Though almost a year has passed since the end of the pilot AARP/Blue Zones Vitality Project, Albert Lea is still making big waves in the health community.

In the August issue of U.S. News & World Report, Albert Lea is featured in a 3 1/2-page spread titled “A Town’s Health Makeover: How one Minnesota community is going after a longer and fitter life span.”

The article, which begins on page 24 of the printed edition, highlights the 2009 Vitality Project, while also including information on how the National Vitality Center, Statewide Health Improvement Program, and Pioneering Healthy Communities are continuing the efforts established during the 10-month project.

The story includes a two-page photo of a walking school bus to Lakeview Elementary School and a photo of the Bryan and Cathy Purdie family in its kitchen.

“This is a model for how to do prevention,” stated author and National Geographic explorer Dan Buettner, leader of the Albert Lea Vitality Project.

The article stated the project came about after Buettner found five areas across the world, where life expectancies stretch 10 to 12 years longer than the average American’s.

Buettner found several characteristics of people near or past the century mark: They ate lots of fruits and vegetables, moved naturally, kept a positive outlook and hung out with family and people they like.

Buettner brought those characteristics back to America and for 10 months sought to implement them into Albert Lea residents.

Health experts Leslie Lytle of the University of Minnesota and Brian Wansink of Cornell University, along with walkability expert Dan Burden and motivational speaker and author Richard Leider, assisted in the journey.

The article stated about half of the city’s employers participated and as a result, “absenteeism fell by 21 percent, and health care costs for city workers in the program dropped by half.”

To encourage people to be active, Albert Lea “immediately began pouring sidewalks,” and more sidewalks are planned for the future. Any new housing developments must accommodate pedestrians, bikers, scooters and wheelchairs.

Regarding food, the emphasis was to get people on making smart food choices easy.

Restaurants also were encouraged to make at least three changes to their menus.

Participants logged over 75 million steps and increased their estimated life expectancy by 3.1 years. Many new friendships were formed.

“The pilot project ended last year, but Albert Lea’s health consciousness continues,” the story states. “The school district will soon unveil snack carts featuring fruit and yogurt. Concrete will be poured for more sidewalks.”

In the meantime, 20 communities with populations between 150,000 to 200,000 across the country have applied to be the next American city to take on the project, this time for three years.

In September, one of three finalists — Asheville, N.C.; a group of five Florida cities; or the three cities of Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach — will get selected.

The article stated the time is right for the health movement promoted by Buettner’s ideas to spread.

“With the recent passage of health care reform, ideas are plentiful, as are potential funding dollars, to rein in costs by preventing disease in the first place,” according to the story.