Why Do New Yorkers Live Longer? Flavored, Sugared Water!

New Yorkers live longer than other Americans, and in last week’s New York cover story, Clive Thompson tried to explain why. We walk more than most Americans, he pointed out, we climb more stairs than most Americans, and many fewer of us die young of onetime urban plagues like murder and AIDS. We have great hospitals and lots of healthy-eating options, and, as he noted, people who are ambitious and hard-working and appearance-focused can be just as Type-A about their health as about everything else. But leave it to a marketer to isolate the mysterious X factor, the key reason New Yorkers live longer than everyone else. It came in a press release this morning, and it’s beautiful in its simplicity: “Life Expectancy for New Yorkers Increases as Snapple Grows in Popularity.” Why didn’t Clive think of that? Oh, the press release was, of course, from Snapple.

*** Media Alert ***

SNAPPLE REAL FACT 82007: NEW YORKERS LIVE LONGER
THAN THE AVERAGE AMERICAN

Life Expectancy for New Yorkers Increases as Snapple Grows in Popularity

WHAT: Recent studies show that life expectancy in the U.S. is slipping, but that New Yorkers typically live nine months longer than the average American. And, Snapple’s been selling the Best Stuff on Earth to New Yorkers for more than 35 years. Coincidence?

Launched in Greenwich Village in 1972, Snapple created the ready-to-drink tea category and is known for its extensive variety of delicious flavored teas, juice drinks and waters. Tea, of course, has been touted as a healthy beverage for more than 4,700 years. When you drink tea, whether black or green or decaffeinated or iced, you’re calling on the good guys, antioxidants, which neutralize free radicals and help rejuvenate cells.

The new super premium line of Snapple teas brings together great taste and health benefits. Snapple Green Tea contains EGCG, a natural antioxidant that helps boost metabolism. Snapple White Tea, The Lightest Tea on Earth, offers a delicate, refreshing flavor thanks to the baby tea leaves from which it is made. Snapple Red Tea, naturally caffeine-free and made from the Rooibos plant, contains protective antioxidants and Vitamin C, which contributes to a healthy immune system.

WHEN: To celebrate the longevity of New Yorkers, Snapple will be handing out free Snapple products at events around New York through the remainder of the summer, including:

- AVP Brooklyn Open at Coney Island on Aug. 25 and 26
- Houston Astros Vs. New York Mets game at Shea Stadium on Sept. 7
- The Renaissance Festival in the Bronx on Sept. 9 and more!

STATISTICS: According to figures released by the New York City Department of Health, New Yorkers have an average life expectancy nine months longer than the average American. A New Yorker born in 2004 can now expect to live 78.6 years.

Why New Yorkers Last Longer [NYM]