The Area

History

Loma Linda (Spanish for '"beautiful hill"') is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States, that was incorporated in 1970. The population was 23,261 at the 2010 census, up from 18,681 at the 2000 census. The central area of the city was originally known as Mound City; its eastern half was originally the unincorporated community of Bryn Mawr.

In popular culture

Loma Linda University Medical Center is featured in Venom ER, an Animal Planet program focusing on snakebite treatment at the hospital.

Demographics

The 2010 United States Census reported that Loma Linda had a population of 23,261. The population density was 3,094.3 people per square mile (1,194.7/km²). The racial makeup of Loma Linda was 47.8% White (11,122 persons; 37.0% Non-Hispanic White); 8.7% African American (2,032 people); 0.4% Native American (97 people); 28.3% Asian (6,589 people); 0.7% Pacific Islander (154 people); 8.7% from other races (2,022 people); and 5.4% from two or more races (1,245 people). Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5,171 people (22.2%).

Geography

Loma Linda is located in southwestern San Bernardino County and is considered part of the Inland Empire. It is bordered on the north by San Bernardino, on the east by Redlands, on the west by Colton, and on the south by Riverside County. An area of unincorporated territory in Riverside County separates Loma Linda from the city of Moreno Valley to the south. The remnants of Bryn Mawr, an unincorporated community formerly located between Loma Linda and Redlands, was annexed by the City in 2008.

The city is in the southern San Bernardino Valley. The southern third of the city is known as the South Hills; this rugged and hilly area at the northwestern end of The Badlands is a city-owned open space reserve protected by a local initiative. San Timoteo Creek flows from southeast to northwest through the city.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.5 square miles (19 km²), 99.99% of it land.

Longevity

Residents in Loma Linda have one of the highest rates of longevity in the United States. Writer Dan Buettner has labeled Loma Linda a Blue Zone, an area where the longevity is appreciably higher than the national average and a substantial proportion of the population lives past 100 years. Buettner's 2008 book, The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest, attributes Loma Linda's longevity rate to Adventist cultural health and diet practices.