Japan just counted its 100,000th person over 100

Japan now counts 107,677 people aged 100 or older, the first time the country has crossed 100,000, according to newly released health ministry figures. That keeps Japan ahead of every other nation for centenarians. The survey began in 1963 with just 153 qualifying names, passed 1,000 by 1981, and has been accelerating since. Eighty-eight percent are women. The oldest is Kishimoto Fuyo, 114, from Kyoto City. Diet and ordinary daily movement get cited most: fish and vegetables, and decades of walking, cycling, and taking the train rather than structured exercise. Health Minister Kenichiro Ueno also credited "progress in medicine and technology." The milestone sits beside a fertility rate that hit a record low of 1.14 last year, which Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has called a "quiet emergency." Every year, those turning 100 receive a personal letter and a sake cup from the prime minister. This year, there were a lot of letters to send.