Cuba has world's highest rate of over 100-year-olds

[Mika]

Cuba has world's highest rate of over 100-year-olds
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5h0-UJIna6793CXZxEGP__ZoCakCQ

HAVANA (AFP) — About 1,800 Cubans are over 100 years old, making it the country with the highest rate of centenarians, an expert said Saturday.

Eugenio Selman-Housein, chairman of the 120 Years Club and previously head of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro's medical team, also said "life expectancy has gone up to almost 80 years" on the communist-run Caribbean island.

There are "currently about 1,800 Cubans registered as over a century old," he said, according to the National Information Agency.

This figure would make Cuba, which has a total population of 11.2 million, "the country that has the most centenarians per number of inhabitants in the world," Selman-Housein said.

He noted that reaching the grand old age of 100 in good health required motivation, first of all, but also "a diet rich in fruit and vegetables, physical activity, culture and the right atmosphere."

The 120 Years Club, created in 2003, promotes a style of living and eating that will help people live a long and happy life.

Cuba has 16.6 percent senior citizens -- more than 12 percent is considered high -- which represents more than 1.9 million elderly people, official figures show.

The oldest Cuban is a 122-year-old woman who lives in Granma, 760 kilometres (470 miles) southeast of Havana. Her identity has never been disclosed.

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Another article here...

Life expectancy in Cuba approaches 80 years
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/25/content_8248453.htm

The average life expectancy in Cuba is nearing 80 years, and the country boasts over 1,800 centenarians, professor Eugenio Selman, president of the 120 Years Club, said on Saturday.

Recent years have witnessed a steady increase in the number of senior citizens aged above 100 years in Cuba, Selman told reporters.

A strong will to live a long life, more fruits and vegetables for daily diet and proper physical exercise are the secrets for longevity, said the professor. Good living environments are also important, he added.

According to a research conducted by the Cuban health ministry, environments are essential in deciding life expectancy, which account for 65 percent of the reasons for a long life, while genetic factors affect people's life only by 35 percent.

Statistics show there are now 1.7 million people, out of Cuba's estimated 11.4 million population, above the age of 60 and senior citizens are expected to account for 29 percent of the country's total population by 2030.

[magbana]

1. A great testament fo the community health care system in Cuba

that practices preventive medicine to the utmost. Of course the jury may be out on whether the cigars and rum help or hurt! ha!

[Mika]

2. These stats are not examples of people under duress.

If the lies about Cuba from the pro fascist camp were true one would find abysmal longevity and infant mortality stats.

But their mewling corporate agenda never ceases, despite the evidence that proves them wrong time and time again.


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[Zorro]

3. The chance to live 80 years in poverty

What a wonderful life that must be.

[Judi Lynn]

4. You'd be poor, too, with a filthy embargo on your own economy every day for decades.

You don't seem to grasp where they were BEFORE the revolution, and I'm not talking about the racist scum which controlled the government and fled to Miami when they realized the people would go for their throats after the revolution. I mean every one ELSE who lived on only seasonal work planting and harvesting with no employment the rest of the year, unless they all tried to work in the whorehouses in Havana, or in the Mafia-run casinos.

Use your head occassionally. It can only help.

[Mika]

5. Never mind that the US is the largest debtor nation.

Every man woman and new-born's portion of the national debt in the US is over $60,000. That doesn't include their personal debt.

If one cares to take a look, in America all it takes to lose everything one owns is one serious family illness. A growing number of Americans are uninsured (over 4 times the entire Cuban population), and complete bankruptcy certainly happens to many thousands every day.

Not so in Cuba. No matter what your income is, your rent is capped at 10% of income. No matter what illness strikes a family a complete health care system ensures that NO family will be pushed into foreclosure and lose everything. There is no refusal of coverage in Cuba.

The same applies to education, child care, nursing home care, hospice, etc.

I could go on, but the Bush policy supporters here have no real interest in the subject, other than bashing something they know little of (if anything) about Cuba.

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[Zorro]

6. I didn't know you were in Cuba before the revolution

Guess I stand corrected.

[Judi Lynn]

7. Apparently your mind doesn't allow you to realize we know people who were.

As for the "I didn't know" part, you've proven that continuously.

[Zorro]

8. So do I

They think Fidel sucks.