A Japanese doctor who studied longevity — and lived to 105 — said if you must retire, do it well after age 65
Up until his death in July, Shigeaki Hinohara was still treating patients and working up to 18 hours a day
By Rachel Gillett
Dr. Shigeaki Hinohara, credited with building the foundations of Japanese medicine and helping make Japan the world leader in longevity, often practiced what he preached.
The physician, chairman emeritus of St. Luke’s International University, and honourary president of St. Luke’s International Hospital recommended several basic guidelines for living a long, healthy life in an interview with Japan Times journalist Judit Kawaguchi. Among them: Don’t retire. And if you must, retire much later than age 65.
In the interview he explained that the retirement age in Japan was set at 65 years old back when the average life-expectancy was 68 years old. Now, people are living much longer — the average life expectancy in Japan as of 2015 was almost 84 years — and so they should be retiring much later in life, too.
Up until a few months before his death on July 18 in Tokyo, the New York Times reports Hinohara continued to treat patients, kept an appointment book with space for five more years, and worked up to 18 hours a day. He was 105 years old.
“He believed that life is all about contribution, so he had this incredible drive to help people, to wake up early in the morning and do something wonderful for other people. This is what was driving him and what kept him living,” Kawaguchi, who considered Hinohara her mentor, told the BBC.
“He always had today’s goals, tomorrow’s, and the next five years’,” she said.