This 114-year-old woman reveals the curious secret to her longevity: eating potatoes and smiling

The never-ending quest to live for as long as possible has taken a new twist with the revelation that one of the United States’ supercentenarians puts her longevity down to eating potatoes.

Validated supercentenarians

Supercentenarians are people who are over 110 years old, such as Bonita Gibson, who lives at Waltonwood Carriage Park just outside of Detroit. According to the Gerontology Research Group, there are 206 validated supercentenarians in the world, 74 of which reside in the United States. Many supercentenarians, however, will not have been validated.

Gibson, the oldest known person in Michigan, celebrated her 114th birthday on July 4. Born in a northwestern Kansas city named Hoxie in 1911, she moved from rural Missouri to Idaho, where her late husband worked as a farmer, before relocating to Michigan, where her grandson lives, at the age of 102.

And that wasn’t her only life-changing experience in her 11th decade. Gibson took her first ever plane trip to San Diego at the age of 100, a year after she had given up driving. She also visited a casino for the first time after her 106th birthday.

Supercentenarian’s tips for longevity

While Gibson’s tips for reaching such an advanced age include expected recommendations such as healthy eating, no smoking or drinking, staying positive and always smiling, she also claims potatoes have helped prolong her life.

After marrying Kenneth Gibson in 1930, the couple’s move to Idaho was prompted by her husband taking a job as a potato farmer on a relative’s farm, resulting in the vegetable becoming a key part of her diet.

Gibson says she speaks to her 88-year-old son, Kenneth Richard, every night, and has three grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, and 16 great-great-grandchildren.

Per the Gerontology Research Group, Gibson is the United States’ third-oldest known resident, after Naomi Whitehead (Florida), who will turn 115 in September, and Mary Harris (New York), who will reach that same milestone next May.

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