When Jeanne Calment was born in France on February 21, 1875, the Eiffel Tower had yet to be built and the telephone wouldn’t be invented for another year. When she died on August 4, 1997, she’d lived the longest life in recorded human history: 122 years and 164 days. A longevity expert who knew Calment attributed her record-setting lifespan to the facts that she was wealthy, didn’t smoke until much later in life, and had “absolutely nothing to do except to take care of [herself], to visit France and have social activities.”
There are an estimated 722,000 centenarians — people at least 100 years old — living in the world today, with Japan responsible for more than any other country (roughly 146,000). The vast majority of people who reach that milestone are women, and the oldest man to ever live, Jiroemon Kimura, “only” reached 116. Anyone perusing a list of the world’s oldest people alive today would currently have to scroll down past the top 30 names before reaching a man. Women tend to live longer than men in general, with a mix of genetics, hormones, and lifestyle choices most often cited as the main reasons for their longevity.
There are an estimated 722,000 centenarians — people at least 100 years old — living in the world today, with Japan responsible for more than any other country (roughly 146,000). The vast majority of people who reach that milestone are women, and the oldest man to ever live, Jiroemon Kimura, “only” reached 116. Anyone perusing a list of the world’s oldest people alive today would currently have to scroll down past the top 30 names before reaching a man. Women tend to live longer than men in general, with a mix of genetics, hormones, and lifestyle choices most often cited as the main reasons for their longevity.
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