Working Harder To Stay In Shape
Crossing into our so-called ’senior years’ has made a lot of us Baby Boomers realize an important fact of life: Getting old is not for sissies! Just when we may have reached a certain level of material and emotional stability, our bodies start breaking down. Like the Red Queen in ‘Through the Looking Glass, ‘ we have to work harder to stay in the same place! Hardly seems fair, does it? But then, we know that life isn’t fair.
At least our athletic friend has a somewhat lesser problem to manage that our brother-in-law. A few months back he was diagnosed with the form of diabetes called Type 2, which often affects older people. It means that his body has become resistant to the effects of insulin, which regulates blood sugar. Consequently he’s had to start taking extra insulin to compensate for this change, and things aren’t going very well with getting the dosage accurate. He read recently that some patients with Type 2 diabetes have begun to take a supplement made from an extract of the agaricus brazil mushroom. It seems this extract has the ability to increase the body’s acceptance of insulin when taken along with it, so that the dosage can be stabilized.
Apparently this remedy, when combined with other diabetes medications, serves to decrease insulin resistance, a common problem in people with Type 2 diabetes. It’s not a cure-all, though, because most experts recommend it only be taken for about 12 weeks, because sometimes it can make blood sugar go too low. Some people have used this particular supplement as a way to reduce their side effects from chemotherapy, but there’s no scientific evidence supporting that yet.
One remedy that seems to help a lot of people with their joints is kirkland glucosamine. Apparently this supplement helps to provide support for the cartilage around the joints, which tends to get thinner as we age. By giving more support to the cartilage that cushions our joints, the joints themselves hold up better and move more freely.
Another friend of ours is distressed by her increased osteoarthritis, especially in her hands. She’s wonderful at crochet, which involves a lot of repetitive movement. She regularly makes baby things for a local charity that provides blankets and clothes for the young mothers in low-income families. She’s very fond of this kind of work, so she’s always looking for way to ease her discomfort. She’s tried a lot of arthritis remedies to reduce the swelling and inflammation in her hands.
Of course, one of the best ways to deal with any of the problems related to aging is to keep active in body and mind. We’re so envious of our friends who’ve been able to keep up with activities such as running and tennis, even if they do occasionally need some therapy for knees and elbows. At best some of us can manage a nice brisk walk around the park or a neighborhood, but at least that’s something.
As far as we’re concerned, we’ve been convinced by the many scientific studies of recent years that growing older can be managed better if we keep our minds active. Maybe we’re just playful kids at heart, but we feel good about playing board and video games and working on number puzzles and crosswords. Physically we might be able to keep up with gardening or walk the dog daily, but that’s quite an accomplishment for former ‘couch potatoes’ like us!
