第十四篇：Azeri Hills Hold Secret of Long Life

　　You can see for kilometers from the mountains where Allahverdi Ibadovherds his small flock of sheep amid a sea of yellow, red, and purple wildflowers,The view from Amburdere in southern Azerbaijan toward the Iranian border isspectacular, but Mr: Ibadov barely gives it a second glance.

　　Why should he? He's been coming here nearly every day for 100 years.

　　According to his carefully preserved passport, Mr. Ibadov, whose birthwas not registered until he was a toddler,is at least 105 years old. His wife,who died two years ago, was even older. They are among the dozens of people inthis beautiful, isolated region who live extraordinarily long lives.

　　Mr. Ibadov's eldest son has just turned 70. He lost count long ago ofhow many grandchildren he has. 1,, I'm an old man now I look after the sheep,and I prepare the wood for winter. I still have something to do. "

　　A lifetime of toil, it seems, takes very few people to an early grave inthis region. Scientists

　　admit there appears to be something in theAzeri mountains that gives local people a longer,

　　healthier life than most.

　　Miri Ismailov's family in the tiny village of Tatoni are convinced thatthey know what it is.

　　Mr. Ismailov is 110, hisgreat-great-grandson is four. They share one proud boast:Neither has been to adoctor. "There are hundreds of herbs on the mountain, and we use them allin our cooking and for medicines" ;explained Mr. Ismailov's daughter,Elmira. "We know exactly what they can do. We are our own doctors. "

　　There is one herb for high blood pressure, another for kidney stones,and a third for a hacking cough. They are carefully collected from the slopessurrounding the village. Experts from the Azerbaijan Academy of Science believethe herbs may be part of the answer. They have been

　　studying longevity in this region foryears. It began as a rare joint Soviet-American project in the

　　1980s, but these studies are not beingfunded any more.

　　Azeri scientists have isolated a type of saffron unique to the southernmountains as one thing that seems to increase longevity. Another plant, madeinto a paste, dramatically increases the amount of milk that animals are ableto produce. "Now we have to examine these plants clinically to find outwhich substances have this effect," said Chingiz Gassimov, a scientist atthe academy.

　　The theory that local people have also developed a geneticpredisposition to long life has been strengthened by the study of a group ofRussian emigres whose ancestors were exiled to the

　　Caucasus 200 years ago. 2 The Russians'life span is much shorter than that of the indigenous

　　mountain folk -- though it is appreciablylonger than that of their ancestors left behind in the

　　Russian heartland.

　　"Over the decades, I believe local conditions have begun to have apositive effect on the new arrivals", Professor Gassimov said. "It'sbeen slowly transferred down the generations. "

　　But Mr. Ismailov, gripping his stout wooden cane, has been around fortoo long to get

　　overexcited. "There's no secret,"he shrugged dismissively. "I look after the cattle and I eat well.

　　Life goes on. "

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