World's oldest family — aged 818

Nine brothers and sisters in Sardinia who have a combined age of 818 years have been officially recognised by Guinness World Records as the world's oldest siblings, cementing the Mediterranean island's reputation for longevity.

Experts attribute the exceptional age of the Melis family to a combination of good genetics, a healthy diet and an active lifestyle. They come from the village of Perdasdefogu in a mountainous region of Sardinia called the Barbagia, which was known to the ancient Romans as "Barbaria", or land of the barbarians.

The ruggedness of the region has repelled invaders for centuries, helping to preserve a distinct gene pool.

The oldest of the siblings, Consolata, celebrates her 105th birthday today, while the "baby" of the family, Mafalda, is 78. The siblings say part of the secret of their longevity is being surrounded by their 150 children, grand children and great-grand children.

Consolata has nine children, 24 grand children and 25 great-grand children. Born in 1907, she has lived through nine papacies. Remaining active also appears to be key to the siblings' longevity - another sister, Claudina, 99, goes to church every day, while a brother, Adolfo, 89, still works in a bar in the village and spends his spare time growing vegetables in his garden.

Consolata told Corriere della Sera newspaper,  "In my day women had to do all the domestic work, going to the standpipe to get water and to the river to wash the clothes. My grandchildren have washing machines and vacuum cleaners so when they say, 'I'm so stressed', I just can't understand it."

Amarilis Whitty, from Guinness World Records, said the claim was put forward by a family friend. "It was only recently verified. They were able to provide all the information we had, from birth certificates to other family records," she said.