More Seniors are Living to 100

While the idea of living to the age of 100 and beyond may seem like a faraway science fiction dream for many, with the majority of people measuring their lifespans in double digits, and the majority of those who do reach 100 or beyond becoming stories worth noting, the fact is that worldwide the number of centenarians, the term for people aged 100 to 110, is expected to increase sharply. The United Nations is expecting the number of centenarians worldwide to reach over 570,000, with nearly 100,000 of them living here in these United States.

Every year, the number of centenarians rises all over the world, with some experts projecting that there could be as many as one million globally by 2050. Of the baby boomer generation, 1 in 26, or nealy 4%, are expected to live to at least 100, with many, many more falling just short of that, living well into their nineties. In fact, September 22nd in America is National Centenarians’ Day, to commemorate their accomplishments in longevity.

While living to such an advanced age is, of course quite an accomplishment to be celebrated, it goes hand in hand with some unique challenges that will be faced by centenarians. Just as a left handed person finds difficulty in a society built for the right-handed, so too will those living two or three decades longer than anyone expected or planned for them to.

For today’s centenarians, nearly 1 out of 4 have admitted that they were not as financially prepared to live this long as they would have liked to be. Centenarians alive today lived through a very diverse set of economic situations, having spent their childhoods during the Great Depression, and then their adulthoods in the American manufacturing and economic boom in the years following World War 2. Nearly 10% of centenarians said they wished they’d been better and more willing to make sacrifices to save more money over the course of their lives.

For many centenarians, they cite physical fitness as a key that helped them live to their advanced age. But exercise doesn’t necessarily have to be strenuous or high intensity, or in large amounts. Simply performing consistent, low level activity, such as walking for a half hour each day, is enough to reap the benefits of exercise the same as someone who exercises for shorter, more intense bursts. Diet factors in as well. As centenarians spent their early and middle adulthood in the mid-century period, they became accustomed to eating the smaller, less filling portions that are provided in today’s restaurants and eateries. Eat good food, in moderation, and eat less of it to lose weight if necessary.

Japan, a country high in centenarians, maintains a daily diet low in calories, high in fruit, vegetables, fiber, and good fats like the omegas found in fish or nuts. Loma Linda in California is another community with a high proportion of centenarians, which is attributed to the predominant religious views there causing the residents to abstain from smoking, drinking, and excess sugar.