Studying of the Factors of Longevity in Smolyan Municipality, Rhodope Mountains, Bulgaria as Area of Oxidant/Antioxidant Balance

Abstract

This paper shows the research of factors for health and longevity in Smolyan Municipality, Bulgaria in Rhodope Mountains. The factors are – hereditary, gender, mountain water, body weight, food, movement, psychological status, family relationships. This area is popular with mountain water and yogurt and higher attitude above see level (over 1000 m attitude above sea level). Yogurt is typical as food in Rhodope Mountains. Natural mountain waters were studied from various Bulgarian water springs from the period of 2010-2018.In 1910 in Bulgaria lived 2067 centenarians from 4 337 513 inhabitants. There were 477 centenarians per million. The most of these people lived in Rhodope mountains.  There are the most centenarians in Europe. In the early 1900s, the Bulgarian scientist, Stamen Grigorov, found the specific Lactobacillus bacteria responsible for Bulgarian yogurt fermentation. Interested in Grigorov’s discoveries, the Nobel prize-winning, Russian scientist, Ilya Mechnikov, noted that more people lived to the age of 100 in Bulgaria than in any of the 36 other countries he studied. He directly linked this to Bulgaria’s consumption of yogurt. According to Metchnikoff, aging is promoted by putrefactive microbes in the large bowel. He knew that milk fermented with lactic acid bacteria inhibits the growth of toxic bacteria, because of the low pH (4.4) produced from lactose fermentation. Metchnikoff proposed that fermented milk would “seed” the intestine with lactic acid bacteria, decrease intestinal pH, and suppress growth of toxic bacteria. Metchnikoff named the primary yogurt microorganism Lactobacillus bulgaricus after the Bulgarians. In the early 1900s, Mechnikov worked to popularize yogurt as a foodstuff throughout Europe.There was performed research of mountain water from village of Momchilovtsi, Smolyan Municipality. There was performed study of blood serum of cancer patients between 50 and 70 years old were investigated by IR, NES and DNES-methods (Ignatov&Mosin, 2012). As estimation factor was measured the values ​​of the average energy of hydrogen bonds (∆E_H...O) among H₂O molecules, as well as local extremums in DNES- and IR-spectra of various samples of water and human blood serum, detected at -0.1387 eV and wavelength – 8.95 μm. For a group of people in critical condition of life and patients with malignant tumors the greatest values ​​of local extremums in DNES- and IR-spectra are shifted to lower energies relative to the control group. The IR-spectrum of mountain water is most similar to the IR-spectrum of blood serum of healthy group of people with a local extremum at l = 8,95 mm. The authors study the local extremum at l = 8,95 mm of water in Momchilovtsi. This is the indicator for preservation of energy among water molecules in people, who are living in near the mountain sources.The authors show in the report that mountain water and yoghurt are part of secret of longevity. They and also natural food contain whole ballasting microelements – Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg), Potassium (K), Sodium (Na), Manganese (Mn), Zink (Zn).  The author shows that in Smolyan Municipality, Rhodope Mountain there is balance between oxidant and antioxidant activity in the human organism of the people, who are living here. The report shows the proofs.

Keywords: longevity, mountain water, yoghurt, factors of longevity, oxidants/antioxidants