World's Oldest Living Person Passes Away at 117

Improve the News Foundation -
0:00
/1861

Facts

  • Maria Branyas Morera, who was born on March 4, 1907 in San Francisco, Calif., has died at the age of 117. She died peacefully in her sleep at a nursing home in the town of Olot in north-eastern Spain, where she spent the last 20 years.[1][2]
  • She lived in other US cities, such as New Orleans, La., where her father wrote for a Spanish-language magazine, but her family moved back to Spain when she was young. She lived through the Franco regime and said she remembered the WWII Normandy invasion vividly.[2]
  • Morera was married to a doctor for 40 years, with whom she had three children and 12 grandchildren. While she endured typical vision, hearing, and mobility issues at her age, there was no indication of any mortal illnesses, and reportedly never showed signs of dementia.[2]
  • She lived through the Spanish Civil War from 1936-1939, both world wars, the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, and the COVID pandemic. She contracted but survived the COVID virus at the age of 113.[3][4]
  • She cited 'order, tranquillity, good connections with family and friends, contact with nature, emotional stability, no worries, no regrets, lots of positivity, and staying away from toxic people' as reasons for her long life.[3]
  • Morera became the oldest living person following the death of French nun Lucile Randon, who was born in 1904 and died last year. The oldest living person is now believed to be Japan's Tomiko Itooka, who is 116. The oldest person on record was French woman Jeanne Louise Calment, who died at 122 in 1997.[4]

Sources: [1]Guardian, [2]New York Times, [3]Al Jazeera and [4]Euronews.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Guardian. Stories like Morera are likely to become much more common, with a projected 3.7M 100-year-olds expected to be on the planet by 2050. For those who wish to be in that group, the advice of centenarians today is generally to be religious or spiritual, find a purpose in life, laugh a lot, and find love. Not only will this help you reach 100 and beyond, it will help you stay happy as you age.
  • Narrative B, as provided by CNBC. While sentimental, anecdotal advice is nice to read about, there are concrete scientific answers as to why certain populations live longer than others. These areas of the world are called 'blue zones,' and their record-breaking populations come down to a few simple factors — particularly related to diet and exercise. This includes plant-based meals, losing weight, daily walks, and spending time with social connections.

Predictions