Two things pique my interest: what is the secret of a centenarian’s long life and do they enjoy the bland, salt-less and sugar-free foods these long-lifers eat?
When I saw that a Japanese gentleman recently celebrated his 112th birthday, I stopped everything to read the story carefully. You do not know what nuggets of wisdom these super-seniors may spout that could be beneficial to your well-being.
A picture showed the man, Masazou Nonaka, receiving an award from Guinness World Records, for beating the world record for living the longest. The gentleman seemed very pleased with the award, as if he had run a marathon and survived.
Over the years there have been many contenders for the Guinness World Record for a variety of achievements — unique and uncommon. Six years ago over 200 participants of 72 nationalities washed their hands simultaneously in the UAE during a ‘Hands for Hygiene’ event in Dubai. They send home the message that cleaning your hands before eating and after using the washroom prevents disease and extends your life. The expats in the World Record event came from countries as diverse as Azerbaijan, Bolivia, Estonia, Iraq and Zimbabwe. In another instance students and staff from the Federal Institute of Science and Technology in India held the record for taking the largest number of selfies or self-portraits — 1, 000 frames in a minute — in their campus in Angamaly, near Kochi.
Back to the longevity debate, the only centenarian in the Middle East I am aware of is Sleiman Al Mal, 117, a resident of the border village of Heker Hanin in north Lebanon. Two years ago, he was listed as the father of 12 children, the oldest being 75 years old and the youngest, 5. His secret? “Pure olive oil, honey and goat ghee are an elixir for good health and long life and should be at the heart of all meals.”
‘Ojiee-San’ Nonaka, who was born in 1905, enjoys eating sweets, especially cakes. “Delicious,” he said sampling his cake.
“What kind of a role model is this?” I said to myself, staring at the wall after reading that piece of info. Doctors warn people to keep away from sweets, or at least eat in moderation, to stave off obesity that leads to diabetes.
Governments are frantically trying to put a tax on sugar, like the one on tobacco and cigarettes and to make it expensive for people to guzzle sugary, fizzy drinks, that are the cause of all the adverse health issues in the world. The report did not mention what Nonaka ate for nourishment, only mentioned that he enjoys the hot springs on the Island of Hokkaido, where he lives. His other joy in life is relaxing and obviously does not believe in stressing himself out. Then Jessie Gallan, a 109-year-old woman in Scotland, bared her secret for a long life: Eat a warm bowl of porridge every morning, exercise and never marry. What she had actually said was that her secret is, “staying away from men. They’re just more trouble than they’re worth.”
“Now she tells me,” I thought to myself. Wonder if it works the other way around and what would life have been like without a wife and to live for 100 years. “My life would have been set,” I said. Psychologists on the other hand say married people live longer and are happier, but then they could have been paid off by wedding planners and the mafia in the marriage industry.
If you really wish to be a doddering 100-year-old and enjoy birthday cake here is some serious advice from centenarians: Have good friends, smoke a good cigar, drink lots of water (no alcohol), stay positive, sing a lot, and that should keep you hanging on a long time. And also eat a kilo of chocolate every week.
Mahmood Saberi is a storyteller and blogger based in Bengaluru, India. Twitter: @mahmood_saberi.
