An Experiment in Fasting

I recent stumbled on a TV program on horizon on the benefits of fasting :
"Eat, fast and live longer"
The whole program is on Youtube :

which I watched again last night.

The idea of 'fasting' intrigues me, so, before I go any further I'm going to fast for two days and find out what it's like. By fast, I mean limit my calorie intake to 500 cals/day. Next step is to find out what I can eat to stay within that.

I've only fasted once in my life I think and that was when living on my own I was so involved in what I was doing that I didn't get round to eating for 36 hours - I felt fine.

So here goes, starting this morning. I shall confine myself to fruit, apples (the whole lot, oranges and the odd banana which I understand has a fair number of calories and the lovely vegetables that I grow in the allotment.

I suspect the most difficult thing will be to not think about it - but then I've a busy couple of days coming up and I'm on my own!

I shall report back here as I go through till Monday morning: interesting journey.

I'm starting off with an apple, orange and a coffee - 126 cals that's a quarter of my total .

It's 13:00 and I've been playing flat out in the Market Square at chess between 10 and and 12:45, losing all three games, having a drink of chocolate.

Feeling shattered, but that could be a number of reasons, most of them psychological - worrying about fasting. ("I knew a guy who dropped dead of exhaustion" kind of remarks!)

I'm reverting to the familiar, I need to relax in the 'normal' by having a 500g bowl of soup.

Kite making project coming up with parents and kids, at 2 pm, need a lot of mental and physical !

I shall then be having beetroot, cabbage, carrot as a salad - how about some ham?This could be for supper - we'll see how many calories it all adds up to!

Had a very active time making, designing and running around flying kites in Ford park. Five adults with six seven kids of various ages arrived at 14:00 and enjoyed themselves until 16:30 - sun was out the kites flew - we ended up with a few tangles which I really enjoy sorting out.

All went home very happy with their 'new' kites and string to join the growing band of kite fliers.

Now I'm off to a party when I've recovered - I'm short on sleep having woken up at 5 am. Left for party at 6:45pm after a lie down.
Here I only had a third-full glass of red wine and topped up with water. I think that because I went with the intention of doing this and not even looking at the food this worked.
I then went to Natterjacks to meet someone who had been away for the day and played the piano for 15 minutes - I'm getting better! Here I had several cups of an infusion at about 2 cal per small cup.

On returning home I had fun preparing myself a low calorie meal of lovely cabbage 125gm , two small tomatoes and about  20gm of tongue.
Today I had an orange and apple with Barleycup. I'm now about to have a bowl of soup (it's familiar) after some hard work at Mill Dam Park digging.

I'm feeling fine though perhaps a little strained but not sure where this comes from.

Had a different home made soup - the familiar again, did some sitting down jobs (untangling kite string), some shopping at Booths, some standing up work and supper which was the same as last night.
It's now 9pm and I've been trying out some new chess software and I feel fine - I'm not giving a thought to food and perhaps because of this I feel fine. Now what's the next job on the list : stick a link on my Facebook page.
It's now 8am on Monday morning and I've had breakfast. I don't feel at all ravenous, in fact I rather like the high fruit breakfast so I've repeated it with a little muesli. This 'fasting' hasn't been particularly difficult and I'll gladly do it again as what food I had was delicious. I'm pretty sure that I stayed within the 500 calorie limit. It would be easier to tell what it really feels like if it became part of my routine. And no. I'm not looking forward to a slap up meal!

It's now evening of the first day after the 'fast' and I feel completely back to normal. I had a reaction this morning whilst doing fairly vigorous work down at the allotment: I felt a but giddy and faint so I sat down and took it easy. I felt the need to eat something so I ate a raw beetroot - which took some doing but it did seem to make a difference. I haven't noticed a desire to eat more than normal to make up for the food not eaten in the two days. I conclude I must have lost weight probably body fat.

In future if I repeat this two day fast I will make sure that I don't have a day of vigorous exercise the day after.

I'm now reflecting on why I would do this again as I'm not convinced that in my case I will gain much: I'm already quite slim and I come from parents who both lived into their nineties and one close to a hundred. At least I feel that if there was a benefit I would incorporate this two day 500 calorie fast into my week as I found the food I did have was delicious and didn't have an undue hankering to eat beyond the 500 limit.

Two horrendous stories coming up

If I write a headline like this then this will make me find time to explain.

The first, at a time when cash is scarce, is regarding the wasteful spending of £100,000 by the Highways on something that had they been doing their job properlywould not need repairing - it was someone else's job. James Airey hasn't succeeded to talk sense into the Highways department.

The second is a dramatic example of an Ulverston man being kept against his will "in care"whilst they raided his house using his keys without his permission to fetch clothes amongst other things. Fortunately he is capable enough to have 'escaped' back home  with some help from Cllr Norman Bishop-Rowe - one of the few councillors that get off their backsides and try to help individuals when they are haveing trouble with officialdom.

Will any of you complain?



If you value the money in your pocket and your personal freedom when you are either old or ill you will be hopping mad, causing you to: write emails, make phone calls, ring the doorbell of your councillor and  go thumping on official's people's desk.

But will you?

Preventing Heart Attacks on your own

I've just received a slide show on this subject by email.

Found it on you tube - here it is?



Anyone know if this works?

Would anyone be here to tell us if it didn't?

It's one of those "worth a try" activities when you have nothing else.

Sounds plausible.

Do we want the NHS protected?

Cameron thinks so.

This is a complex subject so lets tackle it in small steps.

Was the spending of £2 bn on Swine 'Flu wise? Did we need protecting? (follow the "flu " label for what has been said before)

Are we spending too much money and prescribing too many drugs? (ditto "drugs" label)

It has been found that children who are exposed to germs (including animal shit) end up growing up healthier - though the others die. Do we put too much emphasis in taking over what our bodies have evolved to do naturally?

Is keeping people suffering from dementia, alive with feeding tubes (which is being required in some "Care" Homes) "good" or "evil"? It sounds like living hell to me.

Does the NHS take over our lives with the attitude "We know best how to keep you alive" when we don't want to live anymore thank you very much ? Is not quality of life the most important? Each one of us defines this in different ways, but are we consulted on how we want to live?

Is the purpose of the NHS solely to help our bodies do what they do exceedingly well without interference?

Have we been brainwashed into thinking that living as long as possible is more important than living short quality lives? Do we just want to stay alive as we can't face up to the idea of dying. We can't even use the word "died" but use the euphemisms:"passed away", "joined the great majority" (which is no longer true!)

Richard Nordquist writes concerning taboos

"Some folks in hospital "expire" there. And, according to hospital records, others experience "a negative patient-care outcome" or "a therapeutic misadventure." However, such mishaps can't be nearly as disappointing as the patient who has "failed to fulfill his wellness potential."

So of these answers could lead to the NHS not costing very much at all!

St Mary's Hospice

I'm visiting St Mary's Hospice, Ulverston regularly at the moment after visiting at Furness General.

The two are worlds apart.

I come away from the former thanking all those that have and are now working hard in this very worthwhile venture. It is truly a wonderful place.

As you will know, they have a lot of support already but this kind of thing needs to spread as widely as possible.

There are several fundraising projects taking place.

One that caught my eye was :

Collect your points for St Mary's at Texaco

I am now a firm convert.

So what is special compared with Furness General.

Having had my hip operation there a few years back, I have some knowledge of the place. Then I was impressed but several different reports I've received are causing concern:

• Some one was waiting in Emergency for hours in considerate pain with no doctor appearing. What made it worse was that the nurses that were there were larking about and not showing concern for the patient in agony.
• Whilst a patient was close to the entrance on a ward on level 6 the people were making a lot of noise at the central reception so that he couldn't sleep
• In desperation with the delays in anyone responding to a call, my friend took himself to the toilet only to make the mistake of going into one with no handles to pull yourself up. The result was he was stuck there for an hour and 15 minutes until someone realised that he wasn't in his bed. He remarked that it was strange to be coming out of hospital worse than when he went in. His bum was extremely sore. No apologises were fothcoming - they made out that he was the one at fault.
• When I arrived I asked whether there was a procedure for cleansing my hands - I was told that there was no need - I thought this was standard superbug procedure.

The overall impression was that:

• Staff were overloaded with work
• They weren't as caring and attentive as in the past
• They weren't being shown much appreciation by the public so there was an absence of goodwill in the relationship between staff and the public
• Discipline has deteriorated since the days of the fierce matron who kept people up to scratch

Under these circumstances do we need leaders on each ward like football managers who sustain morale?

At the Hospice one felt a complete mind shift:

• Everyone wanted to be both unobtrusive and helpful when needed.
• A call for the loo was responded to within ten seconds
• The whole environment was attractive with 'art' which raises the spirits given a high priority.
• The whole building was well designed and used a lot of natural wood and individual bedrooms had a lovely outlook - in the case I witnessed a waterfall cascaded down within five yards of the window which my friend found was very soothing when awake at night
• I glimpsed a cat strolling outside one of the rooms, down a corridor which had restricting glass doors - some patients enjoyed the animal contact
• The rooms were designed so that a stroll round a 'quadrangle' and then outinto the garden was possible. This provided an alternative interest for those suffering from pain.

One can argue that hospital and hospice are not comparable. The first is to administer a 'health service' the latter to provide a service for those in pain. However what glimpses I've had of a French 'national health service ' hospital showed it to be a place where art and design of and in the building figured highly. The emphasis was on both the body and the mind or spirit.

Isn't the latter as important as the first? Aren't we partially cured by our minds so that if we are feeling as good as possible, don't we fight disease much better. If we are spending our time in depressing surroundings with what appear to be uncaring people (possibly because they are working too hard) don't we take longer to get well and tie up the beds for longer.

A question I'm asking myself more and more - isn't there a place for retired people - often with time and sometimes cash on there hands - to get more involved with both the health and education service to relieve the pressure on the 'professionals'.

All civilised comments welcome. Those wishing to score negative hits need not apply!

Dying

Cheerful subject ?

It can be.

I've heard of someone who is dying of cancer. He's only different to the rest of us because doctors have identified something wrong that will lead to his death.

The rest of us are in the same boat but have no idea when or what will be the cause.

Does that mean that we all go about our daily life feeling depressed and glum?

Neither does he. Granted, living is actually painful but he is still determined to continue as he ever did, living to the full extent that he can.

So what might seem to be trivial little things, remain of paramount importance to him.

He has hobbies that are very important to him. We might see them as tinkering about in a workshop or garden. But getting an old washing machine that was well designed to run again smoothly. Or repairing a well made set of clothes.

"How do you match in some material to make a worn cuff smart?" could be the burning question in his life. The next week's work is all planned out . Or maybe the week after that when he feels better.

His life is all about what will happen in the future and the things that are going on in other people's life. Talk of illness goes to the background in favour of what can be done in spite of life's restrictions.

Which ignores the possibility that he may never see this Christmas.

Beware those pedaling drugs!

And I don't mean the down-the-street crook -




I mean your own doctor.

A friend of mine passed by on her way home from the 'Health Centre' - call it the drug centre perhaps. She came laden with six different drugs and had been told she was depressed on top of her other aches a pains - she seems to cope very well with a considerable amount of pain to me.

What concerned me was all the interactions and side effects of these six drugs . 720 different possible different interactions according to my basic maths (factorial 6). How does anyone understand all the possible side effects in this cocktail?

They don't, belief me (I'm a Doctor - Ph.D in Chemical Engineering you point out - well I'm still a Doctor!).

A fortnight later another friend comes round for lunch and is sitting at the table starting to eat, when he says

"It feels really hot in here"

Followed by

"I'm not feeling at all well"

Followed by - eyes going blank staring at the ceiling, and "glabof, gla gla" as he passes out and slumps downwards sitting upright but bum disappearing towards the floor. Frightening!

We lower him to the floor getting his chair out of the way. He lies with his muscles locked: shoulders on the floor but the rest of his body in the air except for his heels which are also on the floor. Eventually he relaxes and we get him flat with a pillow under his head.

Phone for advice.

"Call an ambulance" This is anathema to my friend so I pop over to the "Health Centre" and in spite of it being lunch hour get someone to give me advice.

"Call an Ambulance".

"Couldn't he come over here for when you're open?"

"We recommend you - "Call an Ambulance".

"If he comes over here at 2.00 might he be able to see his doctor."

"Yes he might"

This happens and one of his doctor's partners tells him that he's just fainted as a result of the side effect of two of the drugs he's recently been subscribed. The two drugs are known to occasionally lead to fainting when taken together.

I've also had an invitation for Seasonal Flu Immunisation,

"It is important that you are vaccinated against 'flu strains, . . . . "

" Flu Vaccines are very safe with few side effects"

"Few ?" And what are these "few" . . . . Rigor Mortis ?

Not on you Nelly.

Looking at the Department of Health website on this subject

"The annual flu immunisation is the best protection against flu for people with underlying health problems that put them at risk of complications from flu"

So what happens if you're a very healthy 74 year old ?

"and for all those aged 65 and over "

"Government policy is to recommend immunisation for people aged 65 years and over"

Sad.

I'm a guy that believes a "healthy about of 'flu" and exposure to infection keeps the body's own immune system in a fighting fit state and is the long term healthy option.

I also have to be given a very good reason to take drugs of any kind. The majority don't help other than do what my body can do only with the drugs this happens a little faster.

Dr John Ashton talks a lot of sense

He is Cumbria's public health chief and visiting professor to Cumbria University

An article about his views in the Westmorland Gazette at the weekend is available in a more sensationalised version on-line - why do they do it (shame on you Ian Boydon)?

They report:

" Dr Ashton wants schools and local authorities to collaborate to set up no stopping areas outside the school gates to encourage more pupil exercise.

“We need to discourage the school run,” he said. “Parents should not be able to be allowed to drop their children off outside school, they should have to drop them off about a five-minute walk away to force them to have some exercise.” He also argued for more cycle paths to be built. "

This makes a lot of sense. Not only will the parents be encouraged to get their children to exercise more but in encourages other things.

The children would gain in self esteem by being treated as responsible. In the States, when I lived there, even the Road Crossings were supervised by children as young as ten. Here in this country don't we discourage children to grow up by running around after them. They seem to dictate what they should have - be taken to school, yet if they choose to take off away from home in the evenings, then we let them.

Getting the children to be incharge of getting themselves to schoo; would free up parents to do useful things elsewhere.

I'm reminded of a friend of mine, Irene of Ulverston cooking fame - brought up in Indonesia - who walked nine miles to get to school and that was on top of doing duties around her parents farm. This does the world of good in developing self reliance.

For my part my parents encouraged this kind of thing extensively:

Traveling on my own at the age of eleven from Paris to Birmingham and this was by train and boat.

Being posted on the train across France to the boat by my mother, then train up to London, then the most demanding crossing from Victoria station to Euston by tube to catch the train again to Birmingham where I was met by my father.

During this trip I managed to briefly loose my way on the underground, going the wrong way. But for me I had a fantastic trip on the boat when I was welcomed on to the 'bridge' by the captain and allowed to use the binoculars. I was then allowed to find my way down to the engine room and give the engineer messages of hope we were doing in our 'race' with another boat for the English port. This would be imaginable today.

One thing I'm hoping the poor economy and lack of funds will do is to give us back responsibility for taking care of ourselves - something that has been stolen from us by the attitude of government.

Swine 'flu - a media frenzy

Is it time to stop reading the papers and watching TV; and just get on with life?

Let's have some reporting done when there is something real to report.

Thankfully some reporters put us straight.

.