World’s oldest person, Tomiko Itooka, dies at 116

Tomiko Itooka, recognised as the world's oldest person, passed away at 116 in a nursing home in Ashiya, Japan

Tokyo: Japanese media on Saturday reported that 116-year-old Tomiko Itooka, recognised as the world’s oldest person, has died of old age.

Itooka died earlier this week at a nursing home in the city of Ashiya in western Japan where she resided, the city government in Hyogo Prefecture said, reported Kyodo News.

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The Japanese woman was born on May 23, 1908, in Osaka as the eldest of three siblings. “At the special nursing home in the city where she resided, she enjoyed drinking her favourite lactic acid beverages and often said Thank you to the staff,” reported Japanese daily ‘The Mainichi’ on Saturday.

Ashiya Mayor Ryosuke Takashima commented, “Through her long life, she gave us great courage and hope. I express my deepest condolences.” Itooka became the oldest living person in Japan in December 2023 following the death of Fusa Tatsumi, a 116-year-old in Kashiwara, Osaka Prefecture. Fusa Tatsumi was born on April 25, 1907, and had spent most of her last days in bed at a nursing home in Kashiwara.

Tatsumi had become the oldest living person in Japan in April 2022 following the death of a 119-year-old woman in Fukuoka. Itooka was subsequently recognised as the world’s oldest living person by Guinness World Records in September 2024, following the death of the previous holder, Maria Branyas Morera, a 117-year-old from Olot, Catalonia, Spain.

Morera was born on March 4, 1907, according to the Guinness World Records. Japanese average life expectancy had peaked in 2020, at 87.71 years for women and 81.56 years for men. The average life spans had decreased in 2021 and 2022, due to rising death tolls from the coronavirus.

The average life expectancy of Japanese people rose in 2023 for the first time in three years, due to a decline in deaths from the Covid-19 pandemic, a government data had showed. The average life expectancy of women in Japan came to 87.14 years, up 0.05 from 2022, while for men it stood at 81.09, up 0.04, revealed the data released by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in July 2024.