The world’s oldest person, Misao Okawa, will celebrate her 116th birthday on March 5 2014.
And ahead of this momentous occasion she shared her secret to longevity (and she would know).
“Eat and sleep and you will live a long time,” she told The Telegraph in a message. “You have to learn to relax.”
“Mrs Okawa eats three large meals a day and makes sure that she sleeps eight hours a night,” said Tomohito Okada, the head of the Kurenai retirement home, where she has been a resident for the past 18 years.
“She insists that her favourite meal is sushi, particularly mackerel on vinegar-steamed rice, and she has it at least once every month.”
Misao, who holds the Guinness World Record as the world’s oldest woman. But has recently assumed the title of the oldest person in the world following the death of 116-year-old Jireomon Kimura in June 2013.
She is outliving the average life span for women in Japan (85.9 years) by 30 years and counting.
A descendent of Kimono merchants, Misao was born in Osaka, Japan on March 5, 1898.
She married in 1919 and had three children, of which a daughter and a son are still alive. She has four grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Her husband passed away in 1931, some 83 years ago.
According to The Guinness World Records, Misao also belongs to an elite group – the supercentenarians. Members to this exclusive club need to be at least 110 years old.
Join us in wishing her a very happy birthday!