A 110-year-old man is crediting his longevity to drinking a beer a day.
Mark Behrends turned 110 on May 16, making him Nebraska’s oldest person alive and perhaps the oldest man in the
United States, Omaha.com reported.
“He always told everybody the reason he has lived so long is drinking one can of beer, every day at 3 p.m.,” Behrends’ daughter Lois Bassinger told the news site. “He always joked that that was his medicine since he takes very little medicine.”
While Behrends drinks whatever beer he can get his hands on, he typically favors Miller brands.
E.A. Kral keeps track of the state’s oldest resident, and he told Omaha.com that reaching 110 years of age, known as supercentenarian status, is rare. In Nebraskan history, only three men and 31 women have obtained that rank.
“This is really kind of special to accomplish what he has done,” Kral said.
The National Gerontology Research Group found Behrends to be the oldest verifiable man in the United States since a 116-year-old in California and 112-year-old in Illinois have missing records, Omaha.com noted.
“All this means is that there is a confusing situation, whereby we have three potential contenders for ‘oldest man in America,’” director of the Supercentenarian Research and Database division Robert Young said.
Though his hearing has diminished, Behrends renewed his driver's license for another five years when he was 106 and drove a little after that, but has since stopped.
“We thought it would be best if he quit,” Bassinger said. “His reaction time wasn’t quite as quick. His license is still good, though.”
Behrends’ advice on drinking beer may not be too far-fetched.
Time magazine reported the University of Texas-Austin published a study in 2010 indicating that moderate drinkers have a lower mortality risk than those who do not drink at all.
A 104-year-old woman also got attention recently for drinking three cans of Dr. Pepper daily.
As for other advice for living a long, happy life other than drinking beer, Behrends pointed to his heart, saying, “Right here.”
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