Latest news with #EthelCaterham
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Lifestyle
- Time of India
World's oldest woman, 115 years old, swears by this one rule for a long life
In a world where everyone searches for the secret to living a long and fulfilling life, the wisdom of those who have actually achieved extraordinary longevity is invaluable. Ethel Caterham, the world's oldest living woman at the age of 115, offers a simple yet powerful insight into how she has managed to live such a remarkable life. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Born in 1909, Ethel has witnessed immense global changes—from world wars to technological revolutions—and through it all, she has maintained a philosophy that has kept her peaceful, healthy, and vibrant. Her secret? One straightforward rule that she believes has helped her live over a century: 'Never argue with anyone. I listen and I do what I like.' This rule, rooted in calmness and self-respect, reveals much about the connection between emotional well-being and longevity. One rule the 115-year-old world's oldest woman lives by every day When asked about her secret to living beyond a century, Ethel's answer was refreshingly simple: avoiding arguments and listening more. She said, 'Never argue with anyone. I listen and I do what I like.' This philosophy centers on emotional calmness and self-control, avoiding unnecessary conflicts that can drain energy and increase stress. Scientific research confirms the wisdom in Ethel's words. Chronic stress and emotional turmoil are linked to an increased risk of heart disease, weakened immune function, and accelerated aging. By choosing to avoid arguments, Ethel likely protected her body and mind from these harmful effects, creating an environment where health and happiness could flourish. Ethel Caterham's early life and formative experiences Ethel Caterham was born on August 21, 1909, in the village of Shipton Bellinger, England. Growing up as the second youngest in a family of eight siblings, her early years were shaped by simplicity and traditional values. Life at that time was markedly different — horse-drawn carriages, handwritten letters, and a world on the brink of World War I. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Despite the many historical upheavals she experienced, Ethel maintained a steady and calm disposition throughout her life. This ability to remain composed and adaptable was a foundation that supported her health and longevity. How emotional well-being impacts longevity Emotional health is increasingly recognized as a critical factor in overall longevity. Studies show that people who manage their emotions well and maintain stable, positive relationships tend to live longer and healthier lives. Chronic emotional conflict can lead to inflammation in the body, which is associated with many age-related diseases. Ethel's ability to listen and remain composed reflects an emotional resilience that scientific studies link to longevity. By conserving her energy for positive experiences rather than arguments, she helped her body maintain a healthier internal balance. A life rich with experience and travel Ethel's long life was also marked by boldness and curiosity. At 18, she traveled to India to work as a nanny, embracing new cultures and challenges. Later, she lived in Hong Kong and Gibraltar with her husband, a British army major. These experiences likely enriched her life and kept her mentally engaged, another important factor linked to healthy aging. Despite frequent moves and changes, Ethel's calm demeanor never wavered. She raised two daughters in the UK and continued to live with strength and grace, even after the loss of her husband. 115 years of life, love, and calm: What Ethel teaches us about longevity Ethel recently celebrated her 115th birthday surrounded by friends, family, and caregivers. Beyond the impressive number, her story is a reminder that longevity is about quality as much as quantity. Her life teaches us that peace of mind, emotional balance, and simple joy can be the most effective ingredients for a long life. Practical lessons From Ethel Caterham's rule for long life While we cannot all control our genetics or the eras we live through, Ethel's simple rule offers actionable wisdom: Avoid unnecessary conflict : Focus on listening and understanding rather than arguing, which can reduce stress and promote emotional health. : Focus on listening and understanding rather than arguing, which can reduce stress and promote emotional health. Do what you like : Prioritise your happiness and well-being, embracing personal autonomy and enjoyment. : Prioritise your happiness and well-being, embracing personal autonomy and enjoyment. Stay curious : Embrace new experiences and cultures to keep your mind active and engaged. : Embrace new experiences and cultures to keep your mind active and engaged. Practice emotional resilience: Develop habits that support calmness and mental clarity, such as mindfulness and deep breathing. Supporting healthy longevity with modern science Ethel's philosophy aligns with scientific recommendations for longevity, which emphasize emotional health alongside physical health. Regular exercise, hydration, stress management, a balanced diet, and strong social connections are all essential. Emotional calmness and happiness have been shown to enhance immune function, reduce the risk of chronic disease, and improve overall life satisfaction.
India Today
21-05-2025
- Health
- India Today
Want to live to 100? 8 habits that could help
Want to live to 100? 8 habits that could help A 115-year-old woman named Ethel Caterham is officially the oldest human alive. So, what is the secret of the British woman? Experts put together some secrets of longevity that could help live a long life. Representative Image Engaging in daily physical activity, such as brisk walking, can significantly increase life expectancy. Even 75 minutes per week can add about two years to your life. Regular Physical Activity Extended periods of inactivity are detrimental to health. Standing up every 30 minutes and incorporating movement into your day can reduce the risk of premature death. Avoid Prolonged Sitting Consuming a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and legumes, while limiting trans fats, red or processed meats, fried foods, and sugary items, is associated with healthier ageing. Balanced Diet Studies suggest that caloric restriction and intermittent fasting can lead to positive metabolic shifts, potentially increasing lifespan. Caloric Restriction Maintaining regular, good-quality sleep patterns is crucial. Irregular sleep can increase the risk of early death by 50%. Quality Sleep Sleep requirements vary among individuals. It's important to find a sleep routine that suits your personal needs for optimal health. Strong social ties and community involvement are linked to longer life spans. Engaging with others can provide emotional support and reduce stress. Social Connections Having a sense of purpose or "ikigai" can motivate healthy behaviors and contribute to a longer, more fulfilling life. Credit: Getty Images Purposeful Living Limiting or avoiding tobacco and excessive alcohol consumption is essential for reducing the risk of chronic diseases and promoting longevity. Avoiding Harmful Substances
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Want to live to 100? Here are four habits to adopt now
A 115-year-old Surrey woman named Ethel Caterham has officially been handed the title of the oldest living human alive. Many people reading this news may wonder what Ms Caterham's secret is. While it isn't usually a good idea to take health and longevity advice from supercentenarians (as they're often the exception rather than the rule), there are some lifestyle pointers that we can take from research on groups of long-lived people that might help us increase our chances of living a longer life. Physical activity is good for you – who knew? Research shows that people who are more physically active each day tend to live longer, healthier lives. One study found that going from no physical activity to about 75 minutes per week of brisk walking increased life expectancy by about two years. But perhaps less well known is just how bad inactivity is for your health and longevity. It's a tad difficult to explain, but the positive effects of exercise are actually different from the negative effects of inactivity. That means that you can have a positive influence on your health by being both more active and avoiding being inactive. Yet as good as structured exercise is for you, it can't by itself offset the harms of inactivity and sitting all day. Research even shows that being sedentary is associated with higher risk of premature death from any cause. If you want to live longer, you should try to avoid sitting for long periods of time if possible. Practical tips for this include standing up every 30 minutes, going to see someone in the office instead of calling or emailing them and standing on public transport during commuting. This, plus the aim to do about 30 minutes moderate exercise most days will help maximise your odds of a long, healthy life. The advice many kids dread: eat your vegetables if you want to live a long time. A recent study that followed around 100,000 people over a 30-year period found that people who made it to 70 years of age in good health (meaning they had no chronic diseases) typically ate more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and legumes, and fewer trans-fats, red or processed meats, fried foods and sugary foods. Importantly, this study doesn't say that you must be a vegan, or never eat red meats – it only identifies trends within diets associated with healthy ageing. When and how much you eat may also play a role when it comes to ageing. Research on caloric restriction and intermittent fasting in animals has shown both can increase lifespan. Our preliminary work in humans has also shown that following a fasting diet for three weeks can cause similar, positive metabolic shifts that match what we've seen in animals that will live longer. However, larger studies over longer time-frames are needed to establish effects on healthspan and lifespan in humans. Regular, good quality sleep is also important for lifelong health and overall longevity. In a study of about 500,000 British people, irregular sleep patterns were associated with a 50 per cent higher risk of early death compared to those with regular sleep patterns. Shift workers showed higher risk for strokes, and nurses who worked rotating shifts for decades were less healthy and had earlier deaths at retirement compared to nurses who didn't work shifts. While this data suggests that good quality, regular sleep is important for good health, how much sleep you need and when you should go to bed appears to be highly individualistic. This makes giving population-wide recommendations difficult – which is why the NHS recommends adults get between 7-9 hours sleep. Stress has many effects on your health. For instance, increasing evidence shows that early-life stressors (such as loss of a parent, neglect or abuse) can negatively affect health later in life – even down to a molecular and cellular level by increasing inflammation levels in ways that could increase the risk of poor health and premature death in older age. Conversely, older adults that show increased psychological resilience to stress are less likely to die from any cause. As little as eight weeks of regular yoga is enough to improve psychological resilience in older adults. Possibly linked is the effect of social connections. Those that live more socially active lives also tend to live longer. In fact, people over 65 who are socially active daily are three times more likely to live for five more years compared to those that almost never engage in social activities. It's a common finding that strong social networks appear to enhance longevity. This may be due to the way social connections help us alleviate stressors in our lives. While there are many lifestyle habits we can change, one thing we can't control when it comes to our lifespans is genetics. Some research suggests that naturally-occurring mutations in genes associated with longevity are more common in long-lived people. Although it's hard to tease out the role of genetics versus lifestyle when it comes to lifespan, current predictions suggest that longevity is between 20-40 per cent related to genetics. But good genetics aren't everything. Although Ethel Caterham has made it to the remarkable age of 115 – and one of her sisters lived to be 104 – Ms Caterham's two daughters pre-deceased her at 71 and 83 years of age. And even if you do win the genetic jackpot and follow a good lifestyle, you would still be very lucky to make it to Ms Caterham's grand old age of 115. Cells mutate, clots form, biological luck runs out. Still, if you want to maximise your odds of living longer and staying as healthy as possible, aim to be more physically active each day, eat a good diet, get a good night's sleep and keep stress levels low. Bradley Elliott is a Reader in Ageing Physiology at the University of Westminster This article was originally published by The Conversation and is republished under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article
Time of India
06-05-2025
- Lifestyle
- Time of India
Nakshatra excels in Taekwondo
World's oldest living person, who is 115 years old, shares the one rule that's helped her live so long In a world full of chaos, stress, and constant noise, one woman has quietly walked her path — without arguing, without fuss — and lived to become the world's oldest person. Meet Ethel Caterham, a 115-year-old British woman who now holds the title of the world's oldest living person, according to the Gerontology Research before World War I even began, Ethel's life stretches back to August 21, 1909. But while much around her has changed — wars, technology, and the way people live — her simple mantra has stayed the same: 'Never argue with anyone. I listen and I do what I like.' This one rule, she says, is her secret to long all we need to know about her life, and why her peaceful philosophy is something that still matters today. Times Of India
Times
06-05-2025
- Health
- Times
How long are you going to live? You could make it to 115
The men in my family don't live long. My father died at 69, my grandfather and great-grandfather at 67. I can't change my genes but, if I could, I'd be taking a close look at the DNA of the 115-year-old Surrey resident Ethel Caterham, the world's oldest living person. Or Colin Bell, the 104-year-old Mosquito pilot who was interviewed on TV this morning as part of the VE Day celebrations, still as sharp as a pin and with an endearing twinkle in his eye. The UK doesn't fare well when it comes to life expectancy. Caterham may be the world-record holder but the last time we held the title was nearly 40 years ago. Indeed, based on an average life expectancy at birth, the UK is very much second tier, lying 33rd in the international league tables, just below Slovenia. According to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics average life expectancy in the UK is now 78.8 years for men and 82.8 for women. However, these are estimates at birth, so if you survive into late adulthood the odds of living longer improve, with the average 65-year-old man likely to make it to at least 83 (86 for a woman). And those who reach 85 can expect to live at least another five years, with 1 in 33 and 1 in 18 women going on to celebrate a century. Not that it's all about how long you live. Like most people, particularly doctors, I am far more interested in how I live. That is why I prefer to focus on healthy life expectancy (HLE), which reflects the number of years a person can expect to live in good health. One person's idea of good health, or quality of life, is unlikely to be exactly the same as someone else's but, putting that aside, HLE can be an important guide to planning for the future. Not least deciding when to retire, draw your pension, downsize or take that trip of a lifetime. Again, these are just averages so can't predict what is going to happen to you — rather they estimate what would happen to a group of 100 people like you. And here the UK doesn't fare that well either with an average HLE in England of 61.5 and 61.9 years for men and women respectively, compared to 63 and 65 in France, and 72 for both sexes in Sweden. Perhaps more worrying is that the significant increases in life expectancy seen over the past century in the UK have stalled, and even fallen in recent years. There has been much debate as to why, but most analysts agree that while Covid, austerity and pressures on the NHS are all important factors, they are not the only ones, and there are similar downward trends in other countries too. Social deprivation remains a key factor, as reflected in HLE estimates for different parts of England. The healthiest men in England live in London and can expect on average to have about 64 'good' years from a health perspective, seven more years than their peers living in the northeast. The healthiest women are in the southeast and have a HLE of 64.4 years, compared with 57.5 for those in the northeast. Cancer and cardiovascular disease (stroke and heart attack) account for the majority of lost years of life with — unsurprisingly — smoking, obesity, high cholesterol and raised blood pressure all featuring as significant risk factors for an earlier-than-expected demise. However, the data for HLE isn't quite so predictable, not least because it is self-reported, so the individual's perception of their health matters as much as black-and-white mortality statistics. Impairment due to heart and circulatory problems still feature highly but it's musculoskeletal conditions such as back pain, arthritis and osteoporosis that top the list. I am 63 this year and I hope the good years will continue for some time. My family history may be worrying but genes are just one factor, accounting for about 15-40 per cent of variation in longevity, depending on which research you believe. Even then, the link is complicated because your genetic make-up can shorten or prolong your life for myriad reasons, ranging from predisposition to early cancers or heart disease to enhanced repair of age-related cellular damage. I am (relatively) slim, active and lead a pretty healthy lifestyle, so I'm doing what I can and trying not to worry that, in just over six years' time, I could be the oldest Porter male for four generations. Fortunately my wife, Ros, has a more reassuring family history. Her grandmother lived to 100 and her mother is still driving at 93. I married well. Life expectancy: what you need to know
