Emperor turns 79, concerned about aging Japan

 
No Author Published: December 23, 2012    Comment on this article Leave a comment

photo - Japan's Emperor Akihito waves to a crowd of well-wishers through the bulletproof glass of a balcony, during a morning appearance to mark his 79th birthday, at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo Sunday, Dec. 23, 2012. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)
Japan's Emperor Akihito waves to a crowd of well-wishers through the bulletproof glass of a balcony, during a morning appearance to mark his 79th birthday, at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo Sunday, Dec. 23, 2012. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)

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Studies show that changes in lifestyle and lack of exercise have caused many elderly evacuees to fall ill or develop dementia. In the year following the disasters, the number of people in a dozen disaster-hit coastal towns certified as care recipients increased by 20 percent from the previous year, to more than 4,000, according to Iwate prefecture (state).

Akihito, a longtime tennis player, said he had trouble just running and hitting the ball when he returned to the sport after his surgery. Now, 10 months later, he can play nearly as well as he used to, he said.

He said he is so fit now that he is not considering reducing his public duties.

"I would like to maintain the status quo for the time being," he said.

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