More than 2,000 people in Cuba are 100 years old or older, study finds

More than 2,000 people in Cuba are 100 years old or older, study finds
Published June 02, 2017 Fox News

Cuba is home to some 2,000 people over 100 years old, according to data
released by the Ministry of Public Health. In the first quarter of 2017,
a total of 2,153 centennials lived in the island, of which more than
1,200 were women.

"Centennials now represent one of the fastest-growing segments of the
population, with very special socioeconomic and health implications,"
said Dr. Alberto Fernández Seco, head of the Ministry's Department of
the Older Adult, Social Assistance and Mental Health, to Juventud
Rebelde, a leading newspaper in Cuba.

The communist nation is among the countries with the longest-lived
people, with 19.8 percent of its population (2,219,784 people) aged 60
and over.

He said that the reason for this a decline in fertility, but also a
decrease in mortality for all ages. "In Cuba, access to health services
is guaranteed free of charge as well as coverage of social security
programs."

Dr. Fernandez Seco noted that most of Cuba's centennials are not
demented, disabled or dependent. "They are an example of successful
population aging," he said.

According to Juventud Rebelde, the data show that the majority of
centennials were between 100 and 104 years old, white and lived with
other relatives in the side of the country.

Dr. Fernández Seco pointed out that optimism, the desire to live and
developing projects are the common denominators among those who live the
longest. "The important thing is how we face different situations in
life, how we overcome difficulties and how we are motivated," he said.

A team of researchers led by National Geographic journalist Dan
Buettner, author of "The Secret of the Blue Zones," has identified five
places around the world with the highest life expectancy: the islands of
Sardinia (Italy), Okinawa (Japan), Icaria (Greece), the Nicoya peninsula
in Costa Rica, and the Loma Linda city in California.

They devoted themselves to studying the mysteries of longevity there and
listed nine factors that the inhabitants of the blue zones had in
common. Among them, they found, were daily physical activity, stop
eating when the stomach is 80 percent full, belonging to a faith-based
community and choosing social circles that support healthy behaviors.

"Research shows that smoking, obesity, happiness, and even loneliness
are contagious," Buettner wrote on his website.

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