, nobody else.
0:58:12 > 0:58:15That it's you that's got to make it, nobody else.