Diverticulosis

My husband had an attack of diverticulosis, but we didn't know what it was. He has so much bloating and such a sore stomach. He lost his appetite but didn't lose any weight. He had to have blood tests and a catscan and it showed the diverticulosis. He had to go on antibiotics for 10 days and it has been a hard 10 days. I think at times he feels a little better and then again he doesn't. I will be glad when he is through all this and feels like himself again. It makes cooking hard because you don't know what to make for meals.

Do Healthy Brains Deserve a Pill Boost?

I just read an article that caught my eye. It said that some scientists have said that healthy brains deserve a pill boost. I thought we take enough drugs as it is but guess they have a good reason. They said healthy people should have the right to boost their brains with pills, such as those prescribed for hyperactive kids or memory-impaired older folks. This is a rather provocative commentary to say the least.

Did you know that college students are already illegally taking prescription stimulants like Ritalin to help them study and the demand for such drugs is likely to grow elsewhere? This is what this group wrote in an opinion piece published online by the journal Nature. They said we should welcome new methods of improving our brain function and doing it with pills is no more morally objectionable than eating right or getting a good night's sleep. The commentary also called for more research and a variety of steps for managing the risks. In addition, as more effective brain boosting pills are developed, demand for them is likely to grow among middle aged people who want youthful memory ability. I still think we are over medicated as it is.

Scientists Find Nuts May Cut Heart Risks

Scientists found that eating a handful of nuts a day for a year, along with a Mediterranean diet rich in fruit, vegetables and fish, may help undo a collection of risk factors for heart disease. Now that sounds like a tasty way to help yourself to a more healthy heart, don't you think? Almost everyone loves nuts and we always knew they were good for you.

Now Spanish researchers found that adding nuts worked better than boosting the olive oil in a typical Mediterranean diet. Actually, both regimens cut the heart risks known as metabolic syndrome in more people than a low fat diet did. What is most surprising is that they found substantial metabolic benefits in the absence of calorie reduction or weight loss. This was according to Dr. JoAnn Manson, chief of preventive medicine at Harvard's Brigham and Woman's Hospital.

The study appeared Monday in the Archives of Internal Medicine. It said the people who improved most were told to eat about three whole walnuts, seven or eight whole hazelnuts and seven or eight whole almonds. They didn't lose weight, on average, but more of them succeeded in reducing belly fat and improving their cholesterol and blood pressure. I think it is really kind of amazing, isn't it?

However, Dr. Manson, who wasn't involved in the study, cautioned that adding nuts to a Western diet, one packed with too many calories and junk food, could lead to weight gain and more health risks. She did say though that by using nuts to replace a snack of chips or crackers is a very favorable change to make in your diet. I can do that easily enough.

Family Visit

My brother came to visit me today. He hasn't been over for a long time. We had a really good visit and he told me all about two heart tests that he has had this week. One was an echocardiograph and it was very interesting to hear how they go about it. You hear about people having these tests but no one ever sits down with you and really tells you what happens during the test.

He also had a chemical treadmill test. He had 5 nurses, each in charge of a different monitor or ultra sound or giving him the shot of chemicals. Each time they gave him a bit more, it would speed up his heart and it wasn't long until he could feel it beating in his chest. They give you enough to get your heart beats up to 125 per minute and at the same time they take pictures of your heart as it is beating. They also look at the ultrasound at the same time. It was very interesting to me

He has two leaking valves and one they found has a small hole in it that he was born with. The doctor said these holes usually close within 2 or 3 days of birth, but it isn't unusual for them to stay open. Luckily he is on blood thinner or he probably would have had a bad stroke by now. He does remember passing out twice when he was probably in his 20's and 30's and he couldn't move for a few minutes. Apparently those were little stroke that passed without leaving damage or paralysis. He will find out in a few days the results of both of these tests. We are anxious to learn the condition of his heart valves now as it had been two years since he had the last tests.

Health and Exercise

We have our second Tony Little Gazelle. We bought the first one about 15 years ago. At first my husband thought it wasn't much of an exercise machine because he had a treadmill and he thought that walking on that gave him much better exercise. Then he started walking uptown, 2 miles a day, until it started getting icy and snowy. That was when he decided he would try the Gazelle, because I had been walking on it for years. He soon found that the muscles of his legs got more exercise than they did when he walked uptown and outside.

The doctor suggested that both me and my husband walk a total of 30 minutes a day for our health. We made sure that we walked that long each day and even longer sometimes. We wore out the old Gazelle and ordered a new one. It is a little lighter weight but it also takes up a bit less room. We have it right in front of the television set so you can keep up with your programs and the news and you don't get bored. One of the most important things you can do for yourself is exercise. Some people run at the gym, others workout at the YMCA or swim. It doesn't matter what kind of exercise you choose as long as you are consistent and exercise daily. You will feel like a new person if you have been a couch potato.

Dermatologists

My husband has itchy skin. At least that is what I call it. No one seems to know what causes it, but if he rubs his body anywhere, it itches so much he can hardly stand it. He has to be careful to pat himself dry after a shower and not really rub the towel over his skin. Lotions do not help at all either. So we have been going to the dermatologist and he is giving him two prescriptions that have really helped. The prescriptions are not very expensive either and that is a big help. The doctor says you can take them indefinitely as they have no side effects whatsoever so that gives you a great deal of peace of mind. We have to be there early in the morning so guess we had better get a good night's sleep. Perhaps we can have breakfast afterwards at Perkins. They always have good food.

Local News

It is time for the local news and I love to watch the weather and the health portion of the news. They give you 5 days in advance for the weather. They are not always right but they are close. We are having some warmer weather than we had last week. It was beginning to feel like cold Fall but summer seems to have returned for a bit yet. It was in the 80's today and tomorrow will be the same. I like to watch the health news as they give the latest advances in tests for various diseases and health problems. My husband, of course, wouldn't miss the sports.

Wealth, Health in Danger around the World

Continuing destruction of the natural world is affecting the health, wealth and well-being of people around the globe, according to a major UN report. The Global Environment Outlook says most trends are going the wrong way. It lists degradation of farmland, loss of forest cover, pollution, dwindling fresh water supplies and overfishing among society's environmental ills.