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Japan’s centenarian count reaches record 86,500 and women make up 88% of them
The number of people aged 100 and over in Japan is estimated to have reached a record 86,510 and the number of men reaching the milestone topped 10,000 for the first time, data from the Health Ministry showed.
The number of centenarians as of September 15 represents an increase of 6,060 from a year earlier, marking the 51st consecutive year of increase, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said.
Of the 86,510 people, women represented 88.4% (5,475 more than the previous year) Men totaled 10,060 (585 more) as the data showed.
When the survey began in 1963, the number of centenarians in the country was 153, but it reached 1,000 in 1981 and exceeded 10,000 in 1998, mainly due to advances in medical technology.
In July, the ministry said the average life expectancy in Japan, one of the world’s fastest-aging populations, rose to record levels in 2020: 87.74 for women and 81.64 for men.
Kane Tanaka , a 118-year-old resident of Fukuoka Prefecture, is the oldest Japanese woman and has been recognized as the world’s oldest living person by Guinness World Records. Tanaka was born in 1903, the year the Wright brothers flew the world’s first powered airplane. Mikizo Ueda , a 111-year-old resident of Nara Prefecture, is the oldest Japanese man.
By prefecture, Shimane has the highest number of centenarians per 100,000 population for the ninth consecutive year at 134.75, followed by Kochi and Kagoshima at 126.29 and 118.74, respectively. The national average stands at 68.54.