The world's oldest person, an American woman with Spanish heritage, has recommended staying away from certain people in life.
María Branyas Morera's Twitter bio reads: "I am old, very old, but not an idiot." The 115-year-old officially became the world's oldest person earlier this week, following the death of 118-year-old Lucile Randon in France.
María was born in San Francisco, California, on March 4, 1907, one year after her parents emigrated to the country. Eight years later, they decided to return to Spain, where they settled in Catalonia.
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The Guinness World Records report María has called the region home ever since. She has resided in the same nursing home, Residència Santa María del Tura, for the past 22 years.
In just over a month, María will turn 116. In a statement on Thursday, the home said: "She is in good health and continues to be surprised and grateful for the attention that this anniversary has generated. To celebrate this very special event we will have a small celebration behind closed doors in the residence in the coming days.”
María attributes her long life to “order, tranquillity, good connection with family and friends, contact with nature, emotional stability, no worries, no regrets, lots of positivity, and staying away from toxic people.” She added: "I think longevity is also about being lucky. Luck and good genetics."
After surviving both World Wars, the Spanish Civil War, and the Spanish Flu pandemic, María also fought off Covid-19 in 2020. She contracted the virus weeks after celebrating her 113th birthday and fortunately made a full recovery.
This made her the world’s oldest coronavirus survivor, until her record was broken by Lucile Randon later that year.
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