The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.
Abraham Lincoln
I will be 60 in January. ARGH. I remember when I thought I would be dead at 42. It was just this number I had in my head. Obviously I was wrong. Now I have no idea. Except that I have a lot to do, so I hope it is a couple of dozen years in the future.
Sometimes I am painfully aware of how I got here and where I am. A few weeks back I found out a few things about my health that made me scratch my head. One was a pre-cancerous condition in a very odd place. My family, either side of my family does not get cancer. Really. Everyone dies of a heart attack either in their sleep, or they drop dead. So to come up with something that might turn into cancer was just baffling. So I am on a topical ointment for the long term. Then I found out I had a vitamin D deficiency. Me, the gardener person. They prescribed Vitamin D supplements, and they are readily available, and so far, the sun shines every day so I am not concerned. But this is the second time in a six month period that my blood work showed too much iron. I had to research that one. It is probably one of the most serious health things I have going on. It explains a few things. The symptoms are the same as having too little, but the potential health risks are very scary. One is that cancer loves iron. If you increase iron intake to cancer ridden mice the cancer will grow. Iron is a heavy metal, so it lodges in your organs, and your brain. You can eliminate it from your blood by donating a pint on a regular basis, which makes your body pull it out of your organs. But your brain is another matter. There are chelation therapies that will cross the membrane that protects your brain, but as you can imagine they have side effects. Iron overload can create high blood pressure ( I have that ) and high cholesterol ( huh, I have that too ), and diabetes ( they are warning me about that ) and memory loss. It has been linked to Alzheimers. I just thought I was getting old and forgetful.
So the first thing I did was go out and get bottled water. I am sure drinking well water is not helping. It requires quite a filtering system to take out iron. Reverse osmosis. Expensive, not going there. Then I looked at the diet aspect. NO more red meat, or dairy, or alcohol, or sugar ( no surprise there it feeds cancer too ) but it includes fruit. That just seems wrong! I am careful with those as well. I hardly ever drink any more. Steak is just too expensive. The diet that I stick to most of the time is actually good for me. Beans, rice, whole grains. I stay away from white flour, turns out that all those enriched foods are enriched with IRON. There are supplements that help remove it, and things you can do.
Anyway it has made me appreciate the days that I have a lot of energy, the days I feel my brain is working well, It explains a few things. I wish the county thought it was as important as the vitamin D, the sleep apnea, or the pre cancerous condition. I am grateful for the temporary part-time Doctor who had the foresight to order the extra test. Too bad she is gone. The guy who replace her was leaving too. He ordered a huge panel. Have your iron checked. They need to check the serum levels and the levels in your body that are not in your blood. It is a silent epidemic.
So one day at a time has taken on new significance. I hope you are blessed with good health.
Abraham Lincoln
I will be 60 in January. ARGH. I remember when I thought I would be dead at 42. It was just this number I had in my head. Obviously I was wrong. Now I have no idea. Except that I have a lot to do, so I hope it is a couple of dozen years in the future.
Sometimes I am painfully aware of how I got here and where I am. A few weeks back I found out a few things about my health that made me scratch my head. One was a pre-cancerous condition in a very odd place. My family, either side of my family does not get cancer. Really. Everyone dies of a heart attack either in their sleep, or they drop dead. So to come up with something that might turn into cancer was just baffling. So I am on a topical ointment for the long term. Then I found out I had a vitamin D deficiency. Me, the gardener person. They prescribed Vitamin D supplements, and they are readily available, and so far, the sun shines every day so I am not concerned. But this is the second time in a six month period that my blood work showed too much iron. I had to research that one. It is probably one of the most serious health things I have going on. It explains a few things. The symptoms are the same as having too little, but the potential health risks are very scary. One is that cancer loves iron. If you increase iron intake to cancer ridden mice the cancer will grow. Iron is a heavy metal, so it lodges in your organs, and your brain. You can eliminate it from your blood by donating a pint on a regular basis, which makes your body pull it out of your organs. But your brain is another matter. There are chelation therapies that will cross the membrane that protects your brain, but as you can imagine they have side effects. Iron overload can create high blood pressure ( I have that ) and high cholesterol ( huh, I have that too ), and diabetes ( they are warning me about that ) and memory loss. It has been linked to Alzheimers. I just thought I was getting old and forgetful.
So the first thing I did was go out and get bottled water. I am sure drinking well water is not helping. It requires quite a filtering system to take out iron. Reverse osmosis. Expensive, not going there. Then I looked at the diet aspect. NO more red meat, or dairy, or alcohol, or sugar ( no surprise there it feeds cancer too ) but it includes fruit. That just seems wrong! I am careful with those as well. I hardly ever drink any more. Steak is just too expensive. The diet that I stick to most of the time is actually good for me. Beans, rice, whole grains. I stay away from white flour, turns out that all those enriched foods are enriched with IRON. There are supplements that help remove it, and things you can do.
Anyway it has made me appreciate the days that I have a lot of energy, the days I feel my brain is working well, It explains a few things. I wish the county thought it was as important as the vitamin D, the sleep apnea, or the pre cancerous condition. I am grateful for the temporary part-time Doctor who had the foresight to order the extra test. Too bad she is gone. The guy who replace her was leaving too. He ordered a huge panel. Have your iron checked. They need to check the serum levels and the levels in your body that are not in your blood. It is a silent epidemic.
So one day at a time has taken on new significance. I hope you are blessed with good health.
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