Oldest woman in Peru dies at age 117

Lima, April 7: Filome Taipe Mendoza, considered to be the oldest woman in Peru, has died at age 117 in the southern town of Pucuto, the development and social inclusion ministry, or Midis, announced. Taipe, who — according to official figures — was born in 1897, lived along in a little adobe house in Pucuto, which is in the Andean province of Huancavelica, and enjoyed “surprisingly good health and lucidity for her age”, the ministry said. The woman was a widow and the mother of nine children, whom she raised alone, maintaining contact with the three of her children who are still living. “The residents of Pucuto and populated centres in the area remember her walking through the small farms with her cane, receiving the respectful and loving greetings of children, young people and adults whom she encountered on her way. They, her neighbours, visited her every day,” Midis said. Taipe said that the secret of her long life was “tural food” and she added that she never ate anything “from cans, or envelopes” and refused to drink carboted beverages. When she turned 117 last December, she was feted by her entire community “who saw in her an example to follow because of her fortitude and advice about nutrition that she gave to the children”, Midis went on to say. (IANS)