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Friday, May 28, 2010:
Vitamins: genuine or legend?
 I'm not big on taking pills or supplements of any kind. First off, I have this weird gag reflex when it comes to taking them. I could swallow a piece of chocolate or inhale a cheeseburger, but when it comes to a tiny pill, I'm grossed out. I think it's because a lot of them taste so horrible.
Right now, since it's summer, I tend to eat healthier. A lot more fruits & veggies. I tend to drink more water. I put less cream & sugar in my coffee. Some exercise. I also started taking a multivitamin and one for Iron because I am borderline anemic. That's about all I can tolerate. Oh, and the multivitamin is for adults, but it's chewable, orange-flavored, so I actually like taking that one. And the Iron pill is tiny, thank God.
But one of my bosses was telling me yesterday she takes some vitamins and some supplements that I've not heard of. One is biotin, for hair and nails. The other is aloe vera juice, which is supposed to be very healing. All these healthy supplements have me scratching my head. All I know is that she is a gorgeous 47-year-old African American woman and I wish I looked half as good as she does. [Note: the reason I mention her race is because she told me a story where she recently had to cut her hair, and I never knew about it before yesterday. I always picture her as this extremely well-put together woman with a hairstyle that suited her pretty face - she looks fabulous with super short hair. But her story was a bit of an emotional one and it really made me appreciate what it took for her to get where she is today].
I'm curious to know:
Do you take any of these or other vitamins/supplements? What are the benefits of them, and have you noticed results? Labels: healthcare
posted by Stacy~ at 5/28/2010 07:52:00 AM
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Thursday, August 13, 2009:
Eating healthy, aka I'm reeealllly huuuungry!!!
 A few weeks ago, a co-worker, the one who attended the Diana Gabaldon booksigning with me, suffered a mild heart attack. She's in her early 50's, and needless to say, it was a wake-up call. Not just to her, but to others who know her. It sure made me really take a serious look at my eating habits. I've never paid a lot of attention to what I eat. As long as it tastes good and feeds the hunger, it worked. I always thought that hey, I'm young enough, I don't need to worry about what I eat. Eat McDonald's everyday? So what, right?
Well, no, not so much. My family medical history is pretty scary. We've got it all - cancer, heart disease, arthritis, addictions, Parkinson's, emphysema, it's all there. We're pretty doomed. My uncle died of a heart attack at age 51. My dad had quadruple bypass surgery last summer at the age of 65. My mom smoked & drank through all her pregnancies. As Bucky Covington would say, "It Was a Different World". Yet did we turn out alright? I don't know. The last time I had a physical, within the last year, I was good to go on for awhile longer. But after Karen's mild heart attack, I've done some re-evaluating and for the last 2 weeks, I've been eating really healthy: spinach and tomatoes. Peapods and zucchini and cucumbers. Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, honeydew and grapes. Radishes. Peaches. Apples, bananas, pears. Carrots and lettuce. Not that I'm not eating bad stuff too - I still crave bacon and McD's vanilla iced coffees and will indulge a bit - but I'm trying to take better care of myself. And of course, drinking plenty of water. It's hard. Not impossibly hard, but I'm obsessing over food more than ever. I feel like I'm constantly hungry, so food is what I think about most of the time. Like right this minute. I'm craving something fattening and loaded with cholesterol. Someone said to eat every 3-4 hours. I'd prefer every 3-4 minutes. See my problem here?
So I guess my question today is, what ways do you use to stay healthy? What kinds of foods do you eat and how do you keep it interesting? I admit, I'm not much of a cook - it's the preparation that drives me nuts. So if you do have some simple, throw-it-together recipes, feel free to share. Like a spinach salad with strawberries, walnuts, and peppers. What salad dressings do you swear by? And it doesn't just have to be fruit & veggies. Maybe there are other things you eat that are good for you. For the record I have tried turkey bacon and it's, well, different. So thanx for whatever helpful tips you can pass along. Though the deck might be stacked against me, I don't want to actively follow in my family's footsteps when it comes to my health. It's never too late to start, right? Labels: healthcare
posted by Stacy~ at 8/13/2009 06:31:00 AM
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Thursday, October 25, 2007:
PSA: Hepatitis - get vaccinated
I'm going to make this short and sweet: no preaching or being bossy, other than I want you to seriously think about my request. Recently someone I've known for years was diagnosed with Hepatitis B, which is a serious disease that is caused by a virus that attacks the liver. Chronic hepatitis B may cause liver cirrhosis which may then lead to liver cancer, a fatal disease with very poor response to current chemotherapy. He has no idea how he got it, but it could have been a multitude of things. Some of the ways to get hepatitis (copied from the website): How can you protect yourself? That's easy: - You can get the hepatitis B vaccine.
"The hepatitis B vaccine is given through three shots. All babies should get the vaccine. Infants get the first shot within 12 hours after birth. They get the second shot at age 1 to 2 months and the third shot between ages 6 and 18 months. Older children and adults can get the vaccine, too. They get three shots over 6 months. Children who have not had the vaccine should get it.
You need all of the shots to be protected. If you are traveling to other countries, make sure you get all the shots before you go. If you miss a shot, call your doctor or clinic right away to set up a new appointment." *You may also visit the Hepatitis B Foundation for updates on vaccinations and other relevant news about Hepatitis B *You can find and print up educational materials at this site - Center for Disease Control and Prevention Now just so you know: I'm not afraid to be around this person; we have known each other a long time, so I completely trust him and feel comfortable around him, plus it's not easy to get hepatitis. However it can't hurt to get vaccinated, especially if I decide to go on another cruise. He had been on one earlier in the year with his family - they went to Belize - and South America is prevalent for hepatitis, so he somehow could have gotten it that way. You just can't be too careful, so yes, I plan on getting the shots. In many cases, they are even covered by insurance, so really, what's the risk? Please. Get vaccinated. You are worth it. Labels: healthcare, Hepatitis, vaccine
posted by Stacy~ at 10/25/2007 05:15:00 AM
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Monday, July 16, 2007:
Let's take care of our troops
Read this news story this morning and felt it bears repeating: Sunday, July 15, 2007WASHINGTON - "The Dave Matthews Band is urging fans to push Congress to do more to ensure that U.S. troops coming home traumatized by combat get the help they need.
A petition on the band's Web site has 23,000 signatures so far, singer Dave Matthews said in an interview aired Sunday on ABC's "This Week."
The Pentagon and Congress are reviewing possible changes to the military's much-criticized mental health system. A task force last month found that more than one-third of troops and veterans suffer from problems such as traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder, and it urged stronger leadership, more money and greater focus on prevention and screening.
"It just struck me as a profound injustice that someone who had given so much of themselves and clearly showed such a quality of personality that the gratitude we're showing them was basically a dishonorable discharge," Matthews said.
The petition asks Congress to investigate reports that some troops' service-related mental health problems have been misdiagnosed by the military as pre-existing personality disorders.
The effort is nonpartisan, the Grammy-winning musician said. "It's only about how we treat people who have given their, essentially, their lives, put their lives in the hands of our country." " Reading about some of the horrific injuries and conditions these men and women suffer as a result of serving in the military in hostile and violent situations sometimes makes me lose sleep at night. I think about how there I am, lying (laying?) safe in my bed, the only sounds outside being the traffic (I live close to a busy street) and the occasional airliner flying overhead, and there are thousands of soldiers who are making sure I can continue to do just that for as long as I possibly can, hopefully the rest of my life. It bothers me...no, it angers me how these incredible people, my heroes, are treated as an afterthought in many ways. Some lose jobs, their families break up, the don't have a lot of money or insurance or support. Some may lose their eyesight, a limb, or worse, and yet our country, the very one they defend, turns its back on these individuals in many ways. It's an injustice that they can't get proper medical care. I hope you all will sign this petition and show your support. While most of us don't believe in war and violence, there's no question that those who do defend us are doing so with honor, with courage, with dignity, and should be treated with such in return. No matter what one's personal views are on the subject, we are all human beings and deserve a chance at a better life, and better healthcare. Labels: healthcare, troops
posted by Stacy~ at 7/16/2007 05:25:00 AM
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