The times they are a changing!

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERABob Dylan isn’t the only one singing that tune. Things change. Stuff goes in and out of favor, like hula hoops and bell bottoms.

Like big hair and shoulder pads (dang! I love those shoulder pads!).

Most are innocuous. There are things that go out of style that are more…umm….let’s say life changing.

Think about all those people who prayed to St. Christopher to save them from auto accidents. Bang! Gone! You are on your own now.

But it’s even more than that.

Last week was my annual trek to the doctor for routine blood-sucking tests and a conversation on aging. This doc is close to my age so it’s not exactly like telling a young whippersnapper what it’s really like. He did have a clue but not a lot of answers.

Clearly he was not particularly interested in the negative impact wrinkles have on women. Nor could he explain why weight moves around the body and doesn’t stay in the appropriate spots.

The only surprise of the day was when he suggested I go off the daily low-dose aspirin regime I had been on for about….oh, let’s say five years. My former GP put me on that. The thinking at the time was that it was good for everyone over a certain age.

I was informed that now-thinking is that if you don’t have blocked arteries, any signs of it or other heart issues, concerns of bleeding outweigh the benefits of thinner blood. Whatever. I was delighted to eliminate something.

Last summer my GI doc told me to go off all supplements. He’s very anti-supplement because he says they cause GI issues. No more fish or flaxseed oil. Surprisingly (or not) my cholesterol hasn’t changed since I’ve gone off. He only allowed a single daily multi-vitamin supplement and calcium.

This isn’t new. I started taking Vitamin E when diagnosed with cancer many years ago only to have a doctor recommend I discontinue it a few years later. I guess Vitamin E went the way of St. Christopher and hula hoops.

I can say the same thing about CoQ10 and a few other pills.

I still take calcium although I recently read that the body doesn’t absorb calcium from pills effectively. The recommendation is to get calcium in your diet. Let’s see that means ice cream, cheese and more mocha lattes! Sounds good to me!

Currently Vitamin D is the superstar. It won’t take long until that star fades too.

Ultimately, eating a varied balanced healthy diet is best along with exercise.

I can now buy more shoes with all the money I am saving.

Some things change and some things never change!

 

 

24 thoughts on “The times they are a changing!”

    • What used to make me really sick was the Boniva (and all the similar drugs) for bones. Fortunately my doc took me off of them and wouldn’t you know it…my bone density test hasn’t changed up or down. Sometimes I think doctors overmedicate. There are people who need these things but you shouldn’t take them prophylactically.

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  3. Interesting. Not much change after discontinuing the supplements, huh? I’ve always had my doubts about them. I’m the worst when it comes to remembering to take pills. I take a multiple vitamin and ingest lots of calcium– which are both easy to do. Anything more than that and I’d be lost.

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  4. “None of us are getting out of here alive” – my Mom 🙂

    Fun post, Kate!

    I cleaned my shoe closet last weekend and jettisoned the cute-but-in-no-way-practical-shoes. I have more space yes but felt a bit depressed over what remained! MJ

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    • My husband saw the post and said, “You have a lot of shoes!” I informed him that the picture was from last year and some of those are gone. He asked me if he would find empty space if he went up and looked. Sadly, I had to say no. I am buying smarter though. I do like a nice looking shoe but if it isn’t comfortable, I’ m not buying it. I am working on my jeans now. I have two pair to donate. One is too big and the other too small. Ugh!

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  5. I think you make an excellent point about the way nutritional and dietary trends move in and out of being recommended. Add to that “drink coffee/don’t drink coffee” and “yes to wine/no alcohol” and the list goes on and on. I am still pretty consistent with supplements even if they aren’t guaranteed to do the trick. I eat very well and watch my nutritional values, but I’m not convinced that our food supply, even at the highest quality available, is as it once was. I think the micronutrients we need don’t exist in our food–or in trace amounts. I think we do the best we can and listen to our doctors. I have not heard that shift in thinking about the low dose aspirin. And our best aging defense is attitude. And you have that covered very nicely, Kate! 🙂

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    • About 15 years ago I took a lot of supplements — Vitamin B, E, CoQ10, Lutein and others. Slowly I have given most of them up. My GI doc is really adamant about them but I agree that we don’t get the nutrition our parents did. The diseases we get today weren’t around at least to the same degree back in those days so something is different.

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  7. Truth is always worth repeating, “Ultimately, eating a varied balanced healthy diet is best along with exercise….

    Ultimately, eating a varied balanced healthy diet is best along with exercise. Ultimately, eating a varied balanced healthy diet is best along with exercise. Ultimately, eating a varied balanced healthy diet is best along with exercise…. (and so on and so on).

    Thanks for spreading truth, Kate!

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  8. Great post, Kate! I can’t keep track of what’s in and what’s out when it comes to the success of taking supplements. Since I have Crohn’s Disease, there are certain vitamins my body can’t absorb, mainly B12 and Vitamin D. My D level was extremely low last year, according to my blood work, so my doctor recommended a supplement. After taking it for 6 months, my level was dramatically increased. The question is, does that raised level really mean anything…I suppose time will tell.
    I’m always in a quandary when it comes to supplements, as I’ve taken them for so many years and with the exception of Crohn’s, I’ve stayed fairly healthy.
    I do like the idea of saving that supplement money for shoes or purses! 🙂

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  13. What’s good for us today? Not so good tomorrow! Personally I simply hope to age…gracefully, of course and travel lightly while doing so! Who has room for all those supplements when jet-setting around…okay, so we’re driving our classy Toyota…aah, life is good whether supplemented or not. Love it.

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