100 Year Olds’ Profiles

Centenarians (people one hundred years of age or older), from a percentage perspective, are the fastest growing segment of today’s society.

 
In 2009 there were approximately 100,000 centenarians living in the U.S.  This group is projected to reach 1 million by 2050.  Seems like a long way off . . . however for a current 60 year old, 2050 would be the year they reach one hundred years of age.   

One hundred year old people are quite an inspirational group.  Following are the predominant factors that make them unique. 

Moderate everything… life habits involving food, drink, exercise, and personality were always moderate.  There were some extremes but they tended to balance out within the individuals life.  

Being mentally and physically active was a central theme.  “Keep the brain stimulated” was a frequently heard statement.  Activities mostly centered round the community, family and other friends.  Most had lots of interaction with other people throughout their lives.   

One hundred year olds, overall, feel a sense of purpose, are optimistic, accepting, and normally live life a day at a time.  Most do not, and never have, worried a lot about the future. 

A typical one hundred year olds view on personal healthcare was interesting.  Almost unanimously, they accepted responsibility for their own health and were not reliant on doctors.  A common viewpoint was that the average doctor has hundreds of patients and how can he/she possibly take responsibility for my overall health.  Some centenarians avoided doctors (not endorsed by author).    

Another predominant belief is that ‘getting older does not mean getting sick more often’.  I believe this is somewhat contrary to present day general thinking, which is the attitude the older you get the more often you get sick and need a doctor’s attention.   Most centenarians do not buy into that thought process. 

Supporting the centenarian’s claims of taking responsibility for one’s health, a Columbia University report states that 95% of all cancer is caused by an unhealthy diet or environmental toxicity, both somewhat controllable.   Another report estimates that only 30% of longevity factors are due to family heredity. My research revealed some great individual 100 year olds’ stories, some notable ones were:

Edna Parker lived alone on an Indiana farm until age 100.  Edna lived to be 114.

Grace Thaxton coveted her independence, made rugs by hand until she was 103. Lived to be 114.  

Marion Higgens once said “I don’t really dislike anything”.  Wrote and published life story at 102, lived to be 112.

Wesley Brown worked at age 10.  Today, at age 102, is a Federal Court judge still showing up daily at the courthouse.

M. Gladys Sweetland played piano up until the time she died at 113.

Hoang Thi Hom, at 110 years could rattle off with ease the names of her 17 grandchildren, 21 great-grandchildren.

Emma Henderson still league bowls at the age of 101.

My personal favorite from this group of centenarians was the advice Marion Higgens got from her grandmother.   While Marion was still a young girl her grandmother advised her to split her time into two parts; (1)”had to do”, and (2) “want to do”, and then give top priority to those things that you “want to do”.

Surprising to me, many centenarians seem to have a liking for sweets.  Daisy McFadden, 100, says she can’t do without her chocolate chip cookies.  Louis Sussman, 101, has eaten a scoop of ice cream almost every day of his life.  Viola Crowson, 100, loves brownies along with an occasional Hardy’s hamburger.  Remember, all this is in moderation.

Another interesting aspect of longevity was the relationship between smiling and age expectancy.  According to a research study at Wayne State University people with big smiles live longer than people with partial smiles and live a lot longer than people who do not smile at all.

I realized a few items missing that I thought would come up for those individuals I studied :

At the conclusion of my research

• No one mentioned vitamins or nutritional supplements.
• No vegetarians.
• No exercise fanatics.
• No big avoidance of desserts or sweets, as mentioned earlier.
• No one mentioned it was their goal in life to live to be 100, it just happened. 

Are these missing items coincidence or in some ways contradictory to modern expert advice?  I don’t think so and personally feel that it is simply an inaccurate picture many of us have of healthy people and thinking that many of them are diet and exercise fanatics.  My take is, there may be some truth to the picture, but for the most part, it is just a hyped up illusion.  A fanatic of “anything” would destroy the balance and moderate habits illustrated almost unanimously by the centenarians included in this article.    

You make up your own mind.  It is certainly not a one size fits all discussion.

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