Are we ready ?

Saw this article in the Times about caring for infirm parents: click here

It was sad and made me ask: do we have "real" discussions with our children about caring for us when we get infirm?

I have only one child and he is in college - he had been in the military....He jokes that I need to stay in perfect health for at least another 10 years so he can have a life...also he was born when I was 38 1/2...another factor to take into account these days. Many of my friends had kids when they were near or over 40 - meaning that our kids are still young when we are getting old....

I do know that if I were to be infirm, he'd do what he can to take care of me - and the dog and the cat - [he knows how attached I am to my animals] but it would be a burden to him....so we just joke about it. That's easy to do as we are both very healthy right now.....But....as I asked are we ready? For me"no" is the true answer....

Happy New Year to all.

Here we go again

Another set of drugs and again - problems....This time it's the anti heartburn "stuff." If you take these on a long term basis you stand the chance of fracturing your hips.... Why? The drugs may reduce the body's absorption of calcium....

I'm not sure anyone needs all the drugs we have pushed on us daily - in the paper and on the TV and radio. Saw a full page ad today for some new drug...and that page was followed by another full page where all the warnings were.....

But I am a cynic and I think these pharmas are only out to make money and make it on the growing adult population....

Beware what you take - be it prescribed or over the counter....you are the guinea pig for the long term effects!

January 1 is soon arriving

Well, it IS December, so January is right around the proverbial corner.

Some readers may be interested in changing careers, adding in a new one or just buying "good stuff" without being hyped at....so I've added what are called Orange Ads on the right.

I am part of a group of network marketers who make no hypey claims or push you to join anything or to buy anything. You can click on an ad which will take you to that person's profile at Network Marketing Central and read about them.

Only if you click on contact this rep will your clicking be known...It's a safe way to look around to see if anything grabs your interest. If you click on the Network Marketing Central logo - you go directly to my page...and I won't even know : - )

End of 2006 coming soon

Wow - this year went by at warp speed for me.....and when we turn the new year, it becomes another year I have been in Portland as I moved into my "new" place in early January 2004. These 3 years went as fast as did 2006.... Is it as we age that years seem to go by faster? I don't know - but one thing I do know is that I am going to start doing some serious research on the psychology of aging and finally do the "book" that I have thought about for a long time. At present my thought is to make it a combo of research along with interviews of "real" people .... We are not the same older generation as our parents or the boomers...we are different...

As I've said before, many of us still work because we like what we do. We are not sitting back and waiting for old age to creep up - we are out there "keeping on keeping on." We are growing older better and we are setting an example for those "kids" behind us : o )

Mom was wrong : -)

Did your mother keep telling you to sit up straight? Mine did - every time I slouched while doing homework or on the telephone or just hanging out with friends in the living room....

Well it's one thing she was wrong about...seems it is better to slouch - to a degree - actually to about 135 degrees. Saw that article when slouching at the computer - and I had to laugh...guess it's why my back is fine...

It probably is not a good thing to constantly be slouched - getting up and moving around and varying the degree of "slouchiness" is likely to be better....most movement is....

So sorry mom - you were wrong and I am glad this is not one myth I passed on to my son : - )

Working "later" in life

Earlier this year, Yahoo Inc. conducted a poll which indicated that 2/3 of Americans would like to be in business for themselves and many of those already "older" said that one is never too old to launch a business.

And were these respondents going to do this business this for money? Nope - they said they wanted to do something they loved or to be their own boss.

Interesting. Older Americans are still wanting to work - 2/3 of us is a LOT of older people. And as we are living longer, we old folk are going to be possibly working for a long time - AFTER we retire from our previous careers. Does that mean we did not love our careers or that we are so adaptable and interesting and interested that we can tackle a whole new career in later life and make a go of it?I myself have had many "careers" and now I am into an even newer one [my glyconutrient business] and back into what was once a hobby [photography] and I'm now making money at it....

I love getting older - we can make changes in our lives without all the angst that we might have had in our 20's or 30's.....

Will you retire?

Our lifespans have increased and our health is better. So do we continue to "retire" at 65? 70?
Or will we take on newer careers at those ages?

The median annual income for older women [ 65 and up] is a few thousand dollars over the definition of poverty level. And although we worked hard at women's equality - we are not equal financially. Our income at over 65 is about half of that of a male.

So it makes economic sense for women to keep working. I'll always work - but it will not ever be 9 to 5. I've tried that a few times and it doesn't fit my psyche :- ). I've changed careers many times...when I was 50 I went to law school and my son, who was then 11, wrote an essay about me that ended with "My mom is 50 and she still doesn't know what she wants to be when she grows up." His mom is almost 67 and still wonders what she'll be when she grows up....I love reading and learning - but
for now I'm content to do it on my own without collecting any more degrees....

I'm more into degree-less work now....It its my growing older better psyche : -)

Money and growing older

For many, there is a financial need to continue working after hitting the 60's. For others, there is a desire to keep working until we are no longer able to do so..... One nice thing about aging is that we hopefully learn to work smarter and not harder.

We are living longer and maintaining our health as we age...and for some, we are getting healthier as we grow older better I am in much better physical shape than I was when in my 50's. , Maybe even better than when in my 40's.

So - do we keep working or not? It's an individual choice - and depends on how much "better" you want to grow older : ). Full retirement with sufficient funds so that there is absolutely no stress related to money is great. But with increasing costs of everything - it's wise to not totally count on what you now have if you are retired.

I complain about corporations here: http://illegitimisnilcarborundum.blogspot.com
but I will say here that they scare me. All they want is the moolah and the hell with the people. Yes I know this is not true of all corporations but too many have hurt us - like the pharmaceuticals, the energy ones, the oil people, etc. Their goal is to increase their own net incomes and those of their shareholders- they do not care about who might get hurt. [The Medicare part D doughnut hole is a good example.]

Over the next bunch of postings - I am going to look at working and aging.

Obesity - again

We are entering a new generation of obesity and now it's not just adults who are obese - it is expected that the number of children who are obese will hit 20% by the year 2010 - that's only FOUR years from now.

I heard or read somewhere that we are reaching that stage in obesity where this or the next generation of children will NOT have a longer life span than the parents...

Not only is obesity bad in and of itself, it makes all other medical problems worse....

I've been blogging about healthier children for a while now and hope the readers of this blog are among those who will not have obese children...It is something parents and grandparents have control over during the child's early years...and good nutrition early on can never be a bad choice...

Please watch what your children and grandchildren eat and make sure they get exercise.... After all we want them to grow older better - just like we are : -)

Having fun as we age

Aside from having my son here all summer, and pedaling bridges, and working - I am a member of a newly formed group of artists. Almost as soon as we were formed, in May, we were invited to show at a local museum....egads - we had a lot to learn about forming a professional group, doing PR and all else related to having a show - and we had to do it quickly... but we did it! And we all found time to do our art....

Now I am one of those 12 artists in a show debuting next week at the Oregon Jewish Museum.

If you are in or near Portland, Oregon come see a lot of great art from ORA - , .

It's a special "First Thursday" Debut Exhibit at the Museum - come meet us on September 7th from 5-8 PM

The museum is at 310 NW Davis Street and the exhibit will be there through September 19th.....

I am busier growing older better than I was being youthful :- )

All but one of my photos for this show are from near my house - mainly views in and around my moorage....like this one...
















© Gray Wolf Productions 2006

The Bridge Pedal

Well - 10 bridges and 36 miles of pedaling can be done! I left the starting point about 7:30 and crossed the finish line about 4 hours later.... took some photos and stopped for water and fruit along the way. After crossing the finsih line I went over to the grass and took off my very wet shoes and socks - then met my son and celebrated with that beer!

Here are some photos:












































boy did that beer hit the spot

Still exercising

Even as we age there are major breakthroughs in our physical abilities. I mentioned that I was into cycling again and recently I got over a major hurdle. Since I ski, my quads are in pretty good ski shape, but that's not the same shape it takes to do a standing run on a bike.....So for months I was getting better at a standing hill climb but once we stared to go into a sprint or a run I folded and sat down - my quads screaming at me! I've hung in at the classes because my original goal was to be in shape for the Bridge Pedal in Portland this coming weekend - about 36 miles of road cycling over the 10 bridges.

Anyway back to my breakthrough. This week I was able to stand up and sprint - and my quads were not screaming! I was amazed that I could do this..it was a sudden breakthrough too as I could not do this in the previous class.....

The moral? We are never too old to improve our stamina, quads, energy or strength! We keep on going and we keep getting better. After all - we can grow older better.

PS - I do sip on one of my sport drinks as I pedal and I take another after......

Summer, friends, etc.

Having my son around and my schedule off a bit took some getting used to. Now we are both doing our own thing. He is working, playing and generally enjoying this part of the country - he'd never been here for more than a few days.

He's made new friends and caught up with some he knew from DC who now live out here. It made me stop and think again of friends. I stayed in touch with only one childhood friend - but she stayed in touch with others - so now some of us - the regular emailing types are back in touch.

I am in more frequent contact with friends from D.C. and a few from Vermont - but most from high school, college and graduate school days are gone. Sometimes I go onto the Internet doing searches and have found one or two but statistics say that "we" do not use the Internet as much as others - so are we never to get back in touch? I hope not...Many of my friends have moved around so it's hard to know where to look.

Hopefully some day we will all meet up here on the blog : - friends) or in general cyberspace.

But we all need friends - they keep us healthy - so if you lost contact with some from the past -find them - and also make new ones wherever you are.

Learning more about parenting

My son, who has not lived at home in almost 10 years, is here for the summer between semesters. We had our obligatory arguments and actually we got his "space" organized his way. Luckily I have a separate structure known as a tenderhouse and he is happily settled in there. And now he is working part time and looking for more work to do.

I think I am lucky that we get along so well - but our long winded conversations - mainly about politics - have kept me up beyond my normal bedtimes and I am very off my exercise/work/fun schedule. I think we are past our rough spots and it will be fun and okay. But it's a learning experience. I teach about the lifespan and one newer topic is about grown children returning home. I shall have first hand experience about a piece of this - but I know it helps us both that there is a limited term to this arrangement. He will leave in mid August.

Having a child when you are older has some good points to it - I do things most others my age do not - because we had done them together - like skiing, working out, eating well..all the things have previously mentioned about how to grow older better. Although I read of women in their 50's and 60's getting pregnant; it is not anything I would suggest. If you did not have a child in your late 30's or in your 40's....find a child to play with - teens are okay but well they are teens - or find a young adult and go biking - hanging out with youth will help you grow older better....

Still cycling after all these years

I am loving my cycling class - otherwise known as "spinning." I have improved my stamina so much in a few short weeks. Still can't keep up with the teacher or the others but hey I have decades on them and for me - I am doing GREAT. And I do take my sport supplements before and after - so I recharge quickly with no aches and pains.

Was at a conference this past weekend and am more excited and focused about my wellness business. Among the information imparted was that heavy metal toxicity is related to autism, ADD and Alzheimers. This does not surprise me - we have made the air and soil and water toxic and if so- why should it escape our bodies? We are putting it in the system everyday.

We can change our culture and try to undo our errors but in the interim we can put better foods into our bodies in the form of supplements that deal with the toxins.

We have an increase in the numbers of children diagnosed as autistic and the researchers say they do not know why. We have more kids diagnosed as attention deficit and as we keep aging, we have more persons diagnosed with Alzheimers unless we stop poisoning ourselves.

Cycling - WOW

I have been going to a cycling class. All I can say is WOW - it is a workout. At first I could not do much more than just pedal the bike for the hour - now I can sprint, pedal while standing, do hills and suck air :- ). I still can't keep up with the class for the hour - and I'm not alone in that - but the improvement is rapid...I will keep going - it's twice a week and my goal is to soon be able to stay with the teacher for the whole hour. Told her that too as I know that verbalizing a goal increases the likelihood it will happen.

Besides I feel so good after the class that alone is a reason. I come home energized and get a lot done. I could do this on my own bike but I don't - that's why exercise classes are good - or working out with a friend - you do more!

So where are you in your exercise goals? It's late April but it's never too late to start. Go GO Go.... Your body and mind will be happy - and you will grow older better.

Heathiness

I have recently been reading a lot of research on topics related to the lifespan - mainly as I am teaching that class.

The ones that stick in my mind are those related to obesity. We are becoming such an obese country that the airplanes are widening seats and now children's safety seat makers are having to make bigger seats for the bigger children. Then the newest research is that obese people do not even recognize that they are obese. Only 15 percent of people in this category view themselves as obese. And while the percent of women who are obese has stabilized, a growing percent of men and children are seen as obese.

We are told that obesity leads to many health issues and worsens others...yet we eat away. For many it is a choice - is supersizing and calorie adding good for you just because it is advertised and can be a cheap add on?

Do you know what a normal sized serving is? It's about the size of your fist! So next you are eating a meal look at your fist and then look at your plate....and think about your health!

And please start thinking more seriously about adding supplements to your diet. We do not get enough of the "good stuff" from our food anymore - especially what we need from fruits and vegetables. And also know that we need 5-13 servings of fruit and vegetables a day [depending on your "stay healthy" caloric intake] but we tend to eat only about 3 servings a day! So again - eat well but supplement!

MSG - Monosodium Glutamate

I can't tolerate MSG and avoid it when I can read a label. It makes me dizzy and nauseous. Sometimes after I eat some foods I feel the same way and after reading an email this morning about MSG - I think I know what is going on. MSG or Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein [another name or MSG] is in a lot of food we eat at home or eat in both fast and slow food places. Ask for the ingredient list and see if MSG or Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein is listed in any of the foods on your plate.

What does MSG do? It makes food "taste better." This is from the MSG Facts website.

They tout it as a health benefit especially for older people as it causes them to eat more. I'm not sure I would equate eating more with better nutrition.

What the email I got showed, and which was a greater concern, is that MSG is addictive and is related to obesity. It is akin to nicotine - a known additive that creates an addiction but that no one wants to admit to. It would mean taking on the food industry.

Try this: Go here National Library of Medicine and type in the words "MSG Obesity in the search box." You can then read a few of the over 100 medical studies that appear.

Recent Headline: Fruits, vegetables not as nutritious as 50 years ago

Fruits, vegetables not as nutritious as 50 years ago

By LANCE GAY
SCRIPPS HOWARD NEWS SERVICE

In spite of what Mother taught you about the benefits of eating broccoli, data collected by the U.S. government show that the nutritional content of America's vegetables and fruits has declined during the past 50 years -- in some cases dramatically.

Full article is here

Gee – I knew this years ago but I am glad the world is catching up with the fact that our growing crops for quick shipping to stores is not only killing the soil it is producing fruit and veggies that aren’t as nutritious.

So what do we do? Spend all day eating fruit and vegetable in order to get the nutrition we need? Or eat supplements?

Local organic produce is a good answer but it does not work if you live in a cold climate. If your “fresh” food is shipped to your local store – chances are that it ripened “en transit” - and the best nutrients come from vine/tree-ripened produce – not truck-ripened produce ☺

Drugs and us

See this article?

Glaxo Chief: "Most Prescription Medications Don't Work"

"A senior executive with Britain's biggest pharmaceutical company has admitted that most prescription medicines do not work on most people who take them.

Allen Roses, worldwide vice-president of genetics at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), said fewer than half of the patients prescribed some of the most expensive drugs actually derived any benefit from them.

Most prescription drugs work in only 30 to 50% of patients. "

You can read the article here

Why? Because we are all different and drugs are designed as "one size fits all." Also drugs treat only symptoms - they do not get at the underlying problem which even he says may be a nutritional deficiency. And that also may differ from person to person.

That's why I say eat your glyconutrients - it's food for your cells! See links to the right for more information.

Who is in charge?

I was reminded this week by a few people that WE better be in charge of our health and our lives - i.e. "Take control of your health and life before disease does!"

Who knows our bodies better than we do? Who knows our family and loved ones better than we do? Who knows the little things that change that ought to be of concern? Not someone who sees you maybe once year and then only for a short time.

I have nothing against the medical profession. In years past some of my best friends were medical students and/or physicians. But I must admit that as a Psychologist I ran into many who were downright awful! Be that said - yes I do go to see a medical person when I need to but I try to select ones who understand that I am my own best advocate. Thankfully I am very healthy and don't have need for much in the way of medical care - and I give new medical personnel the benefit of the doubt a few times before I switch to new ones.

When I most recently learned that contacting my medical provider was a most major problem- I switched insurers and providers and am happy with the change. I say that knowing that many people are afraid to make the switch for their own reasons and that this may be legitimate. But even if you stay with one - make sure you are getting the care YOU need - ask questions..make sure they spend time with you answering those questions....

And remember that most physicians still know little about nutrition and prevention - in my opinion medical schools are excellent for training in illness care - not in stay healthy care.....

Eating and Health

I no longer get frustrated when the world caches up with me : -)

For years I have said that the low fat and no fat foodstuffs were at best no help and at worst bad for you. Well the "no help" research has come out. Turns out that in a major research project it was found that low fat diets did not reduce the risk of breast cancer or colon cancer - nor did the diet high in fruit and grain prove to reduce risks.

My take is that the rate of obesity keeps pace with the number of low and no fat foods we have in the supermarket. Why? We need fat in our diets and taking it out means we eat more of the bad stuff in an attempt to appease our bodies - which seem to know they are lacking something - but our brain says NO NO NO to fat because the media has told us it is BAD BAD BAD and so we ignore our body's real message.

We all need a mix of carbs, fat and protein... I took a dietary assessment and I need to have 50% of any meal to be protein....others need 50- to 60 % be carbs. There is never going to be one type of diet fits all - we all come from different types of ethnicities.

Are we old yet?

Ok - the birthday came and went. Do I feel different? Nope. A friend I have known for 43 years called to wish me a happy birthday and asked how old I was. I told her I have no more birthday numbers except for those with a 5 or a 0. She could easily figure out how old I am but the question I think is prompted by the fact that we met when I was a new graduate student and she was a new professor - and we have been friends ever since. She has a big birthday coming up this Spring - one that ends with a 5. We laughed about a lot of dumb things we said and did over the 43 years and as always we saying "How is it that our kids keep getting older and we still seem the same ages as when we met?" That's a question many ask.

If you are aging in a healthy fashion it seems that not much changes in you - just in those around you who are still counting - like kids and grandkids : ). Yes I have noticed changes and I am not always happy about them.

When driving cross country for this latest move, I knew I could not drive day and night like I did in the past. In fact even tho my son did most of the driving we laugh that I could not even be a passenger for hours and hours anymore either. I insisted we stop at night to let me sleep stretched out in a bed. I added that the cat needed to be out of her travel box as well - she being older than I : - ). [The dog got to have a break when we stopped for gas and food. ]

When I was a college student in NYC - the fun part of the day started at 10 PM. New York was a 24 hour a day city and we took advantage of it. Not sure how we made it through on so little sleep. Now 10 is real night time and it''s been ages since I was up as late as 1 or 2 AM.

So there are changes. Are they bad? good? Nope - they are just changes. Some we need to be aware of but can do little about - and many we are aware of and should be doing a lot about.

Til next time : o )

Birthdays

I have a birthday coming up this month...funny, but birthdays have no real meaning anymore. I think once you hit a certain age - and I am not sure which it is - only birthdays with 5's or 0's at the end seem to have meaning..

Does that mean we think in 5 years cycles as we age? Or is it that "others" use those number markers to keep track of where we are. I'm an age now I once thought was "old" but that's true of most ages. When I was really young I thought 25 or 30 was ancient. When a friend was here recently and were we skiing - I asked if we would still be skiing when we were old. Neither of us thought that was an odd question :)

Growing older better may mean we forget about the number we are and keep on keeping on - doing what we do!

So - keep on keeping on!!!

One week into January

Are you still resolute?

Did you make goals for the year?

There are some [usually younger] who would wonder why we "old" people make resolutions or goals. I always remember a Lifespan class I taught many years ago in Boston. It was within a university unit which allowed those over 65 to take classes for free and my class included a man who had retired to Boston. [That alone seemed odd to many of the younger members of the class.]

One of our projects consisted of students interviewing people of different ages on topics such as work, family, future plans and death. Some of the younger members of the class were very uncomfortable with the idea of asking people in their 60's, 70's or older about a future or death. The 65-year-old man thought that was interesting. He told them that most his age would have no trouble answering those questions.

"After all," he added, "some of you will die long before I do." A long silence ensued and then we had a very lively discussion of life expectancy, risk taking and health...I still remember that particular class and I am guessing most in the class do as well.

We who are now older don't mind discussing the future or our own plans and goals for it. Who knows how long we will live...but no matter how long it is - we need goals and plans. I have written mine - I have serious income producing plans for my business for this and future years..




Excelsior! [ I am a native New Yorker :)]

Make 2006 YOUR year

We are all going to have another birthday this year! Let's make it a healthier one than the last one and let's keep up the healthier routine into 2007 and on..

Welcome to the group known as baby boomers. Starting yesterday, the 78 million of you began to turn 60. We in the pre-baby boom years say "welcome" and "it's great being older."

Because we are who we are and survived or did not get the diseases that killed and hurt others born when we were born, we are already among the healthier. But you need to protect that health and it's never too late to start.

Make your new year's resolutions and stick to them - exercise, eat well [supplement better], and enjoy life. Prepare for a more expensive full retirement with a Plan B. Or for some, start on plan A right now! Social Security won't allow you to live as you want - you'll need much more than that. Financial worries are dangerous to your health so you need to ensure that you have more than enough so you CAN grow older better...

Here's a fitness resolution plan:

Make a contract with yourself - yes in writing - and state that you will do the following:

1. Lose 4 pounds per month for a total of xx pounds by [fill in date]
2. Work out 3 times per week/30 minutes per session from January thru March. [In April as you see how well it works, add another day.]

How to work out? and lose weight?

Resistance exercises - free weights or weight machines
Cardio exercises - tread mills, spinning, elliptical machines
Flexibility - pilates, yoga, tai chi

Check with your health care provider before embarking on a new program and most importantly, have fun. I have started playing squash again and yikes- after a 10 year hiatus, I am sucking air between points :)

For weight/nutrition information - learn about the glycemic index here

For info on patented supplements go here

Happy healthy 2006