CNN Features Adventists on Show About Healthy Living

CNN coorespondent Sanjay Gupta, left, interviewing Dr. Richard Hart, president of Loma Linda University Health, in a screengrab from the program.

February 27, 2015 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Loma Linda University Health and Adventist Review staff

CNN television is featuring Loma Linda University and the surrounding Seventh-day Adventist community in southern California on a program about how to live a longer, healthier life.

The 30-minute program, “Vital Signs with Dr. Sanjay Gupta,” is being broadcast on CNN International throughout February and tackles the question, “What can one do to live a healthier, happier, and longer life?”

The setting for the opening portion of the show is the city of Loma Linda, and interviewees mention the key factors of healthy living as maintaining a plant-based diet, regular exercise, rest and relaxation, and having close social connections. They also speak of the importance of a sense of mission, which for Adventists is closely linked to their faith in God and their hope in Jesus’ soon coming.

One of the key factors to a better life is “having a purpose in what you are doing,” Richard H. Hart, president of Loma Linda University Health, tells the program.

Gupta, CNN’s chief medical correspondent, notes that Adventists observe the seventh-day Sabbath, giving them a break from everyday stresses and a chance to gather with fellow Adventists.

“Adventists also observe a strict Saturday Sabbath. It’s a time to unplug, and unwind, and share time with other like-minded people,” he says.

Author and explorer Dan Buettner explains on the program that a secret to living longer is to spend time with health-minded people rather than those who eat poorly and don’t exercise.

In the show, Gupta focuses on the commonalities within the world’s five “Blue Zones,” which Buettner has identified as areas where residents live the longest. Loma Linda is the only Blue Zone in the United States.

Loma Linda University Health also has the distinction of engaging in the world’s longest-running research studies on aging and longevity. The studies, collectively called the Adventist Health Studies, are cited in the show.

The CNN show is posted online and can be accessed here.

Adventists in Loma Linda have been featured by a number of media organizations in recent years. In addition to the CNN program this month, Loma Linda Adventists took centerstage in a lengthy article by Christan Broadcasting Network News titled, “Secrets to Longevity Revealed in Denomination’s Lifestyle.”