I just turned 100. These are the life lessons I want every young person to know before it’s too late – and the beauty secret I’ve sworn by for years

A 100-year-old Aussie woman has shared the secrets behind her long life – and why keeping it simple really is always best when it comes to beauty and health.

Betty Woodhams, from Sydney, celebrated her 100th birthday this week and spent the day doing one of her favourite things: shopping for new plants at Bunnings. 

The dynamic centenarian was treated to a warm reception from staff as she perused the aisles snapping up new flowers for her small balcony garden. 

Bystanders were in awe of the enthusiastic mother-of-two, who puts her age and enduring happiness down to great friends, a balanced diet, no regrets and ‘always wearing a hat’.

‘Try to stay happy, even when things may seem like they are getting the better of you,’ Betty tells FEMAIL when asked what the secret to a long life is.

‘There really is something good in everything. Relaxing with a glass of wine at dinner or enjoying the odd champagne or two with friends always helps too.’

A former secretary in the TV and publishing industry, Betty grew up in Parramatta where she lived in a little weatherboard house that still stands today.

She married her late husband Ron in 1951 and moved to Bondi with him before building their dream house in Tambourine Bay, Lane Cove, in what was a War Service Homes area.

The pair were married for 54 years before Ron passed away in 2005 and she’s been living in a retirement village in Pymble, on Sydney’s north shore, for the past two decades.

Betty always surrounds herself with good mates, stays socially active and never sweats the small stuff. As she puts it, ‘don’t get stuck on the negative things’.

‘It doesn’t matter what your age is, there’s always something you can do to stay active whether it’s walking, gardening, swimming or even a day at the races,’ she says. 

‘Age is just a number. We do all age but you choose to get old!’

Betty never stresses about food, enjoys dining out and tries to eat some fresh fruit and veggies every day if she can.

‘I’ve always enjoyed eating food I love. I think what matters is what you hear them say about moderation, the size of meals and fresh fruit and vegetables,’ she says.

‘I eat everything… and more chocolate than I should. I drink full-cream milk, too, and enjoy a glass of white wine with dinner every night.’

When it comes to beauty, Betty credits her youthful complexion to two things: wearing a hat and a minimalist skincare routine. 

‘I always wear a hat when I’m in the sun and I think that made a difference. I’ve never done anything really fancy – I have just always gently washed my face every evening with a cotton flannel,’ she says. 

Betty’s grandmother taught her to use a cotton flannel each night when she was a young girl and she’s diligently done so ever since. No 12-step funny business! 

She buys them from any store that sells ‘nice all-cotton ones’ and will sometimes throw a moisturising cleansing wipe into the mix.

Her go-to moisturiser is from Olay, which she still refers to as its former name ‘Oil of Ulan’. 

For day-to-day makeup she sticks to a simple blush and lipstick – always from Revlon – and stresses that ‘regular hairdresser appointments are a must’.

When looking back over the past 100 years, Betty has no regrets. She urges others to adopt the same mindset.

‘I don’t think you can live your life well with regrets,’ she says. 

‘When you make decisions you make them on what’s happening at that time. It’s too easy to look back later and say you made a wrong choice. 

‘You believed it was the right choice at that time so regretting it won’t change it.’

Betty also hopes to change the perception of ‘getting older’ and insists there’s nothing ‘boring’ about it. 

‘People assume that life gets boring and quiet. It will if you let it!,’ Betty says.

‘Yes you do slow down but that doesn’t mean you stop. You can still get out and enjoy yourself… just at a slower pace!’

Betty, who is an advocate of joining lots of clubs and keeping a broad circle of friends, says that while she’s seen technology advance rapidly in her lifetime there’s one item she’s most impressed by: mobile phones.

‘I don’t have one but I find it so quite amazing how my kids and grandkids can just take a photo, beautiful photos too, anywhere,’ Betty says.

‘I’ve always loved taking photos and I used to use my little box brownie! Now they just pull out their phones, it’s wonderful.’

That said, she does wish young people would ‘get off your phones and talk to people properly’.

When asked why she wanted to spend her 100th birthday on a trip to Bunnings, Betty said it was a no-brainer as she loved the flower selection.

‘I’ve always loved my garden, especially colourful flowers. I don’t have a proper one anymore, just my potted garden on my little balcony,’ she says.

‘Every morning, I wake up and there are pots of colourful flowers greeting me (if the cheeky cockatoos haven’t chewed them off!).  

While reflecting on her life, Betty wanted to share the day she’d love to re-live just one more time if she could.

‘Oh, I’ve so many wonderful moments I remember, there’s so much that has happened in my lifetime,’ she says.

‘One that is really a beautiful memory was going on a cruise on the Queen Mary with my cousin Joy a couple of years after my husband passed away. 

‘That moment, walking onto the beautiful ship, you have no idea how breathtaking it is.’