Category Archives: Staying well

Coffee – Java – Science even says it’s Good!

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Ever since my mom got me hooked by adding lots of cream and sugar, I’ve been an avid coffee drinker.

Is it good for me, I’ve wondered, and the answer seems to be “yes!”

In the Oct 3, 2015 issue of Science News titled”The Beneficial Bean” they write “coffee reveals itself as an unlikely health elixir.”

Here’s a summary:

Caffeine
  • Reduces liver fibriosis
  • Slows heart and liver damage.
  • May counter Parkinson’s, dementia, and depression
  • Boosts feel-good dopamine
Polyphenols
  • Reduce liver fibriosis
  • Boosts DNA repair
  • May fend off blood clots
  • Boost metabolic Efficiency
  • Lower Blood pressure
  • Act as demethylating agents
  • Lessen internal injury from free radicals.
Diterpenes
  • Fights certain carcinogens
  • Reduce liver DNA adducts
  • Boost levels of glutathione
  • Target and kill mesothelioma cells in lung tissues
  • Kahweol is anti-inflammatory and cuts blood flow to tumors
  • But both can lead to higher levels of bad cholesterol (LDL)
Trigonelline
  • Antioxidant
  • Lowers blood sugar
  • May have brain benefits

The article goes on to provide a short history of research into coffee, some studies that show little positive or negative effects, and the liver as the biggest benefactor.  The sidebar in the article suggests filtered coffee removes some of the cholesterol-raising oils in coffee.

I’m ready for another cup!

 

Baking Soda-May help reduce autoimmune inflamation!

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Wow! We’ve used Baking soda for lot’s of things, settling a stomach, coffee pot cleaning, reducing odors, cooking, but this is very interesting. Hope the research continues. I found the information in Science News.

Date:April 25, 2018 Source:Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University

Summary:A daily dose of baking soda may help reduce the destructive inflammation of autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, scientists say. They have some of the first evidence of how the cheap, over-the-counter antacid can encourage our spleen to promote instead an anti-inflammatory environment that could be therapeutic in the face of inflammatory disease, scientists report.

 

From: Health Impact News:    “Note: As a supplement, consuming a half-teaspoon of baking soda or more (depending on health conditions) thoroughly mixed in purified water daily should be done well away from eating, two hours or upon awakening, in order to not interfere with the necessary existing acid content of the stomach while food is being processed for digestion in the small intestines.

Baking soda has even performed miracles for cancer patients. One famous anecdotal example comes with the episode of Vernon Johnston’s metastasized prostate cancer cure that you can review here.”

Recognizing stroke symptoms

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From: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=stroke%20symptoms

“Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke.

Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

S *Ask the individual to SMILE.

T *Ask the person to TALK and SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently)
(i.e. Chicken Soup)

R *Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.

If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call emergency number immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

New Sign of a Stroke ——– Stick out Your Tongue

NOTE: Another ‘sign’ of a stroke is this: Ask the person to ‘stick’ out his tongue. If the tongue is

‘crooked’, if it goes to one side or the other that is also an indication of a stroke.”

Links:

Source of the above symptoms to watch for: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=stroke%20symptoms

A little more detailed: http://yourwellness.guide/2017/10/09/13-signs-of-a-stroke/

TIME article: Aging with Purpose

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“What’s your bucket list?”

At a dinner party last week, the subject of “aging with purpose” came up. My dinner companion, another elder, asked me what things I still had on my “bucket list.”  I thought for a minute and realized many of the things I would have said at a younger age I had actually accomplished. Others, like my early desire to build a 50 foot sailing yacht, learn how to sail well, and then mosey around the world for a year or two. have been off the list for a long time. Especially after talking with two couples who had done it and came away with a bunch of hi-lights  but mostly long stretches of  pure boredom.  Their comment,”the ocean is just plain huge.” For myself and wife, it turns out, kayak paddling and camping in the Canadian South Gulf islands suffices much better for our actual psychologies.

My bucket leaks – and well it should!

My bucket  list has leaks in the bottom. And that’s very fine with me. For instance diving from a 100 foot cliff into pure blue water, or going off a ski jump for a hundred meter flight, or climbing the face of El Capitan, are all activities I am glad leaked out of the bottom of my bucket list.

Today, I enjoy the process:  Seeing plays;  reading a good book sitting on a rock with the McKenzie river, and an occasional rafter rushing by; doing an energetic  dance; building one of my fused glass creations; writing a post for this blog, sitting beside our garden stove;  having an engaging conversation down at the local coffee shop about whatever is topical at the moment.  These are the things I now enjoy. I don’t need, or so I think, a bucket list.

Time article about aging with purpose

At about this time, TIME magazine came out with an article about a study which showed people having a purpose in life helps them maintain functions and independence as they age. I wonder where my love of activities fits on their purpose of life measuring stick?

People in the study, published in JAMA Psychiatry, who reported having goals and a sense of meaning were less likely to have weak grip strength and slow walking speeds: two signs of declining physical ability and risk factors for disability.

It’s a interesting article and here is the Time Magazine  link: Aging with purpose.

The Longevity Project -Howard Friedman & Leslie Martin c 2011

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In 1921 Dr Lewis Terman created a study group of 1528 children. Children selected by their teachers to be well adjusted and with potential. The idea was to follow these children for a lifetime to try and determine the traits and lifestyles which might provide predictors to longevity. The study has continued and one product, long after Dr Terman/s death is this book.

There is no poly-pill. Genes matter, life style matters, medical situations matter, and trauma, accidents, matter. Simply, (actually never simply) eating well, exercising, drinking sufficient water, staying trim, are all good – but no guarantee of a long life.

A couple of traits do stand out. Being conscientious. Those children deaned by teachers as conscientious, trying to do right, both maintained the trait over adulthood, but also lived, in general, long lives. Those people with large and solid social networks do well.

Many “myths” about ageing are addressed. The chapters include discussions about catastrophic thinking, divorce, masculinity/femininity, athletics, careers, religion, wars, and a last chapter about individual positive paths.

The book is aa easy and interesting read, full of statistics, and nicely enhanced with personal stories. Their motto; “follow the data.”