Excelencias Turísticas del caribe y las Américas
The Secret of Longevity
A MAJORITY OF THE INHABITANTS OF VILCABAMBA, A SMALL TOWN IN SOUTHERN ECUADOR, EXCEEDS ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF AGE, AND NOT EVEN SCIENCE CAN’T FIGURE OUT WHY
Agreat avenue dubbed Eternal Youth leads to Vilcabamba, a one-and-only place just 50 km south of Loja, Ecuador's southernmost city. Its population does not exceed 3,800 people. Some are native. Others have come from an assortment of regions around the world. And the decision is not fortuitous. It happens that this place, perched 1,500 meters above sea level and boasting a springlike climate with average temperatures of 24 degrees Celsius, is known as “the country of the oldest”, “The Valley of Longevity” and “The Island of Heart Attack Immunity”. The majority of its inhabitants are over a hundred years old.
This is not the only striking thing. There are no noises, no pollution or environmental damage. For this reason, people come from different parts of the world, people suffering from different health conditions, especially heart problems.
The mild climate, its peaceful atmosphere, the healthy diet based on crops and fruits, and above all, the water of the Chamba and Uchima rivers, are what those who come here with different ailments look for. Scientific studies show that the water that run down the slopes contains magnesium and other minerals, so drinking it would help burn fat away and prevent rheumatism.
Aquí no hay ruidos, contaminación o daño al medioambiente. Por tal motivo, desde distintas partes del mundo llegan personas con diferentes afecciones, sobre todo cardíacas
THE LEAP TO FAME
Vilcabamba is now a tourist attraction, but its fame and mystery began in the early 1960s with the arrival of a man named Johnny Lovewisdom. This singular character had lived as a hermit for years in the crater of an Ecuadorian volcano, and promoted some naturist practices.
In Vilcabamba, Lovewisdom decided to found the International Naturist University and, as expected, the institution attracted many people who eventually traveled around the globe promoting the idea that this place was some kind of Shangri-La, the Himalayan paradise created by British author James Hilton in his 1933 novel Paradise Lost.
The results rushed in. Outstanding news media, like National Geographic and The New York Times, began publishing information about this miraculous place. The Baltimore Sun put out an article on August 8, 1954 , entitled “The Most Amazing Mystery of Medicine”, penned by Dr. Eugene H. Payne, while in November of that same year, Reader's Digest reprinted it under the title “The Islands of Immunity”. It was then that the town of Vilcabamba was definitely put on the map.
American, Japanese and European scientists traveled there to conduct checkups and blood and breathing tests among the locals. However, they found nothing out of the ordinary. It was then that countless theories on why a majority of the settlers in Vilcabamba could live over a hundred years of age popped up.
There are no noises, no pollution or environmental damage. For this reason, people
come from different parts of the world, people suffering from
different health conditions
Some say that's because of the climate. Others argue that the cause lies in good nutrition, based on vegetables and organic fruits produced in the area with traditional agricultural practices and in which they avoid the use of chemicals and preservatives. But the most common hypothesis is the one that hinges on the chemical properties of water, which can cure various diseases.
SACRED GROUND
The name of this town is broken down in Vilca, a word that comes from the indigenous term wilka, the Anadenanthera colubrina tree of hallucinogenic properties that the Incas considered magical and sacred, and bamba, a modification of pampa, which means open ground or plain. This is how Vilcabamba means Huilko Plain. Currently, this tree is almost extinct, with only a handful of reserves in the area. There are those who say that it makes breathing easier because of its ability to produce more oxygen. And for that treatment to work, the person must sit under its branches and inhale.
Anyway, the inhabitants of Vilcabamba say there is no mystery whatsoever. For them, the key to unraveling the secret is to live in a healthy way and have a lifestyle that allows them to reach a hundred years of age with quality of life.