La longevidad en Andorra

¿Una vida bajo mucho estrés? Eso no pasa en Andorra.

Andorra longevity

The tiny European principality of Andorra seems to have discovered the secret of longevity. Life expectancy there, according to the World Health Organisation, is top of the global league. Our correspondent Paul Henley reports from Andorra:

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(COUNTING IN SPANISH)

Water aerobics classes like this one for pensioners in one of Andorra's many pristine public swimming pools are free and frequent. It's normal here, high in the Pyrenees between France and Spain, to be active into old age. The average life expectancy is 83.5 and there are lots of people here in their late nineties.

Exercise is one reason, others are clean air, healthy diet, lots of lean meat, vegetables and olive oil and a world class health service. Perhaps the secret ingredient is low stress levels. Government spokesman Juli Minovez puts that partly down to history:

MINOVEZ:
We've had 700 years of peace in Andorra, and so many years of peace, no army - it also gives a lot of peace of mind to people. So I think there is also a psychological factor, you know. From the moment you were born, you know you live in a country that hasn't had a conflict for seven centuries - that must be there for something.

The growing population of Andorra is quietly proud of its world-beating longevity.

Paul Henley, BBC News, Andorra

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Water aerobics
ejercicios en la piscina con música, normalmente en grupos organizados (también se llama acuaerobics)

pristine
nuevo y en muy buena condición

life expectancy
el número de años que, según estadísticas, se espera vivir

diet
Dieta, lo que cada uno come habitualmente

lean meat
carne sin o con muy poca grasa

world class
de excelente calidad, que funciona con un nivel altísimo

the secret ingredient
ingrediente secreto (en este caso, una razón/un factor no muy obvia/o)

puts that partly down to history
lo atribuye, hasta cierto punto, a la historia

peace of mind
tranquilidad, sin preocupaciones ni problemas

longevity
longevidad, una vida larga

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