Tuesday, March 5, 2013

I feel CLEAN!

30 pounds lighter and feeling so much better.  I still have 10 to go to get where I would like to be.  Not as thin as some may think I should be but my desire has never been to be thin just healthy and not fat.  It feels wonderful to say I have 10 pounds to lose instead of 40.  This has not been a real struggle either.  I have just had to remind myself that slow and steady wins the race.  I am planning on winning this race and never losing again.  I have changed so many bad eating habits to good habits.  That is the point, it has to become a habit. Instead of feeling normal when I eat something unhealthy it feels strange and unusual.   This is not temporary.  This is a permanent lifestyle change.  I know this is repetitive, but I really have no desire to eat the way I used to.  Not saying I never slip.  Boy, I do, but when I do I physically feel bad.  When I get back to  eating the way I should, it's hard to explain how I feel.  One word that works best is "clean".  I feel clean inside.  My body is getting the nutrients it needs to stay healthy.  This winter so many have been sick with flu and colds.  I haven't even had the sniffles.  (I will probably wake up sick as a dog tomorrow.)  My resistance is up against the enemy of sickness and disease.

Lately, we have had a lot of bad news about friends suffering from serious health issues.  People younger than I am fighting for their lives from deadly disease.  Thank goodness for modern medicine, but please don't put all your faith in that.  Start filling your body with as much healthy food as possible and drop those things killing you like a hot potato.   I can't say enough about how the book Eat to Live has positively influenced my life.  If you are fighting for your life, please read this book.  What do you have to lose?  It's time to give up those sugars, fats, dairy, and over processed foods and eat food that will feed and heal your body.  It is possible to turn your health around.  Don't give up.

My husband got his latest blood work back.  He has been on cholesterol medicine for a very long time.  He stopped taking it about 6 months ago.  His numbers are as follows:

 On Medication                                        Off Medication eating better (most of the time)

Cholesterol         239                                195
Triglycerides       159                                158 
HDL                       45                                  41
LDL                      162                                122
Non HDL Chol     194                                154

Some numbers still need improvement but th wonderful results and he no longer takes a drug that has horrible side effects.  He also is taking half the blood pressure medicine he used to take.  Unfortunately he may have to continue to take this because of this high stress job and me.  :)

Food for Thought:


February 28, 2012

Safety Alerts Cite Cholesterol Drugs’ Side Effects

Federal health officials on Tuesday added new safety alerts to the prescribing information for statins, the cholesterol-reducing medications that are among the most widely prescribed drugs in the world, citing rare risks of memory loss, diabetes and muscle pain.
It is the first time that the Food and Drug Administration has officially linked statin use with cognitive problems like forgetfulness and confusion, although some patients have reported such problems for years. Among the drugs affected are huge sellers like Lipitor, Zocor, Crestor and Vytorin.
But federal officials and some medical experts said the new alerts should not scare people away from statins. “The value of statins in preventing heart disease has been clearly established,” said Dr. Amy G. Egan, deputy director for safety in the F.D.A.’s division of metabolism and endocrinology products. “Their benefit is indisputable, but they need to be taken with care and knowledge of their side effects.”
Diabetes patients and even those who develop diabetes while taking statins should continue taking the medicines, said Dr. Steven Nissen, chairman of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic, who has studied the medicines extensively.
“These are not major issues, and they really do not alter the decision-making process with regard to statins,” Dr. Nissen said.
Last year, nearly 21 million patients in the United States were prescribed statins. Whether that number of users is too high or too low has been debated for years. While advice on whether to take statins involves a complex mix of factors like age, family history and blood pressure, some experts have suggested that those with total cholesterol levels around 200 would benefit from treatment. Others have argued that treatment should not start until a cholesterol level of 240 or higher, all other factors being equal.
Dr. Sidney M. Wolfe, director of Public Citizen’s health research group, is among those who contend statins are overused. He said the new alerts about risks provided more reasons that otherwise healthy people with cholesterol levels less than 240 “should not be taking these drugs.”
The F.D.A. said that routine monitoring of liver enzymes in the blood, once considered standard procedure for statin users, was no longer needed because the liver injury associated with statin therapy was so rare.
Reports about memory loss, forgetfulness and confusion span all statin drugs and all age groups of patients, the F.D.A. said. Dozens of well-controlled trials of statins have offered few hints that the drugs cause any kind of cognitive impairment, Dr. Egan said. Still, the F.D.A. has received many reports over the years that some patients felt unfocused or “fuzzy” in their thinking after taking the medicines.
Officials in the F.D.A. debated whether such reports were truly worrisome, Dr. Egan said. But in recent years, the F.D.A. — criticized for waiting too long to issue some safety alerts — has become more willing to be public about possible drug risks, even when the evidence is uncertain
“We are trying to be as transparent as possible with our alerts and labeling,” Dr. Egan said, even though the alert on the possibility of fuzzy thinking “is not overly helpful.”
Statins seem to increase blood sugar levels in some patients by small amounts, and when millions are treated, that change leads to a diagnosis of diabetes for more people.
The F.D.A. had already placed an alert about diabetes risks on the label of Crestor, a big-selling statin made by AstraZeneca, because a Crestor trial showed an increased risk. The agency decided to extend that alert to all drugs in the class with the exception of Pravachol, an older medicine manufactured by Bristol-Myers Squibb.
A well-controlled trial of Pravachol previously showed that it reduced the risks of developing diabetes by 30 percent, but other trials have found Pravachol less effective in reducing cardiac risks.
Dr. Egan suggested that doctors check the blood sugar levels of patients after starting them on statin therapy.
That statins can cause muscle pain, particularly at high doses, has long been known, but in its new alert the F.D.A. reminded doctors that some other medications increase the likelihood that statins linger in the body longer than normal and increase the risk of muscle pain. Among the drugs that conflict with statins are hepatitis C protease inhibitors like telaprevir and boceprevir and the antibiotics erythromycin and clarithromycin.
This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:
Correction: March 1, 2012
An article on Wednesday about potential side effects of the widely prescribed cholesterol-reducing medications known as statins, using information from the Food and Drug Administration, misidentified the viral infection that is treated with protease inhibitors like telaprevir and boceprevir, which can conflict with statins. It is hepatitis C, not H.I.V.

My thoughts:  Of course they are going to tell you to keep the taking the drugs when they should be telling you to change your lifestyle and do it without drugs!

Another link with good information:  http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/07/20/the-truth-about-statin-drugs-revealed.aspx


The fact that statin drugs cause side effects is well established—there are now 900 studies proving their adverse effects, which run the gamut from muscle problems to increased cancer risk. For starters, reported side effects include:
Muscle problems, polyneuropathy (nerve damage in the hands and feet), and rhabdomyolysis (a serious degenerative muscle tissue condition) Anemia
Acidosis Sexual dysfunction
Immune depression Cataracts
Pancreas or liver dysfunction, including a potential increase in liver enzymes Memory loss

Muscle problems are the best known of statin drugs' adverse side effects, but cognitive problems and memory loss are also widely reported. A spectrum of other problems, ranging from blood glucose elevations to tendon problems, can also occur. There is evidence that taking statins may even increase your risk for Lou Gehrig's disease, diabetes and even cancer.

Recipe of the day:  Spaghetti Squash

Spaghetti Squash is so much fun to cook.  I love taking the fork and making the spaghetti.  Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds then  put 1/4 cup of water in one side and put the other side on top.  Place in a bowl in the microwave and cook for about 8 minutes.  Using a fork, gently pull the strands of squash away from the peel and place the squash strands into a bowl.  Heat a skillet with a little vegetable broth and add the garlic, onion, tomato, and spices and saute until onions are tender.  Toss in spaghetti squash and serve.  Yum Yum.  Going to fix some now.  You can use a little healthy oil if you prefer instead of vegetable broth. 

1             spaghetti squash
1/2          small sweet onion chopped
1 cup      Cherry tomatoes cut in half.  As many as you like for your taste
3             cloves of crushed garlic
1             Tablespoon of Italian spices or spices of your choosing
1/2 cup   Vegetable broth