Japan has a record 107,677 residents aged 100 or older, the first time the total has topped 100,000, according to the Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry. Women make up 94,298, or 87.6%, of the total; men account for 13,379.
At a Sept. 15 press conference, health minister Kenichiro Ueno cited improved living conditions, diet and nutrition, and advances in medical technology as factors contributing to the increase. The centenarian population has grown for 56 consecutive years.
