One GMO lived to be 83, 8 or 9 pregnancies, alcoholic and heavy smoker throughout adulthood to 65.
Walked everywhere in DC, never had a DL.
Loved pork chops and fried chicken, moderately healthy diet without processed foods and snacks.

I have documentation showing my twice great grandparents living into their very late 80s and considering g that this would have been over 175 years ago, it’s remarkable.

They were mostly farmers, living, marrying and dying within miles of their birthplace. I’d imagine a life living outdoors, eating food raised from your own land.

I recall my mom liked pimento cheese sandwiches, olives, sardines, BBQ pork sandwiches, chili and a frosty from Wendy's, BLTs, and she liked to drink Fresca, and lots of coffee. She also liked breakfast for dinner.

She lived to be 90, her mind was sharp until a few months before she died, and she smoked until two days before she died.

Anonymous wrote:Ha. My fil lived to 97. Whiskey and/or beer daily. Mostly gross canned meats. Steak and potatoes if at a restaurant. He once snacked on a bowl of dry dog food someone had set on the counter. "Tastes all right to me."

He was an avid fisherman, so he ate lots of catfish, crappie, bluegill, trout. But lots of people say that lake is polluted so might not be the healthiest.

Wow, that is hilarious! He sounds like quite the character!

Funnily enough, my dad has started coming to stay with us in the last year since we moved into a house with a guest room and bathroom. He's told me he was inspired by seeing how our kids eat, to start eating more produce. So he eats salads with salami in them.

My 93 year old grandmother always had a block of velveeta cheese in fridge until recently. Lots of homemade soup. Sandwiches. Mayonnaise based things like egg salad, chicken salad, etc. Loves a good turkey reuben. Crackers. Sweet treats tucked away all over her house in jars, etc. Still enjoys her wine.
Definitely not what is considered healthy by today's standards. Physically, she's still incredibly fit and mobile.

Ha. My fil lived to 97. Whiskey and/or beer daily. Mostly gross canned meats. Steak and potatoes if at a restaurant. He once snacked on a bowl of dry dog food someone had set on the counter. "Tastes all right to me."

He was an avid fisherman, so he ate lots of catfish, crappie, bluegill, trout. But lots of people say that lake is polluted so might not be the healthiest.

My grandpa lived to 90. He ate one or two pieces of buttered toast with both lunch and dinner, in addition to a starch with the meals. For breakfast he ate toast with jam and maybe a bowl of two cereals mixed together. He ate dessert as an afternoon snack and after dinner.

Fish, free range organic chicken, non-pasturized milk, local cheeses, fresh homemade pasta, fresh bread from the corner bread oven, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, olive oil, red wine. Absolutely nothing processed.

#bluezone

Ice cream and Wild Turkey everyday - Grandpa 104, Grandma, 98

My grandmother made it to her mid 90's. She was significantly overweight and led a very sedentary lifestyle.

Things I remember her eating

A lot of gin (well she drank that)

Onion English muffins with lots of butter

Bacon

All the cashews out of a jar of mixed nuts

Avocado

Restaurant food

I'm sure she ate other things, but that's what I remember. I doubt that diet was the secret to her longevity.

They didn’t eat much and tried to stay trim their whole lives. Made it to late 90s.

The first part can’t be replicated — since my oldest relative grew up eating things that we would call organic and locally grown, before junk food and additives were prevalent. Beyond that though, she mostly ate a low fat, very low salt diet, with occasional snacks — like peanuts or cheese crackers. When she travelled and on holidays and special occasions she ate a variety of foods, but her typical diet in her later years was repetitive and spartan. Think unsalted, backed chicken breasts, plain rice, a variety of vegetables cooked with low sodium seasonings, plain cake and fruit — as a typical meal. She did this because of health concerns, and she wanted to “eat to live, not live to eat”.

Anonymous wrote:I would eat whatever struck my fancy -- including, after 1970, some processed foods -- IN VERY SMALL / MODERATE AMOUNTS.

There were no "never foods." It's just that they were sensible and not gross gluttons like current Americans.

(they also got a huge amount of incidental exercise by walking to daily Mass, cutting their own grass, doing their own laundry in the basement, etc)

This sounds just like my DH’s grandfather. 96 and going strong. He is a moderate drinker and doesn’t avoid any foods, but he eats much smaller portions than is typical for the standard American diet. He cut his own grass and played golf weekly until a few years ago. I believe he still does his own laundry in the basement. He finds joy in the simple things, takes pride in keeping his home clean, and decorates for Christmas.

bacon. bacon grease on bread. Lots of americanized german food that farmers would eat. They worked their asses off and died late. My parent's generation worked in factories and all died of heart disease in their 60s

Three eggs every morning.
Processed lunch meat on bread for lunch
Meat and potatoes and a veg for dinner.
Dessert every night.

Died in late 80's; born in 1907, and survived a lot!