‘World oldest person’ Mashico Tolentino dies just five days before 126th birthday | World | News

A man who lived in isolation has died just days before his 126th birthday.

Marcelino “Mashico” Abad Tolentino, a 4ft 2in tall farmer who lived in a remote village in Peru his whole life, has died in his sleep in a care home. Believed to be the world’s oldest person, he was discovered by the Peruvian government during the Covid-19 pandemic, when he received his first ID card. He got his first state pension at 120.

Mashico, who was a farmer, said he was born on April 5, 1900. He did not have a birth certificate and was orphaned at seven, when his parents died as they tried to cross the Huallaga River. He lived in extreme poverty for much of his life in the remote Chaglla District.

He said the secrets to his longevity were eating plenty of fruit and lamb and chewing coca leaves, something popular amongst Peruvian who use them for an energy boost while labouring. But his diet also included plenty of herbs and medicinal plants he found in the wilderness.

Mashico’s dietary habits have also been shaped by the produce from his own garden, which he fondly refers to as his “Eden forest.” Dolores Pérez, the cook at his care home, revealed to that there’s one food Mashico simply cannot do without, which has greatly influenced his long life, reports Surrey Live. “He always asks for avocado in the mornings for breakfast. He cannot live without avocado,” she revealed.

In 2024, Peru’s government said Mashico’s longevity to a life lived “among the tranquillity of the flora and fauna of Huanuco”.

According to Guinness World Records, the oldest man who ever lived was Juan Vicente Pérez Mora, who died in April 2024 at the age of 114 and 311 days. The oldest man alive today is 113-year-old Brazilian João Marinho Neto. The oldest living person is Ethel Caterham from the UK who is currently 116 years old.