101-year-old Irene Credits Her Longevity To Plain Food | ABC News

Irene Loveland loves her Meals on Wheels home visits and she's thankful they never bring her bread and dripping

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Even after all these years, the thought of bread and dripping makes 101-year-old Irene Loveland shudder.

It was one of the limited staples available during the Great Depression in the early 1930s — and Mrs Loveland clearly remembers the feeling of being hungry.

"We had bread and dripping with salt. I can't bear the thought of it these days, but when you're hungry, you can eat it," Mrs Loveland said.

Self-described as fiercely independent, the centenarian will turn 102 just before Christmas and credits her long life to good, plain food and keeping active.

She also counts herself lucky to be surrounded by a supportive family, and a range of services such as Meals on Wheels that allow her to stay in her own home.

"I don't get lonely, there's always something to do," she said.

"If you stay in your own home, you've got to keep doing a job and sitting down, but by doing that you use parts of your body you wouldn't use otherwise. If you sit in your chair and do nothing, that's as far as you'll ever get."

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