TOKYO, September 18 — Japan’s health ministry said the number of people aged 100 or older has passed 100,000 for the first time, reaching 107,677 centenarians, the highest such count in the world. Officials said 88% of them are women. The oldest woman is Kishimoto Fuyo, a 114-year-old from Kyoto City, and the oldest man is Kato Hikaru, a 112-year-old from Kumamoto.
The figures mark a long climb. When records began in 1963, Japan had only 153 centenarians.
Health Minister Kenichiro Ueno said he was “delighted that so many people are living long, healthy and active lives,” citing progress in medicine and technology. He also warned of the challenge of maintaining a sustainable social security system.
A diet and a daily routine
Experts attribute Japanese longevity to several factors, including a healthy diet and an active lifestyle. The island nation’s cuisine predominantly consists of fish, vegetables, and rice — and less saturated fat than many Western diets. Older people also regularly walk, use public transport, cycle, and stretch.
Japan has been aging for years. Sales of adult nappies have been higher than those for babies for more than a decade.
Companies have developed new products for the older population, including a powered exoskeleton to support moving various parts of the body and eyewear that automatically adjusts its focus.
The other side of the ledger
For a population to replace itself, each woman needs to give birth to 2.1 children on average. Last year Japan’s total fertility rate dropped to a record low of 1.14. The total population is estimated to drop to 87 million by 2070, a 30% decline from its peak of 128 million in 2008, according to data from the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.
Residents aged 65 and older currently make up around 30% of the population and are expected to make up nearly 40% by 2070. Japanese authorities have called the trend an “existential crisis,” with Prime Minister Sanae Takichi describing the decline as a “quiet emergency.” In 2025, Japan’s total population decreased in all 47 prefectures but two, and the rate of decline is accelerating.
The government’s many programmes and subsidies to encourage young people to have more children do not appear to be boosting birth rates. Experts say the reasons are complex, ranging from lower marriage rates and more women joining the workforce to the increased costs of raising children. While immigration has risen in previous years, forecasts still project a shrinking population.
What to watch next is whether the subsidies move the fertility rate at all, and how the social security system absorbs a population in which centenarians are now counted in the hundreds of thousands.
