Longevity experts Héctor García and Francesc Miralles studied the longest-living people in the world to write “Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life.”
While researching, they learned that there are around 300 to 450 people in the world who are aged 110 and older. These people are often referred to as supercentenarians.
“They aren’t superheroes, but we could see them as such for having spent far more time on this planet than the average life expectancy would predict,” wrote García and Miralles. “A healthy and purposeful life could help us join their ranks.”
García and Miralles went on to compile quotes from interviews they found with supercentenarians and devoted an entire chapter in their book to the wise advice.
Here’s what three of the supercentenarians in García and Miralles’ book suggest for living a long and happy life.
‘Everything’s fine.’
Jeanne Calment lived 122 years, and earned the title of the world’s oldest person on record. She was born in the south of France in 1875 and lived a pretty low-stress life as a wealthy woman.
Calment rode a bike up until she turned 100 and lived on her own until she was 110, according to García and Miralles. She had “absolutely nothing to do except to take care of [herself], to visit France and have social activities,” Jean-Marie Robine, an expert demographer who studies the links between health and longevity, who knew Calment, told CNBC Make It.
Calment’s sense of humor may have been one of her best longevity secrets, say García and Miralles. During an interview on her 120th birthday, she said, “I see badly, I hear badly, and I feel bad, but everything’s fine.”
Keep your mind and your body busy and ‘you’ll be here a long time.’
Walter Breuning was born