Why More People Are Reaching 100 Worldwide. It’s the million dollar question in our time. Let’s dig it in our way.
For João Marinho Neto, the final week of November 2024 was supposed to be just another quiet stretch of days—no different from the past ten years he’d spent at a nursing home in Apuiarés, a small town in northeastern Brazil. Life had settled into a rhythm for the 112-year-old. But then, out of the blue, his name appeared in headlines across the world.
João had just been declared the oldest living man on Earth.
A nurse at the home playfully read the news aloud to him, and he chuckled before saying, “Well, I guess that also makes me the most handsome man in the world.”
The title had shifted to him after the death of John Tinniswood, a 112-year-old British man, on November 25. Guinness World Records quickly confirmed Neto’s new standing. Yet, while he holds the record among men, the overall crown belongs to a woman: Tomiko Itooka of Japan, who turned 116 in August.
And what’s even more astonishing? João and Tomiko aren’t anomalies. Far from it. The number of people living past 100 isn’t just growing—it’s accelerating.
How many centenarians are there in the world?
According to the United Nations Population Division, around 588,000 people worldwide are over the age of 100 as of 2024. By 2030, that number is expected to soar close to one million. That’s a massive leap from 1990, when there were only about 92,000 centenarians across the world.
What’s fueling this surge? Experts point to advances in healthcare, better nutrition, and healthier lifestyles. Back in 1962, the UN began tracking global life expectancy. For those born that year, the average lifespan was just 52. Today, it’s 73. And by 2050, it could hit 77.
A remarkable demographic shift is underway. There are now more people over 65 than there are children under five. In other words, living to 100 is no longer a fantasy—it’s becoming increasingly feasible.
In fact, according to the UN’s most recent estimates from 2023, 0.007% of the world’s population is now over the age of 100.
But don’t get too optimistic just yet. Scientists caution that reaching 100 remains a steep climb for most. A 2024 report from France’s National Institute of Demographic Studies found that only 2% of baby boys and 5% of baby girls born in 2023 are likely to make it to 100.
The price of longevity
Of course, longer life doesn’t necessarily mean a better one. With age comes risk—and more years often mean more years living with chronic illness.
Professor Janet Lord, a cell biologist at the University of Birmingham in the UK, puts it plainly: “Living longer doesn’t mean living well.”
She explains that men who make it to extreme old age often spend the final 16 years of life dealing with serious conditions like diabetes and dementia. For women, it’s even longer—around 19 years, on average.
So what’s the secret to reaching 100?
If you’re thinking clean living is the golden ticket, think again. Take Jeanne Calment of France, for example. She remains the longest-living person ever documented, having died in 1997 at age 122. Official records show that she’s the only person to have lived beyond 120.
Living past 100 is one thing. Surviving into the “supercentenarian” category—those who reach at least 110—is something else entirely. Research from Boston University shows that in the U.S., only one in five million people crosses that threshold.
According to U.S. Census data, there were about 50,000 centenarians in America in 2010. By 2020, that number had climbed to over 80,000.
These individuals have become subjects of deep fascination among aging scientists. They’re trying to understand what makes centenarians different—why their bodies hold up when so many others don’t.
“Even among scientists, there’s no clear consensus on what’s happening in the bodies of people who live that long,” says Professor Lord. “We still don’t fully understand it.”
Good genes and quirky habits
Interestingly, a healthy lifestyle doesn’t always explain longevity. João Neto, for instance, has poor eyesight but no other significant health issues. “He doesn’t even take medication,” says his caregiver, Aleluia Teixeira, in an interview with the BBC.
And his life? Far from the health-nut stereotype. He used to work as a shepherd and was known to enjoy his drink. His son Antonio, insists that was his only main fault.
smoking over the years and a nice sweet tooth for Jeanne Calment—chocolate bars were her daily gift to thyself.
In 2011 in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, a study on over 400 Jewish Americans aged 95 and older. The findings were surprising: nearly 60% had been heavy smokers, many had been obese for large portions of their lives, and only a tiny minority—just 3%—were vegetarians. Regular exercise? Largely absent.
That leads Professor Richard Faragher of the University of Brighton to issue a clear warning: “If you’re aiming for longevity, don’t mimic centenarians. They’re outliers. Most of them defy what we recommend for healthy aging.”
He and other researchers believe that genetics may play a major role in protecting these individuals from the usual ravages of time. Somehow, their bodies shrug off damage that breaks most of us down.
As more people reach 100 and beyond, researchers are increasingly asking: are average life spans going up too?
At the University of Washington, some scientists believe that people born in this century may reach even greater ages—125, maybe even 130.
But the ultimate question remains unanswered: not just how long can we live, but how well?
Dr. Richard Siow, who heads aging research at King’s College London, says we’re asking the wrong question.
“It’s not about how many years we live—it’s about how many good years we get,” he explains. “If we can delay aging and extend the healthy portion of life, then longevity becomes something to enjoy, not endure.”
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