The world’s second oldest woman has passed away at the age of 116 at a nursing home in Japan.
Local broadcaster MBS reported that Tatsumi was born on 25 April 1907, and raised three children with her husband Ryutaro, a farmer, in Osaka.
An official in Osaka’s Kashiwara city said, as tributes to the supercentenarian poured in that Tatsumi passed away aged 116 at a care facility in Osaka.
Tatsumi’s elder son, Kanji, 76, told local media that he thought she did great to get to this age.
Osaka governor Hirofumi Yoshimura offered his condolences, recalling a party he attended to honour Tatsumi’s longevity in September.
Hirofumi Yoshimura said he still remembered how healthy Ms Fusa Tatsumi was, and that he sincerely prayed for her soul.
In footage aired by local media outlets, she was seen in a wheelchair, mainly sleeping, at her 116th birthday celebration in April.
Tatsumi was born on 25 April 1907 in Yao City, Osaka Prefecture, as the fifth of six siblings.
After graduating from school, she married her husband Ryutaro, a farmer who grew peaches and grapes, at the age of 32.
Two years later, she gave birth to her eldest daughter in 1941 and then her eldest son in 1947. Her husband later passed away at the age of 55.
Tatsumi worked hard on the family farm for more than 20 years and would carry baskets of harvested fruit on her back up and down the steep incline of the orchard.
Her family said this had helped train Tatsumi’s body, which may have been a factor in her longevity.
The mother of two was passionate about growing chrysanthemum flowers and flower arranging as a hobby, but while gardening in her 70s, she fell and broke her femur, the only serious injury she sustained in her life.
Tatsumi was healthy enough to live in her family home until she was 106. She would eat three meals a day and was careful to have a nutritious diet consisting of vegetables, fish and a small amount of meat.
Her care home said she would consume one litre of water a day and would keep a plastic bottle and cup within reach of her bed. They added that Tatsumi, at the age of 110, would do her make-up and frequently talk to staff.
Tatsumi became Japan’s oldest person in the country after the death of a 119-year-old woman, Kane Tanaka, in April 2022.
It’s awesome living to such a ripe old age, however, it must have been extremely heartbreaking for her to have seen friends and family pass away before she did.
This lady was doing something that most of us don’t and that’s eating a well-balanced diet, plenty of fresh air, getting exercise and keeping hydrated. Something that we’ve known for an extremely long time, but don’t take any notice of, and I bet this lady saw some changes in her lifetime and shifts in history to last her a lifetime.
Just imagine what this woman must have witnessed during her long life. The first car, planes and the first man to walk on the Moon, and oh yes, the atomic bomb!
You hear it all the time, eat more fruits and vegetables. Get away from processed foods, and fast foods. Improve your health and you will have a better chance of longevity. Look better, feel better, more energy. Bless her, she did look good at 116 and she’s an inspiration to us all!
I’m not sure if the world was a better place when this lady entered it or when she left it, but I do hope that before I die the world is a better place than it is right now. She watched 126 years of continuous change.
THE MONTHLY MOSQUITO 