NAPLES – On Sept. 28, Blue Zones Project- Southwest Florida will host the first annual Palooza! event at North Collier Regional Park. The community is invited to attend this free event that will allow participants to experience what Blue Zones Project is all about and how to increase their well-being. The event takes place from 9 a.m. to noon and offers yoga, tai chi, and boot camp classes, gardening and plant-based cooking demonstration, a children’s activity area, a purpose workshop, food tastings from Blue Zones Project Approved™ restaurants, and more! To RSVP, visit bzppalooza.eventbrite.com.

“Blue Zones Project focuses on educating people about the Power 9® principles- those best practices that the world’s longest living people follow,” stated Deb Logan, executive director of Blue Zones Project- Southwest Florida. “The Power 9® are simple things like spending time with family, eating more fruits and vegetables, incorporating physical movement throughout your day, etc. So, we wanted to create an event where the community could experience the Power 9® in a fun and tangible way. We want everyone to come out and learn what they can do to Live Longer, Better®.”

There are now more than 600 area companies and 200,000 individuals participating with Blue Zones Project – Southwest Florida, a community-by-community, well-being improvement initiative designed to support longer, better lives through sustainable changes to environment, policy, and social networks. Principles are based on lifestyles in Blue Zones® areas, which are pockets of the world where people live longer with less chronic disease and higher quality of life.
Brought to Southwest Florida by NCH Healthcare System, in collaboration with Sharecare®, Inc. and Blue Zones, LLC, Blue Zones Project is a vital part of Southwest Florida’s well-being improvement initiative that encourages changes in the community that lead to healthier options. For more information about Blue Zones Project Southwest Florida, visit southwestflorida.bluezonesproject.com.

About NCH Healthcare System
The NCH Healthcare System is a not-for-profit, multi-facility healthcare system located in Naples, Florida, United States. The System is more than just two hospitals (referred to as the NCH Baker Downtown Naples Hospital, and NCH North Naples Hospital) with a total of 716 beds. The NCH Healthcare System is an alliance of 775 physicians and medical facilities in dozens of locations throughout Collier County and southwest Florida. The services offered by the NCH Healthcare System are extensive. Inpatient services include: medical, surgical, cardiac, orthopedic, obstetric, pediatric, rehabilitative, psychiatric, oncology, emergency treatment, and diagnostics. Outpatient services include: rehabilitation, home care, urgent care, wound healing, and more. This year the system had 39,000 admissions, 111,000 emergency room visits, 3,600 births, 405 open heart surgeries, 11,800 surgical procedures, and 4,300 employee colleagues. NCH is a member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network. NCH’s mission is to help everyone live a longer, happier, healthier life. NCH is sponsoring the Blue Zones Project for Southwest Florida. For more information, visit NCHmd.org.

About Sharecare
Sharecare is the digital health company that helps people manage all their health in one place. The Sharecare platform provides each person – no matter where they are in their health journey – with a comprehensive and personalized health profile, where they can dynamically and easily connect to the information, evidence-based programs, and health professionals they need to live their healthiest, happiest, and most productive life. With award-winning and innovative frictionless technologies, scientifically validated clinical protocols, and best-in-class coaching tools, Sharecare helps providers, employers, and health plans effectively scale outcomes-based health and wellness solutions across their entire populations. To learn more, visit sharecare.com.

About Blue Zones Project
Blue Zones Project® is a community-led well-being improvement initiative designed to make healthy choices easier through permanent changes to a city’s environment, policy, and social networks. Established in 2010, Blue Zones Project is inspired by Dan Buettner, a National Geographic Fellow and New York Times best-selling author who identified five regions of the world—or Blue Zones®—with the highest concentration of people living to 100 years or older. Blue Zones Project incorporates Buettner’s findings and works with cities to implement policies and programs that will move a community toward optimal health and well-being. Currently, 50 communities in ten states have joined Blue Zones Project, impacting more than 3.3 million Americans nationwide. The movement includes communities in California; 15 cities in Iowa; Albert Lea, Minnesota; the city of Fort Worth; and communities in Southwest Florida, Hawaii, Oklahoma, Oregon, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Blue Zones Project is an exclusive partnership between Blue Zones and Sharecare. For more information, visit bluezonesproject.com.