The quest to live forever has taken us from diet fads to geographic fantasies like Blue Zones. But none of these ideas are based in reality, according to Washington Post health columnist Anahad O'Connor and Saul Justin Newman, a researcher on aging.

This episode was produced by Zachary Mack and Hady Mawajdeh, edited by Miranda Kennedy, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Andrea Kristinsdottir and Patrick Boyd, and hosted by Noel King.

Transcript at vox.com/today-explained-podcast

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"Blue Zones" founder Dan Buettner, who produced "Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones" Netflix show, in an appearance. Photo credit: Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images.

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