Actress Jun Fubuki attended the "That 'Forgetfulness' Could Be Alzheimer's Disease" disease awareness campaign held in Tokyo on April 13th. Fubuki, who enjoys mountain climbing as a hobby, shared an anecdote about successfully climbing Mount Tsurugi (Toyama Prefecture) at the age of 67.
Kazefuki, who has been appointed as an ambassador for Eli Lilly Japan's awareness campaign, is currently 73 years old. "I'm well past 70 myself, so I don't think this is someone else's problem. My job involves saying lines, so I don't have any problems memorizing lines now, but I do have those 'oops!' moments on a daily basis. But for now, I'm okay," she said with a smile.
Ms. Kazefuki's secret to maintaining good health is "exercising." She enjoys mountain climbing and, at the age of 67, successfully summited Mount Tsurugi, a 2,999-meter-high mountain considered one of the most difficult to climb in Japan. She revealed, "You have to climb a vertical wall of about 17.8 meters. It takes two days to climb the mountain," which drew surprised exclamations of "Amazing!" from the audience.
Kazefuki spoke about the appeal of mountain climbing, saying, "When you climb a mountain, you gain a lot of confidence when you come down. It's tough when you're climbing, but when you come down, it gives you hope that you might be able to climb again." She added, "I think everyone is too conscious of their age, but when you actually try it, you'll find that it's not so bad."
Professor Masahiro Haneda, Professor Emeritus of Tokyo Jikei University School of Medicine, also appeared at the presentation.
