Oldest Man In The World Reveals His Secret To Long Life

The secret to a long life is love, according to the world's oldest living man.

Emilio Flores Márquez, at 112 years and 326 days, has been named the world's oldest man by the Guinness World Records. The Puerto Rican centenarian, who is endearingly known as Don Millo, said that his trick to living a long and happy life is to fill his days with love and get rid of anger.

“My father raised me with love, loving everyone. He always told me and my siblings to do good, to share everything with others. Besides, Christ lives in me,” Márquez told Guinness.

Márquez is the second oldest of 11 children. Born on Aug. 8, 1908, in Carolina, Puerto Rico, he grew up on a sugarcane farm and spent his childhood helping his father provide for their family.

As a young boy, Márquez helped his father water the sugarcane and load it into wagons, in addition to doing household chores and caring for his nine surviving siblings, the New York Post reported. Eventually, Márquez also became a farmer in his adulthood.

“I did everything. I scrubbed, I took care of the boys, I did everything,” he said of his childhood.

Márquez spent 75 years married to the love of his life, Andrea Perez, with whom he had four children. Today, they have five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Perez passed away in 2010. Two of his children had also died.

The record for oldest living man was previously held by a Romanian named Dumitru Comănescu, who was 111 years when he received the award. Comănescu died in June 2020 at 111 years and 219 days, not even a month after he was awarded by Guinness.

Following Comănescu's death, Guinness authorities received evidence that proved Márquez is the oldest man on Earth. Officials were able to discover that Márquez is older than Comănescu, having been born three months earlier than the latter.

“It’s always an honor to celebrate these remarkable human beings, and this year we’ve processed applications from not one but two contenders for the title of the oldest living man,” Guinness World Records editor-in-chief Craig Glenday said.

“I am thrilled to feature Sr. Márquez and bring his fascinating story to the wider public. But alongside this, I am also pleased that we got the chance to pay our respects to Dumitru Comănescu, who briefly held the record but sadly passed before we went to press,” he continued.

The world's current oldest living person is Japan's Kana Tanaka, who is 118 years old.

Photo: Reuters/Ricardo Moraes