Being able to celebrate your 100th birthday depends largely on genetics and pure luck.
However, there may be some simple ways to increase your chances. At least if you heed the advice of people who have made it this far.
From eating bacon and indulging in chocolate in the morning to playing board games and avoiding men, these are some of the habits that the oldest people ever swore by…
Keeping the brain active is the habit that 119-year-old Kane Tanaka in Japan (top left) swore by before her death. But Jessie Gallan, from Aberdeen (above right), says staying away from men has helped her live as long as she has. San Francisco native Maria Branyas Morera (top center), 116 years old, values a quiet life, while Susannah Mushatt Jones (bottom left), who was the same age, was known for her love of eggs and bacon. Jeanne Calment (bottom center), who reached the record of 121, enjoyed chocolate and red wine, while Juan Vicente Pérez (bottom right) spoke about the importance of taking time for vacation and relaxation
Kane Tanaka lived in Fukuoka, Japan until he was 119 years old. She said her favorite foods were chocolate and fizzy drinks
Keep the brain active
Playing board games and solving puzzles were the favorite pastimes of Kane Tanaka, who was born on January 2, 1903 in the southwestern Fukuoka region of Japan.
In 2019, Guinness World Records named her the oldest living person and in April 2022 she died at the age of 119.
In her earlier years, she owned several businesses, including a noodle shop and a rice cake shop.
But when asked by Japan’s national tourism organization in 2020 about her “ikigai” – the Japanese concept that refers to a person’s reason for getting up in the morning – she said: “I would say to meet a lot of people talk…”
“For me personally, it also means playing Othello, the board game, and solving math puzzles.”
Numerous studies have shown that maintaining brain activity by promoting activity and sociability protects against mental decline.
Tanaka also revealed that her daily routine included waking up at 6 a.m. and spending the afternoon learning math and practicing calligraphy.
And even though she talked about her love Soft drinks, coffee and chocolate, she never said if she thought it helped her become a centenarian.
Despite her love of sweet drinks and chocolate, she recommended some favorites from her home region of Fukuoka, including Hakata Ramen, Motsu Nabe (waste stew), Mentaiko (fish roe) and Mizutaki (chicken stew).
keep calm
In her 116 years, San Francisco native Maria Branyas Morera has made it a priority to live quietly and avoid “toxic people.”
Maria Branyas, born in San Francisco, is the oldest person in the world at 115 years old
The “supercentenarian” – a title given to people when they reach 110 years of age – told Guinness World Records that her long life has been “order, calmness, good connections with family and friends, contact with nature, emotional stability, no worries, no” includes regret” is due to “lots of positivity and distance from toxic people”.
Despite her age, she is active on social media and regularly posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, with the help of her daughter.
In December 2022 she divide Tips on nutrition and highlighting the health benefits of a specific food.
She went on to write “At a time when diets and miracle foods for wellness and health are constantly on the rise, it is necessary to save yogurt, a lifelong food with endless beneficial properties for the body.”
Yogurt is a good source of calcium and protein, which the NHS says is good for bone and muscle health. However, there is no evidence that eating yogurt leads to a longer life.
Avoid men
Staying away from men and eating a lot of porridge is the recipe for living past your 100th birthday, according to Jessie Gallan.
Before she died in 2015 aged 109, the centenarian told all her secrets from her care home in Aberdeen.
Jessie Gallan attributed her long life to eating porridge every day and staying away from men
She said: “My secret to a long life is to stay away from men. “They’re just more trouble than they’re worth.”
“I also made sure I got enough exercise, ate a nice hot bowl of porridge every morning and had never been married.”
According to the British Dietetic Association, porridge is a whole grain product that, when consumed regularly as part of a healthy diet, is said to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes by up to 30 percent.
Eat bacon and eggs
Four strips of bacon, eggs and ground corn in the morning might not sound like the healthiest breakfast, but it allowed Susannah Mushatt Jones to live to be 116 years old.
Before the Brooklyn native died in May 2016, she devoted her twilight years to good food and early nights.
Susannah Mushatt Jones lived to be 116 years old and attributed it all to her love of bacon
According to a staff member at the Brooklyn senior center where she lived, the super-centenarian, who went to bed at 7 p.m. every night and slept for 10 hours, vowed to eat bacon and scrambled eggs for breakfast every day.
“She eats bacon all day,” they told the New York Post.
However, it has been proven that processed meat such as bacon, sausage and ham pose a health risk. The NHS warns that eating a lot of red and processed meat increases the risk of bowel cancer.
Processed meat refers to meat that has been preserved by curing, smoking or salting or by adding preservatives.
But it wasn’t just bacon that kept her alive, Jones was also known to enjoy small luxuries.
Her cousin, Selbra Mushatt, told TIME in 2014: “One time when she had to do an EKG (heart scan), the doctors and nurses were surprised to see her wearing those underwear and she said, ‘Oh yeah, that is possible.’ . Never get too old to wear nice things.’
Eat chocolate
Jeanne Calment is officially the oldest person who has ever lived.
But she did not follow strict diets and was not worried about her health. Instead, she smoked, drank red wine and ate chocolate, according to the archives of her colorful life.
Jeanne Calment died in 1997 at the age of 121 and said she ate a lot of chocolate, drank red wine and smoked.
Besides having a sweet tooth, she also enjoyed foie gras and a rich local stew.
She died in 1997 at the age of 121 and it was only at 117 that doctors recommended that she stop smoking and not drink wine.
Calment, who enjoyed playing tennis and roller skating in her youth, claimed to have met Vincent van Gogh in 1888 when he visited her family’s shop to buy a canvas and described him as “very ugly”.
However, there is evidence that chocolate, especially dark chocolate, may be good for you because it contains high levels of flavanols.
Studies suggest that eating foods rich in this natural compound, including apples, berries and green tea, can improve vascular health and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Take time to relax
Juan Vicente Mora from Venezuela starts his day with a cup of coffee and a glass of aguardiente
The world’s oldest living man celebrated his 114th birthday in May – and he says he took time out of his long life to relax and enjoy a local cane.
Juan Vicente Pérez from Venezuela starts his day with a cup of coffee and a glass of aguardiente, a spirit made from sugar cane.
Aguardiente means fire water in English and contains at least 29 percent alcohol, although some contain up to 60 percent.
On his 113th birthday, Pérez advised to “work hard, rest on vacation, go to bed early, drink a glass of aguardiente every day, love God and always keep him in your heart.”
However, it is not recommended to drink alcohol every day. In fact, according to the NHS, men and women are recommended to drink no more than 14 units a week. This is the equivalent of six pints of beer or ten small glasses of wine.
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Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
