A 108-year-old woman has left people stunned after saying at the secret to longevity is to have dogs instead of children.
Ada Daniel credits her dogs for making her feel young and strong.
She recently received a surprise last week after Codnor Park care home where she resides launched an appeal for people to send her birthday cards.
The appeal was a success as she received almost 300 birthday cards. The care home also surprised her with a birthday party, some balloons, and an afternoon tea.
Speaking to the BBC, Kelly Goucher – activity co-ordinator at Ashmere – said: “Ada hasn’t got a lot of family left. She never had any children so she doesn’t have any grandchildren so we just wanted to get her as many cards as possible.
“She quite likes that people know about her because of her age.”
Goucher continued: “She had a lot of greyhounds. She lived on Street Lane in Ripley and all of her greyhounds were also called Street Lane. She’s definitely a character.
“I did ask her what her secret was once and she said it was to have dogs, not kids.”
Oucher also said that the elderly woman had been discussing her birthday ‘since the beginning of April,’ adding she was so excited to celebrate her big day.
In 2020, Ada received 200 birthday cards for her 105th birthday.
While Ada believes her dogs were the reason for her long life, another centenarian said that her secret to longevity was having coffee liqueur every day.
Esperanza Cortinas, who was born on December 4, 1916, continues to dance numerous times a day and still play card games with her pals.
Dr. Marie Bernard, the deputy director of NIH’s National Institute on Aging, said: “We’ve had a significant increase in lifespan over the last century. Now if you make it to age 65, the likelihood that you’ll make it to 85 is very high. And if you make it to 85, the likelihood that you’ll make it to 92 is very high. So people are living longer, and it’s happening across the globe.”
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