Considered a national treasure in his country, Dr Shigeaki Hinohara a 104-year-old Japanese doctor has had one of the longest running medical practices in Japan. Born in 1911, he opened up St. Luke’s International Hospital and College of Nursing in Tokyo at the end of World War II. They are some of the best of their kind in Japan. He is also the author of more than a hundred and fifty works and his best selling title, ‘Living Long, Living Good’ has sold over a million copies.
This is the advice the 104-year-old Japanese doctor has to give on living a good life:
1. Staying Energetic
Pointing to kids, Dr Hinohara says that they are so reluctant to go to bed because they’re enjoying themselves. We need to concentrate on enjoying each moment to the fullest if we want to stay young and energetic.
2. Maintaining Your Weight
Study and experience have taught him that the people who are blessed with longevity keep themselves fit. A well-balanced diet containing olive oil will keep you healthy and hearty, according to him.
3. Make Plans For The Future
Dr Hinohara plans everything out in his life. He often prepares schedules for the whole year in order to keep up with his busy life and many responsibilities.
4. Retirement Isn’t Necessary
Working on what you love will keep you feeling young way past the age of sixty-five.
5. Don’t Keep Your Knowledge To Yourself
Even at the age of 104, he is prepared to stand for more than an hour and give a lecture because nothing gives him more joy than sharing his knowledge for the betterment of others.
6. Your Doctor Can Be Wrong
Doctor’s don’t know everything and Dr Hinohara advises everyone to ask their doctors whether they’d recommend the same treatment to someone in their family. He also recognizes that alternative treatments might help in certain ways that allopathic medicine cannot.
7. Tips To Stay Strong
Get that extra bit of exercise by taking the staircase wherever you go and always carry your own luggage.
8. Find Your Inspiration
For Dr Hinohara, his inspiration comes from a poem by Robert Browning called ‘Abt Vogler’. It talks about creating an enormous circle that it too big for you to complete in this lifetime. There must always be something more to your vision than you can see.
9. The Mystery Of Pain
When you’re having a good time, you won’t remember that you are in pain. In St. Luke’s, patients suffering from pain are offered different distractions like painting, musical activities, puppies, and more to help them grow spirituality while also preventing them from focusing on their difficulties.
10. Materialism Is Not A Good Thing
You never know when your time is up and you can’t take any objects from this world with you when you go.
11. There’s More To Treatment Than Science
While science is essential, it treats all patients with the same illness in the same manner. However, Dr Hinohara believes that patients experience illnesses according to their own mental state and so, different therapies like art and music need to be used along with medication.
12. Unpredictability
Even though he has faced a lot of difficulty in his life, Dr Hinohara chooses to view those times as opportunities to learn and become a better person in the future.
13. Look Up to Someone
A hundred and twenty years ago, his father attended Duke University in America and Dr Hinohara is greatly inspired by him. He stresses the importance of having good people to look up to so you know how to deal with difficult issues.
14. Longevity Is Amazing
Dr Hinohara’s advanced years have only taught him how amazing life can be. He’s been a volunteer for forty years now and he believes in giving back to society in every way he can.
