Italian village with the most 100-year-olds has science seeking clues

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Perdasdefogu appears like another Sardinian village with a pre-Romanesque church, central sq. and charming little retailers.

It has all you want, however in any other case appears fairly unremarkable, till you realise it’s dwelling to extra centenarians than anyplace else in the world.

Though Perdasdefogu boasts a spot in the Guinness World Records, the entry street doesn’t point out a declare to fame for the village of 1,780 inhabitants.

You attain it through a slim, winding street that snakes up via rugged mountains on the Italian island. Only then, at the entrance, is there a plaque noting its record-breaking standing.

Then there’s the title of one among the squares, Piazza Longevita, which means “lengthy life”.

That is all due to the older folks residing in the village and the group is pleased with them. There are black and white photographs of the 100-year-olds mounted on the homes alongside the primary street, stating their names and the yr they had been born.

Black and white photos of 100-year-olds citizens are mounted on the houses along Perdasdefogu's main road, stating their names and the year they were born. Photo: Johannes Neudecker/dpa Black and white photographs of 100-year-olds residents are mounted on the homes alongside Perdasdefogu’s primary street, stating their names and the yr they had been born. Photo: Johannes Neudecker/dpa

Take Vittorio Lai, born Feb 12, 1922, for instance. His image reveals a person with a cheeky smile, sporting a chequered cap and winter jacket, a white shirt and a bow tie.

It is due to Lai, as one among 9 folks over the age of 100 residing in Perdasdefogu, that the city has the highest charge of centenarians worldwide, as licensed by Guinness World Records.

Lai has been married for 78 years, which can effectively say one thing about his character and that of his spouse, says a reporter from Rai tv station.

“Well, typically she says I’m a bit cheeky,” Lai stated lately. “I say one time I’m cheeky, one other time you might be, so we stability one another out.”

Perdasdefogu’s youngest centenarian is Annunziata Stori, who marked her triple-digit birthday on Aug 16 and was personally congratulated by Mayor Bruno Chillotti.

She says she feels “wholesome as a fish”. Lively and cheerful, Stori does not take any medication and makes her minestrone soup with home-made fregula, a Sardinian pasta.

There is a picture of her and movie director Pietro Mereu, standing in entrance of enormous bowls of tomatoes, an aubergine and peppers. Mereu made a documentary referred to as The Centenarians Club in 2017 and printed the picture on Facebook.

A plaque at the entrance to Perdasdefogu notes the place's record-breaking status. Photo: Johannes Neudecker/dpaA plaque at the entrance to Perdasdefogu notes the place’s record-breaking standing. Photo: Johannes Neudecker/dpa

Is meals the secret to the lengthy lives of the locals? Mereu says that the folks in japanese Sardinia had very exhausting lives however had been nonetheless so much much less careworn than folks these days. They comply with the rhythms of nature, he says, relatively than continuously worrying about their cellphones and emails.

Antonio Brundu confirms that agriculture was all the time the primary enterprise right here. He is the village’s oldest resident.

“People have all the time labored in the contemporary air,” he informed Rai. Aged 104, his pores and skin remains to be taut and frivolously tanned, and solely his lacking entrance tooth point out his age.

Salvatore Mura, historian and a neighborhood councillor in Perdasdefogu, says a number of components clarify the villagers’ longevity. One is genetics. Also, locals eat meals that grows “zero metres away”, specifically of their gardens, he says.

The group additionally issues.

“Right up till the final day of their lives, they’re surrounded by household,” says Mura. That, too, retains them bodily and mentally match and wholesome.The village celebrates every individual’s a hundredth birthday. No extra are deliberate this yr, says Mura, however perhaps subsequent yr.

You do not see so many centenarians out and about any extra, in keeping with Massimo, a waiter at the cafe in the central Piazza Europa as he serves the visitors.

During the summer season, it’s normally too sizzling. Also, not all are effectively. One girl struggles to talk and lives in a nursing dwelling, he says.

Black and white photos of 100-year-olds citizens are mounted on the houses along Perdasdefogu's main road, stating their names and the year they were born. Photo: Johannes Neudecker/dpa Black and white photographs of 100-year-olds residents are mounted on the homes alongside Perdasdefogu’s primary street, stating their names and the yr they had been born. Photo: Johannes Neudecker/dpa

Massimo’s spouse is the niece of somebody who lived to be effectively over 100 years previous, nevertheless.

His rationalization for the lengthy lifespans of the folks of Perdasdefogu?

“It’s merely due to the Sardinian lifestyle,” Massimo says. After all, nobody takes medicine, they eat wholesome meals and have easy, quiet lives.Scientists are additionally seeking to know Sardinians’ longevity. A undertaking involving the island’s Sassari University plans to sequence 13,000 DNA samples from the folks of the province of Ogliastra, ANSA information company reported.

“We hope to indicate that individuals stay effectively in Sardinia, additionally as a option to market our nation,” says college vice chancellor Gavino Mariotti. – dpa



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