Wisdom of the ages: how to live to 100
WHEN Lynn Peters Adler was 15 she went shopping with her grandmother for her Christmas gift — a new winter coat. As her grandmother was completing the purchase, the saleswoman asked Lynn: ‘How does she want to pay for this?’ Realising that her gran was being ignored, Lynn replied: ‘Why don’t you ask her?’ On the way home, Lynn’s grandmother, who was in her 60s, bemoaned that ‘no-one wants to talk to you when you’re old’.
The teenager paid attention after that and realised that, indeed, people, including family members, treated her grandmother differently. That was in the 1960s. Half a century later it seems laughable that a 60-year-old would be ignored, as an increasing number of men and women are visibly vibrant at that age.
But for Connecticut-based Lynn it was the beginning of a life-long dedication to acknowledging and celebrating older people. Twenty years after that incident with her grandmother, she created the Phoenix Centenarian Program, in Arizona, to honour the city’s oldest citizens — people aged 90 and over. She was still swimming against the tide: “At the time, there were many naysayers who thought it best to ‘leave old people alone where they were, to not bother them’. But with the support of those who were of an advanced age — my willing participants — I was able to show that many of them longed for socialisation,” she says. “They enjoyed having fun.”
READ MORE: World’s oldest woman celebrates 116th birthday .
As a result of the success of the project, she became a consultant on centenarian issues across the US and, 27 years ago, established the non-profit National Centenarian Awareness Project (NCAD).
Having met so many centenarians, what about them has impacted on her most?
“Today, I was thinking of one of my favourite bits of advice from centenarians — it’s from Tom Beston (who is of Irish descent). He said, as people grow older, to “encapsulate the good memories and let the others go. And it’s something I’ve tried to incorporate into my life,” says Lynn.
She says centenarians today are mentally and physically healthier and more active than their counterparts of two decades ago. In Celebrate 100: Centenarian Secrets to Success in Business and Life, a book Lynne co-authored, in 2013, with educator Steve Franklin, she interviewed 500 centenarians.
While serious bucks are being invested in the US to determine the key factors to healthy longevity, Lynn concludes “there is no single secret to making it to 100-plus years.”
Nevertheless, as part of this wonderful book, which is full of rich characters, the authors asked the question that everyone voices: ‘what is your secret to living to 100?’ And though scientific and medical research is constantly drawing its own methodological conclusions, it is fun to ask 100-year-olds for their take on a long, healthy life.
1. Attitude —Almost 100% said staying positive about life was important, with 50% of them describing themselves as realistic and 50% as optimistic.
2. Healthy eating —Moderation is the key. Most of them have always eaten what they like in moderation and continue to do so.
3. Faith — Almost all believed in God or a higher power, which helped them through both good and bad circumstances.
4. Exercise and activity — Forget gyms; the centenarians incorporated physical activity into their jobs and everyday chores and most walked.
5. Clean living —Though this is open to each person’s interpretation, 78% of the centenarians had never smoked and those who had gave up between ages 40 and 70.
6. Family — The intimacy of family featured strongly.
7. Genetics — Though they placed value on their genes, many of the centenarians had no family member who lived beyond their 60s (despite scientific research suggesting longevity odds otherwise), offering hope to those of us with a similar family history.
The 20th century saw the greatest increase in longevity in history, by approximately 30 years, largely due to life-saving and life-extending medical, scientific and technological advances, as well as improved general living standards in the western world.
This is continuing in the 21st century, so the odds are in your favour, if you abide by the centenarians’ ‘seven secrets’! And as Lynn says: “Our increasing number of healthy centenarians have so much to teach us.”
• www.Adlercentenarians.org ; Celebrate 100: Centenarian Secrets for Business and Life, by Lynn Peters Adler and Steve Franklin, John Wiley & Sons, €18.98
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