The Associated Press
TOKYO — Tomoji Tanabe, the world’s oldest man, has died in his sleep at his home in southern Japan, a city official said. He was 113.
“He died peacefully. His family members were with him,” said Junko Nakao, a city official in Miyakonojo on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu. Tanabe died Friday of heart failure, she said.
Tanabe, who was born Sept. 18, 1895, had eight children — five sons and three daughters. The former city land surveyor also had 25 grandchildren, 53 great-grandchildren, and six great-great-grandchildren, according to a statement from the Miyakonojo city. He was certified by Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest man when he was 111 years old.
Tanabe lived with his fifth son and daughter-in-law.
His favorite meals were fried shrimp and Japanese miso soup with clams, the statement said. Tanabe drank milk every morning and read the newspaper. He also avoided alcohol and did not smoke, the statement said.
