Who are Earth’s two oldest ladies, and how did they live to 116?

Most recently, in August, the oldest woman on Earth, Maria Branhas Morera, died. The championship belongs to a Japanese woman named Tomiko Itoka, who is now 116 years old.

However, Tomika has a rival of the same age. The oldest living Brazilian woman and the second oldest in the world, And on Canabarro Lucas , also celebrated its 116th anniversary in May. How did grandmothers live so long and still keep a bright mind and an excellent memory? What helped them, and what secret do they know about the universe?

Inah Canabarro Lucas

Mother Inah is not an ordinary centenarian but God’s bride. Even young, she took the veil as a Nun and devoted her life to the Almighty.

Inah Canabarro Lucas was born in the Brazilian city of San Francisco de Assis on June 8 (May 27), 1908, in the family of Joao Antonio Lucas and Mariana Canabarro Lucas. She is the great-granddaughter of the famous Brazilian General David Canabarro.

As a child, Inah was so thin that many neighbors and relatives quietly lamented: “It is unlikely that she will live to come of age.” However, the sad predictions did not come true.A F R I N I K . C O M. Canabarro Lucas studied at a boarding school, and after graduating at 20, she moved to Montevideo (Uruguay). There, she became a Nun.

Two years later, the girl returned to Brazil to teach Portuguese and mathematics at a school in Tijuca, a suburb of Rio de Janeiro. In the early 1940s, she returned to Sant’Ana do Livramento, where she had previously lived and studied, and got a teaching job.

In adulthood, Inah began celebrating her birthday on May 27, although later studies showed that she was most likely born 11 days later. However, according to tradition, the years of Inah’s life were always counted from the date she insisted on May 27.

My mother has lived in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre for many years. At the age of 110, she began having difficulty moving and had to start using a walker. By the way, she was vaccinated against COVID-19 during the pandemic, which made her one of the oldest women to receive such a vaccine. However, in October 2022, Canabarro Lucas still contracted coronavirus. He was hospitalized, but she was able to recover from the disease, which made her also one of the oldest known people to survive this disease.

On the day of her 116th birthday, the Nun threw a party. Her guests noticed that she retains a clear mind and good health even at such an advanced age. She is very friendly and perfectly navigates her surroundings. She thanks God for her longevity.

Tomiko Itaka

Tomiko Itaka, from the Samurai country, was born on May 23, 1908; the age difference between her and the Nun Inah Canabarro Lucas is a few days. Because of this, Itaka was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest confirmed living person in the world after the death on August 19 of Maria Branyas from Spain, who died at 117 years old. Tomiko’s age was also confirmed by the Gerontological Research Group (GRG).

Tomiko was born in Osaka and was the second child in the family. She graduated from elementary school and then from Osaka Girls’ School. In parallel with her studies, she was engaged in a volleyball club.
An excerpt from Tomiko’s biography reads: “During the war, she replaced her husband, who ran a textile factory in South Korea, and single-handedly guarded the Japanese office, as well as raising her children.” By all accounts, Tomiko was a courageous, fearless, and hardy woman.

After her husband returned from the war, Tomiko Itaka lived with him for many happy years. He died in 1970, after which she lived for about ten years in his hometown, located in the Japanese prefecture of Nara. She recalled being fond of climbing Mount Nijo on the border of Nara and Osaka prefectures.

Tomiko has always adored climbing in general—for example, she climbed Mount Ontake twice, which is 3,000 meters high. At the same time, she did not use special hiking boots but ordinary sneakers.
At 80, She made 33 temple pilgrimages and celebrated her centenary by climbing the long stone steps of the Ashiya sanctuary without a cane and performing divine service. The Japanese grandmother has always been very religious.

She looks much younger than her years, and, as others have noticed, although she can no longer move without a wheelchair, she has never lost her spirit and has not been discouraged. Tomiko’s grandmother, at the age of 116, kept her mind clear.