Want to live longer? Apung Maria, 105, bares her secrets

ANGELES CITY — For this New Year, why not resolve to live healthy for over a century? Take it from Apung Maria, possibly the oldest living Filipino at 105 years old.

The secrets to long life of Apung Maria, as Maria Torres Vicente, is fondly called: stick to traditional virtues, work hard, eat vegetables, abstain from meat, and have faith in God.

Apung Maria could well be the oldest living Filipino, if not one of the oldest living persons in the world. The Guinness Book of World Records listed Elizabeth "Lizzie" Bolden as the world’s oldest person but she died at the age of 116 last Dec. 11 at a nursing home in Memphis, Texas. 

"I was born on July 3, 1901 in Urdaneta, Pangasinan so I am now 105 years and six months old," Apung Maria told The STAR in a loud voice as she lay in her bed at the Mother of Perpetual Help Hospital here.  

Internist Dr. Richard Velez, who has been her doctor for years, gave her a relatively clean bill of health and discharged her from the hospital Saturday morning after her bout with mild pneumonia.

"Since she was hospitalized last Friday, all she wanted was to go home to spend New Year’s Day with her family in Barangay Checkpoint in Angeles City," Velez said.

Her relative, Alma Demetria, attests to Apung Maria’s age, saying she has a birth record submitted to social workers to certify her as a senior citizen entitled to privileges under the law.

In 2003, officials of the Dominican Republic tried to convince the Guinness Book of World Records to list Elizabeth Israel as the world’s oldest person as she was then 128 years old, but they failed because there was no official record to certify her age. Israel, who ascribed her long life to her diet, including lots of dumplings and bush tea, died the following year.

Asked when her mother, Lucia, died, Apung Maria replied: "I cannot remember anymore, and I do not speak of things I am not sure as true."

Apung Maria also fondly talks about her husband who died when she was 35. "We were poor but we loved each other and never separated," she said.

She said she eats only vegetables and fruits. "When she could still eat full meals, she could survive on pinakbet every day," recalled her grandson, Danny Baldonado, 38.

Apung Maria’s only surviving daughter, Josefina, 69, said her mother never ate meat. "The closest she got to meat was sipping its soup, although she also used to eat some fish," she said.

These days, her diet is limited to four spoonfuls of rice porridge and pancit palabok, although she still eats four meals a day, including merienda.

Josefina said that while her mother had been a plain housewife, she also worked hard to help her farmer-husband. "She knows how to take care of farm animals and she sews well," she said.

Josefina said her mother has always been in a good mood because of her faith in God. "She mentions God quite often," she said.

Three years ago, Apung Maria fell from a toilet bowl and broke her hips at her daughter’s house in Barangay Checkpoint here. Since then, she has become sedentary.

Apung Maria’s eyesight and hearing are no longer as good as they used to be, but her mind remains lucid, Josefina said. "These days, she remains in her chair and talks about the war, my father, and all things about the past. She can recall everything clearly," she added.

When The STAR featured her five years ago, Apung Maria could still stand on her feet and move about without being assisted.

Told that she would again be featured in The STAR, she jokingly said, "You should have made me a superstar when I was younger and looked prettier."

Velez said that Apung Maria has a good chance of making it to the Guinness Book of World Records. "She is definitely in relatively good health, considering her age," he said.