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At 114 years old, Naomi Whitehead is older than the zipper, tanks — and all other Americans.
Born in Georgia on 26 September, 1910, Whitehead became the oldest living person in the US after the previous record holder, Elizabeth Francis, died last month at the age of 115.
Whitehead never expected to live so long, telling New Castle News in 2023: "I'll live as long as the Lord lets me."
Living past 100 is unusual: as of January this year, centenarians made up 0.03% of the US population, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of US Census Bureau data. But average life expectancies are growing, alongside interest in how our lifestyles can help us live longer. Biohackers such as Bryan Johnson spend hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to live as long as Whitehead.
Whitehead believed it was the simple things in life that kept her healthy. (Genetics probably have probably played a sizable role, too).
With a little help from one of her 12 grandchildren, Dan Whitehead, she shared some lifestyle factors that may have helped her reach her 114.
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In an interview with Jack Gordon, a YouTuber, Whitehead said that her biggest piece of advice is to "work hard." Whitehead worked on a farm for years, plowing fields and picking cotton and tobacco, so she was constantly moving.
This advice echoes that of other centenarians that Business Insider has reported on: William, a 101-year-old based in Toronto, attributed his longevity to having had many different jobs and retiring at 85.
A 2023 study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that people who were sedentary throughout the day were more likely to die earlier than those who exercised every day.
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"She's a Godly woman," her grandson said. "She is truly blessed.''
Being religious is another trait that supercentenarians share. Research suggests that it can provide a sense of purpose and a community — two things linked to longevity.
A 2016 study on 74,534 female nurses in the US aged between 30 to 55 found those who attended a religious service more than once a week were 33% less likely to die early than women who attended none. The researchers based at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health suggested that this could partly be because of the social support and optimism the community can provide.
Whitehead said she had never smoked a cigarette or drank alcohol — two things that are associated with a longer life. The World Health Organization says that no level of alcohol consumption is safe for health, and a 2021 study published in the European Journal of Public Health found that light to moderate drinking, defined as less than one alcoholic drink per day, was the cause of 13.3% of 3,723,600 alcohol-related cancers in Europe in 2017.
Likewise, smoking tobacco causes eight million deaths worldwide annually, the WHO reported last year. On average, people who have never smoked live about 10 years longer than those who do, according to the American Cancer Society.
