RIKUZENTAKATA, Iwate Prefecture--A 93-year-old woman here who survived the Great East Japan Earthquake seems to have drunk from the Fountain of Youth.

A medical examination on Sept. 15 last year showed Hide Sato to have the vascular age of a 20-year-old and the basal metabolic rate of a 36-year-old, which stunned and bewildered examiners.

Sato was examined at Workers’ Coop Rikuzentakata Jigyosho Momoe, a day care service center, which she visits once a week.

Shintaro Akada, 48, a nurse who visited the facility as a volunteer, carried out a routine physical inspection checking Sato’s height, weight and body fat percentage. He also measured Sato’s blood pressure and pulse using specialized equipment.

Upon seeing Sato’s results, Akada suspected something had gone wrong with the instrument, but he found no problems with the figures for other patients at the center.

Toward the end of November, an Asahi Shimbun reporter headed for Sato’s home, which is public housing for disaster victims in Rikuzentakata.

Sato saw her former residence washed away by the tsunami spawned by the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011. She was then 80.

A FRESH FACE

Sato, very agilely, served “amazake,” a sweet rice drink that is one of her specialties.

She explained that she does nothing special to build up her physical strength and mainly eats traditional Japanese cuisine. She relies on neither specialized health food products nor dietary supplements.

Despite all that, Sato looks like she could be 70 or younger on account of her healthy skin.

After reviewing images of Sato and other data, Satoshi Ogasawara, a member of the Japanese Society of Anti-Aging Medicine who runs his own clinic in Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture, explained how exceptional she is.

“Age-related signs of lowered bone density are usually immediately apparent on the face due to sunken cheeks, hollow eyes and so forth--but this woman’s facial skin seems to be firm,” said Ogasawara.

“That is amazing,” he continued. “I want to examine her if the opportunity arises.”

Aside from her appearance, Sato’s mental state does not seem to have deteriorated with age either. She speaks and replies promptly, showcasing her excellent memory.

A FLEXIBLE LIFESTYLE

Sato relocated frequently throughout her life, causing her to be a flexible and adaptive person, which may have contributed to her longevity.

According to Sato’s accounts, her husband worked at a financial institute and her family moved across the northeastern Tohoku region on 40 occasions while caring for three children.

“I sorted out and packed our belongings in cardboard containers within a week each time (we moved), so rooms could be cleaned up neatly every time,” recalled Sato.

This habit might have strengthened her memory and helped refine her ability to make quick judgments.

Sato also learned to adjust successfully to the new environments and communities.

“I would actively remove mud from ditches in front of my homes,” said Sato. “I greeted neighbors with a smile.”

These characteristics allowed her to adapt quickly with “no trouble” to changes in her life after she lost her husband, saw her house destroyed by the natural disaster and took refuge in a shelter, temporary accommodation and public housing for evacuees. 

A sewing machine set up by a window of her residence may be helping, too. Her home’s walls are lined with hand-sewn clothing.

Sato became interested in dressmaking when she was 88. She bought sewing equipment and then started working on fabrics. She presents finished garments to friends.

Despite her belief that she is not great at needlework, Sato made a doll of “chirimen” crepe and gave it to a woman whose daughter had been killed in the earthquake.

Sato has since crafted and delivered 7,000 dolls to survivors of the disaster and people who were engaged in support activities for them.

This positive attitude appears to be another reason she remains so energetic.

Sato’s father died young in a traffic accident, so her older sisters sold ice cream to support their family. The business developed into a grocery store and then a supermarket. Sato, as the sixth of seven siblings, helped out with the family business.

Her “proactive nature should be attributed” to her sisters who never became upset even in the face of difficulties and overcame many challenges. Sato feels immense gratitude for her sisters.

Ryuzo Furukawa, a professor of environmental studies at Tokyo City University who has interviewed Sato and over 600 other people around the age of 90, both in and outside Japan, explained one element of Sato’s boundless energy.

“Healthy people usually express positivity and gratitude,” Furukawa said. “They take action without expecting anything from others in return. Those patterns of behavior may keep Sato free from stress, allowing her to remain young.”

Whatever new interest the miraculous 93-year-old takes up this year will surely wow people around her once again.