The oldest person in the world, Japanese Tomiko Itooka, died at the age of 116, the city of Ashiya (southern Japan) where she lived announced on Saturday.
Tomiko Itooka, who had four children and five grandchildren, died on December 29 in the residence for the elderly where she had resided since 2019, the mayor of Ashiya said in a press release.
Born on May 23, 1908 in Osaka, not far from Ashiya, she was identified as the oldest of humanity after the death in August 2024 of the Spaniard Maria Branyas Morera at the age of 117. “Ms. Itooka gave us courage and hope throughout her long life,” commented Ashiya Mayor Ryosuke Takashima. “We thank her for that,” added the 27-year-old elected official.
Nearly 100,000 centenarians in Japan
Coming from a family of three children, a volleyball player in her youth, she has experienced wars, pandemics and technological revolutions. In her old age, she was fond of bananas and Calpis, a drink made from lactic ferments very popular in Japan, according to the town hall press release.
Japan is currently experiencing a demographic crisis, with a growing elderly population and a shrinking working population funding increased medical and social spending. As of September, Japan had more than 95,000 centenarians, 88% of them women. Nearly a third of the country’s 124 million inhabitants are 65 and over.
