Photographers Blog

Robot Paro comforts the elderly in Fukushima

Kim Kyung-Hoon

Aug 8, 2011 13:19 EDT

By Kim Kyung-hoon

When I covered Fukushima’s nuclear crisis in March, the first radiation evacuees who I encountered were elderly people who had fled a nursing home which was located near the tsunami-crippled nuclear power plant which was leaking nuclear radiation.

On that night, most of the elderly who could not move well due to old age spent a cold night on a temporary shelter’s hard floor.

Their scraggly bodies, the nasty smell from those who were not able to relieve themselves, and faraway looks of the those who had dementia have been impressed onto my memory, one scene out of many from this tragedy which I will never forget.

In Japan, the most rapidly aging country in the world, the elderly have been more vulnerable to the disaster than any others. According to statistics provided by the Japanese government, over half of the 27,500 dead or missing tsunami victims have been identified as older than 60. In addition, a recent survey conducted by a local newspaper showed an increased death rate among the elderly who had been evacuated from nursing homes near the tsunami-crippled nuclear power plant in Fukushima. The paper reported that caretakers and experts said many of the elderly residents’ deaths resulted from a decline in strength caused by the move far from their nursing homes and it was likely that they could not cope with the change of living environment.

Among all this news, when I heard about a therapeutic robot named “Paro” who had been provided to some nursing homes to give psychological support for the elderly in Fukushima, I thought this could give hope and joy to many people involved with the tragedy.

Cheering on an aging Japan

Yuriko Nakao

May 31, 2010 15:11 EDT

When I first heard there was a 78-year old cheerleader in Japan who wears metallic silver wigs and waves gold pom-poms as she jumps and dances in her shiny red sequined costume, it instantly made me curious to find out what kind of person she is.

Everyone knows by now that people in Japan live a long time. According to the World Health Organization’s latest life expectancy figures Japanese women remain at number one (life expectancy: 86 years), but I had never heard of an 80-year-old cheerleader.

Fumie Takino’s way of life seemed to be the key.

My first encounter with her was at her gymnasium, which takes her an hour to get to by bus and train. Upon meeting her I was immediately struck by her big smile and how open she was to let me photograph her practice session with her teammates.

Takino started her cheerleading group, “Japan Pom Pom,” 15 years ago and now the members’ average age is 66. The group all looked like typical Japanese seniors until they changed into their practice outfits and danced to a pulsating musical beat, jumping and kicking their legs.

Alzheimer’s disease: A subject close to home

Nacho Doce

Sep 24, 2009 15:54 EDT

Who, in the world of photography in Reuters, doesn’t know someone suffering from Alzheimer’s disease? Who doesn’t know and feel the suffering of their closest relatives when they are facing this disease? It must be even more difficult for the eldest, who are used to seeing people suffering from cancer or strokes but do not understand this disease, and start to panic.

Recently, I made contact with the Portuguese Alzheimer Association to talk with them about the disease. A week after I contacted them I met with two women, Brazilian therapist Claudia Zolini and Portuguese therapist Margarida Matos. I started talking to them about my personal experience with this disease, telling them how my godmother, who died in March, suffered from Alzheimer’s. I told them how, when the first signs of her disease showed up years ago, I would laugh at her little mistakes – until the moment came when I had to face the real evidence of this illness, that I could not fully understand. I told them that suddenly I had to become a psychologist for my mother, who by then was in a panic, fearing that she would also suffer from Alzheimer’s. She could understand many different types of diseases but not this one. She suffered in a way that only she can tell.

After recounting my story, the two aid workers told me they would help in any way they could. My godmother had an income, and with the assistance of the estate she could afford to be in a facility where she was helped. But I wanted to know what happens to low income families, who cannot afford to send their relatives to nursing homes. I felt that would create a bigger impact. The aid workers asked me: What do you mean bigger impact? I answered, the bigger the impact for me and the bigger it will be for society. They kept asking questions, in particular, if the photos would be used in the right way by the newspapers. I stayed silent after this question. I then answered, if they don’t use it wisely, they are not human.

A couple of days later the association called to introduce me to two families, but for me to go without the camera. I met Amilcar Dos Santos and his wife Isidora, an Alzheimer’s patient. They have no children and are both 82 years old, the same age as my mother. Amilcar humbly presented me to his wife – who was born near the border with Spain – and told her I was Spanish. She said: “Hola, como estas?” (Hello, How are you?), in my native language. I was amazed despite knowing that Alzheimer’s damages short term memory but retains long term memories.

Amilcar showed me his house, which resembles a shrine – dark and filled with pictures of the couple and their family. He is now in charge of the household chores, something he had never done in his life. Now he has to iron, wash, cook – everything changed at such a late stage of his life.

Never too old to be a porn star

Kim Kyung-Hoon

Jun 23, 2009 11:42 EDT

Audio slideshow produced by Toru Hanai and Kim Kyung-hoon. A full story is listed below.

ICHIKAWA, Japan – He is a typical man of age — a few white hairs cover his round head and he wears dentures.

But 75-year-old Shigeo Tokuda sat on a movie set on Monday wearing just a silk kimono and loin cloth about to have sex on film with a woman who is younger than his daughter.

Tokuda is Japan’s oldest pornographic movie star and was shooting his latest film in which he portrayed a master of sex.

The director said the films showed people that their sex lives did not have to end with old age, and in 16 years of making such movies Tokuda has acted up with women ranging from their 20s to as old as himself.

“I debuted at 59, and have played in more than 200 porno movies since then,” he said, using his screen name, not his real one in an interview on the set.