MESA, Arizona – Good old father’s advice and simple foods are credited with helping a Valley man reach a milestone birthday.

“Eat properly and get your rest,” recommends Bernando LaPallo.

Words to live by considering the Mesa resident was born in Brazil in 1901 and has lived to be 110 years old.

“They had no automobiles, no airplanes I saw them all come about,” remembered LaPallo.

LaPallo claims he’s never been sick a day in his life. He walks every morning and eats mostly organic fruits and veggies.

“People ask me what do you do to stay so young,” LaPallo explained. “I say, ‘Well you’ve heard the old saying, you are what you eat.'”

So what’s LaPallo’s secret? Five foods: garlic, honey, cinnamon, chocolate and olive oil.

“Use olive oil on your skin,” LaPallo said. “Rub your feet rub your arms you’ll never rust.”

Healthy habits LaPallo picked up from his father, a doctor, who lived to be 98.

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“He told me not to eat ordinary red meat,” expressed LaPallo. “He said lamb is okay but red meat, stay away from it. Hot dogs, french fries and all those things don’t eat it.”

LaPallo keeps his brain sharp by being a voracious reader, solving crossword puzzles and playing checkers.

“I can remember things my father told me when I was 8 years old,” LaPallo recalled.

A father who showed his son how to have a rich life worth living.

“And he taught me how to live, how to eat and to have faith in God and he would take care of me,” smiled LaPallo. “And so far it has happened.”