Chasing the fountain of youth(2)

"These strange attempts by emperors to pursue longevity have had a deep influence on the grass roots who think emperors set an example for them," Zhou said. "In ancient times, without developed technology, it was understandable that people believed these silly methods. But in modern times, people should use science to guide their lives."

"There are special characteristics of Chinese people regarding the pursuit of longevity, and some are even obsessed with it," Fang Zhouzi, a famous commentator and science cop, told the Global Times Wednesday. "Longevity is a pursuit of people all over the world. But in China, people have blind faith in some strange healthcare methods and there are many people out there who want to cheat others, and it's often easy because the related markets are often in a mess because of a lack of government supervision."

Meanwhile, doctors are lukewarm on the life-extending properties of these longevity towns.

"Environmental therapy is helpful for medical treatment, but it can't replace formal treatment in hospital," Jiang Liangduo, a senior expert with the Dongzhimen Hospital Affiliated to the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, told the Global Times on Wednesday. "If it could cure all diseases, it wouldn't be necessary for us to have hospitals."

In reality, the secret of the Bama county residents' longevity isn't much of a secret, according to Li.

Bama's water contains more minerals, the air quality is healthy and the soil includes lots of selenium, an element scientists say is good for prolonging life - a set of factors that are not common across China's 22 provinces, Li said. "Besides the natural environment, Bama's residents live a natural life."

Cashing in on hope

The hopes of these people provide some with an opportunity to make a fast buck. In one example, to get more fresh air, some of the "transients" pay 300 yuan ($49) a month and queue up just to breathe oxygen in a cave with access to the Panyang River.

In another example, when leaving Bama in June, Tang bought one ton of water from the local area, for him to drink over the course of six months.

Tourism also fills local coffers. Last year, about 2.18 million domestic and overseas tourists visited Bama, up 23 percent compared with 2011. Income from tourism stands at 1.98 billion yuan ($32.33 million), up 47.6 percent compared with 2011, according to Li.

Zhang Shangzheng, a tourism professor with Anhui University, told the Global Times on Tuesday that many tourism projects he had inspected made use of the brand "longevity village."

"The natural environment is good. But they exaggerate environmental factors," Zhang said. "To pursue profit, local authorities even falsify people's ages. I found that quite a few people who are 80 years old are recorded as 100 years old."

"If a 'longevity village' has the magical effects they claim, it should be able to be replicated, which follows strict scientific process. But most of them can't be copied. This makes these villages seem more mysterious," Zhang said.

"These magical effects always combine with traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and some 'doctors' give various strange prescriptions beyond imagination," Zhang said. "Usually, they don't work at all. But patients believe them just because want to believe in a magic prescription."