Managing horology with Osteoporosis

[clockboy]

Members of this forum who have been here for several years may have noticed my posts showing my projects have reduced greatly.  I have now reached the grand old age of 70 and last year I was diagnosed with osteoporosis, it is in my back upper and lower and both hips. Hence I have had to reduce my workload greatly but luckily I do not need my horological work to make living. It’s now purely a hobby but I still do get a regular amount of horological work.

I therefore thought it worth sharing the adjustments I have made to my workspace and lifestyle to manage my condition.

Workspace Ergonomics: the biggest issue with my osteoporosis is pain and aches in my back particularly the upper. Leaning over a watch or clock for several hours really does become very uncomfortable. So the first adjustment I made was to make the work bench considerably higher. The front edge of the bench is now level with my upper chest area so now my elbows can rest on the bench and this reduces the strain on my upper back. My second adjustment was to change my static height chair to an adjustable height chair with wheels. This greatly helps when I need to be higher when using my microscope. The third change I made is all my regular tools are now at hand by being on either the work bench or stored on a bench by my side or in a cabinet. These can be easily reached by just moving around on my new chair with wheels.

Work Schedule and Rest Breaks: I now take regular breaks to avoid overexertion. Prolonged periods of sitting or standing can be challenging for individuals with osteoporosis. I now work with manageable timeframes never promising a quick fix. The exception being battery changes for quartz watches. Clock and watch services I give a minimum of one month as a timeframe.

Medication and Medical Management: there is little help with regard to medication apart from pain relief medicines. For me personally ibuprofen helps but when I have a bad day more powerful meds are available. Vitamin D is also apparently helpful. I do take one pill a day but I have not noticed any improvement.

Healthy Lifestyle: I have been given exercises from a physiotherapist for my back and hips. These exercises basically increase the strength of the muscles around the effected parts so they are supported better. This has helped greatly particularly with my hips. I now no longer have to use a walking stick. I used to drink alcohol on a regular basis and eat large meals. But now I only drink alcohol occasionally and myself and my dearest have a more balanced diet which involves more salads and a lot less red meat. We have both lost weight and my belly is considerably flatter .

These are the steps I have made but Osteoporosis affects not every sufferer the same. If you think you have Osteoporosis get medical consultation first.

[tomh207]

Sorry to hear this @clockboy , I am younger than you by a smidgen and I carry a few injuries from army days. Getting old sucks, the upside is we can take our time over things, the exception being our health.

 

all the best

 

Tom

[Waggy]

Glad you are still managing to work on watches and continue to use your talent to good effect. I'm a bit crazy when it comes to ergonomics from my time with a previous employer who were obsessed with it. As I sit here now at my work station in my current job I have replaced the work supplied equipment with ergonomic versions at my own expense.

For my watches I also have an adjustable chair on wheels, and I treated myself to an electrical raising and lowering desk, all in the name of ergonomics. Prevention is better than cure. Sometimes I wonder if I am being excessive, but your example confirms that they are in fact reasonable precautions. Taking from your post I'll now add regular breaks to my process.

Glad that you have recovered some of your mobility and thanks for taking the time to give us the benefit of your experience and warnings.

PS I agree with @tomh207 getting old sucks, from someone who shredded his ACL in the army and still feels the effects!

Here is my desk, goes from way below sitting height all the way to standing height and every mm in between.

just wondering everyone's views in working with a microscope on a spring loaded boom arm, like a monitor arm, rather than a regular one in terms of a better posture when working rather than a visor or standard microscope where you are tempted to hunch over your work?

[tomh207]

18 minutes ago, Waggy said:

Glad you are still managing to work on watches and continue to use your talent to good effect. I'm a bit crazy when it comes to ergonomics from my time with a previous employer who were obsessed with it. As I sit here now at my work station in my current job I have replaced the work supplied equipment with ergonomic versions at my own expense.

For my watches I also have an adjustable chair on wheels, and I treated myself to an electrical raising and lowering desk, all in the name of ergonomics. Prevention is better than cure. Sometimes I wonder if I am being excessive, but your example confirms that they are in fact reasonable precautions. Taking from your post I'll now add regular breaks to my process.

Glad that you have recovered some of your mobility and thanks for taking the time to give us the benefit of your experience and warnings.

PS I agree with @tomh207 getting old sucks, from someone who shredded his ACL in the army and still feels the effects!

Here is my desk, goes from way below sitting height all the way to standing height and every mm in between.

just wondering everyone's views in working with a microscope on a spring loaded boom arm, like a monitor arm, rather than a regular one in terms of a better posture when working rather than a visor or standard microscope where you are tempted to hunch over your work?

I seem to remember @Endeavor doing something along those lines using a monitor arm.

 

Tom

[Waggy]

I'm pretty sure we talked about it at the time, and the seed of the idea has been germinating in my mind ever since. Maybe ill mention back pain to Mrs W so I'll get approval to purchase a system 

[dadistic]

I'm a little behind you in age, @clockboy. With the idea of preventing problems down the road, some time ago I invested in a height adjustable table similar to @Waggy's, and adjustable height chairs with wheels.  So far,  no serious problems, except --

Darn eyes. I use almost every vision aid there is, microscope,  loupes, visors, a tremendous amount of light, and so far I've been able to keep at it, but I wonder.  I can "see" my future, and I think there will be lot of squinting going on . Thankfully, there are now treatments for macular degeneration that can at least halt the deterioration, if not improve things. 

Cheers!

 

 

[VWatchie]

On 8/10/2023 at 12:26 PM, clockboy said:

Vitamin D is also apparently helpful.

Born in 1962 I'm getting "seasoned" as well and long story short a few years ago I started taking dietary supplements, mainly vitamins C and D, and Zink. 5 grams of vitamin C in the form of ascorbic acid dissolved in water spread over the day, approx. 7500 IU (200µg) of vitamin D per day, and 25 mg of zinc per day (which helps the body absorb the vitamins). Long story short, for me it has changed my life!

I have an acquaintance who does research in vaccine development who recommended this to me when I did not want to take any of the first experimental covid vaccines that were offered to the public. Fortunately, there was almost no or very little stigma in Sweden for not getting vaccinated and we had no extensive lockdowns. My acquaintance also recommended daily brisk walks or jogging for about 30 minutes. I think it may have saved my life because when I was eventually confirmed to have been infected with covid, I did get very sick, but the worst of it was over in just three or four days. Before I started supplements, the slightest cold could send me down for many, many weeks. These days I get sick much less often and when it happens, it usually goes away pretty quickly. I hope it lasts! My acquaintance also mentioned that our food generally contains 50 per cent less nutrients today than it did 50 years ago because the food industry has become incredibly efficient over the years. Today, food is prepared/grown in something like less than half the time compared to 50 years ago. So, according to my acquaintance supplements is unfortunately a must these days, especially if you wish to stay healthy when you get old. Whether that is true or not I don't know and I haven't researched it, but I can say for sure that the supplements have helped me.

So, keep taking your vitamin D @clockboy and congrats on your resourcefulness and adaptations! 

[Galilea]

Great topic. I have a different bone disease and was in a wheelchair for 3.5 years. I would still be there if I had not embraced that idea that movement will not do any damage, it will not make anything worse, it helps tremendously.  It is an every single day effort, I now do at least an hour daily on a recumbent bike with heavy resistance, and at least half hour daily of various other things, like weights or dancing. Good, loud music on the headphones drives the workout. I know that not everyone will feel they can do such a workout, I know I thought I could not. Do what you can.

As far as keeping ahead of aging issues and being proactive, that's a great strategy and one I have been using. However: it doesn't always work. Yesterday at the doctor I found out that I suddenly am diabetic, in a big way. I start injecting insulin today and another injected drug weekly as well. It's coming, the decline, so I stay in gratitude daily (hourly, constantly) for what I am able to do now. Which includes watches. What a blessed life.

[Neverenoughwatches]

36 minutes ago, VWatchie said:

Born in 1962 I'm getting "seasoned" as well and long story short a few years ago I started taking dietary supplements, mainly vitamins C and D, and Zink. 5 grams of vitamin C in the form of ascorbic acid dissolved in water spread over the day, approx. 7500 IU (200µg) of vitamin D per day, and 25 mg of zinc per day (which helps the body absorb the vitamins). Long story short, for me it has changed my life!

I have an acquaintance who does research in vaccine development who recommended this to me when I did not want to take any of the first experimental covid vaccines that were offered to the public. Fortunately, there was almost no or very little stigma in Sweden for not getting vaccinated and we had no extensive lockdowns. My acquaintance also recommended daily brisk walks or jogging for about 30 minutes. I think it may have saved my life because when I was eventually confirmed to have been infected with covid, I did get very sick, but the worst of it was over in just three or four days. Before I started supplements, the slightest cold could send me down for many, many weeks. These days I get sick much less often and when it happens, it usually goes away pretty quickly. I hope it lasts! My acquaintance also mentioned that our food generally contains 50 per cent less nutrients today than it did 50 years ago because the food industry has become incredibly efficient over the years. Today, food is prepared/grown in something like less than half the time compared to 50 years ago. So, according to my acquaintance supplements is unfortunately a must these days, especially if you wish to stay healthy when you get old. Whether that is true or not I don't know and I haven't researched it, but I can say for sure that the supplements have helped me.

So, keep taking your vitamin D @clockboy and congrats on your resourcefulness and adaptations! 

Interesting read watchie, i studied diet quite extensively when i was strength training and body building. The suppliment industry is enormous is these fields and i took plenty. Some can work, and a lot do not. The big thing with supplements is absorbtion, cheap does not or very very little , expensive can, and much of it relies on your own ability to absorb and utilise what you injest. Supplements can be useful but there is absolutely no substitute for good nutritious real food packed full of balanced vitamins and minerals . Which is where the real problem lays, your friend is correct, the food we eat today beres no resemblance to the food our grandparents ate. Some of that boils down to the poor depleted earth that it grows in boosted with processed feed and a lot due to the lovely processed crap that we eat ( supposedly the 50s answer to food shortage, basically an American experiment) .Good healthy organic food costs unfortunately. But much of the supplements we take can be replaced with real food. As an example did you know that cabbage contains more vit. C than lemons, cabbage in the form of sauerkraut (good homemade fermented cabbage). Fermented food is especially good for our guts which is where health begins and ends. Your vit C intake seems quite high, I'm just wondering what colour you pee is.  For an average healthy adult Magnesium would be missing, a very important mineral used for hundreds of processes in the body, many people are deficient in it because its used so much. Chelated supplements are best, absorbed more efficiently but they are at the expensive end.  Collagen would be another good addition to a healthy diet through real food if possible ( not particularly nice ) a bovine suppliment maybe a better choice here though . Again not a cheap product to buy if its full organic sourced from grass reared and finished animals.

[Galilea]

14 minutes ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

.Good healthy organic food costs unfortunately. But much of the supplements we take can be replaced with real food.

I don't know about folks in other countries, but a great majority  of US  (California) folks don't prepare their own food. I am the only daily cook that I know. The point is, it may be costly to buy healthy but if you cook it yourself it is still far cheaper than getting prepared meals.

14 minutes ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

Fermented food is especially good for our guts which is where health begins and ends.

In studies looking at longevity, eating fermented foods are something all the longest living peoples have in common. I do eat sauerkraut and kimchee and whatever else I can find. I  have always heard health starts in the gut but have not really understood why.

Edited August 12, 2023 by Galilea

[Neverenoughwatches]

16 minutes ago, Galilea said:

I  have always heard health starts in the gut but have not really understood why.

Our own personal laboratory/factory  where we make what we need to live  from the food we eat. Makes sense to maintain it and feed it the right foods in the right amounts it needs to do the best job it can for all our bodily functions to work effectively and efficiently.  Pre and probiotics from homemade fermented foods ( not shop bought foods that by regulation should be pasteurised, sterilised etc. that also kills the good bacteria) increases and feeds our good bacteria to fight the bad boys grown from sugar and other processed crap. 

[HectorLooi]

There is so much that we don't understand about the bacterial flora in our bodies. (Bacterial microbiome) From the microbiome on our skin, oral cavity, to the gut.

If we are thrown into the Amazonian jungle for a month, like in the Survivor tv series, we will get all kinds of sores and skin infections that a native would not.

Recent medical research is of the opinion that periodontal health is responsible for a wide range of systematic diseases, like heart disease, diabetes, pancreatic cancer, low birth weight, etc.

Some research also suggest that gut health is responsible for obesity. Experiments using 2 groups of germ-free mice, one infected with gut bacteria from healthy mice, the other infected with gut bacteria from obese mice, found that the 1st group remained healthy while the 2nd group developed obesity on an identical diet.

Our microbiome is "inherited" from our parents, who "inoculate" us with the bacteria they carry. Scientists think that some familial traits and diseases are actually due the microbiome and not genetics.

[Galilea]

2 hours ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

Our own personal laboratory/factory  where we make what we need to live  from the food we eat. Makes sense to maintain it and feed it the right foods in the right amounts it needs to do the best job it can for all our bodily functions to work effectively and efficiently.  Pre and probiotics from homemade fermented foods ( not shop bought foods that by regulation should be pasteurised, sterilised etc. that also kills the good bacteria) increases and feeds our good bacteria to fight the bad boys grown from sugar and other processed crap. 

See me after class, more info please, stat. Maybe we can grab a coffee (no sugar, don't worry) . I have long been a good eater, meaning lean meats, steamed or sauteed veg, no candy or cookies , no white flour, all of that, yet I find no solution the sugar mystery .

[Neverenoughwatches]

53 minutes ago, Galilea said:

See me after class, more info please, stat. Maybe we can grab a coffee (no sugar, don't worry) . I have long been a good eater, meaning lean meats, steamed or sauteed veg, no candy or cookies , no white flour, all of that, yet I find no solution the sugar mystery .

Just dont switch it for the rubbish thats produced as a substitute,  some of that is even worse for you than the sugar. The goal is to rid yourself of the sweet tooth altogether .

[VWatchie]

4 hours ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

For an average healthy adult Magnesium would be missing, a very important mineral used for hundreds of processes in the body, many people are deficient in it

I didn't mention it in my post but I take a Magnesium supplement too as I heard that before (thanks!). I also heard that Magnesium is crucially important for blood pressure. Cooking is not my strong side. Fortunately, my wife is quite the chef so I usually get a very healthy and varied meal almost every day. In return, I set the table and do the dishes (among many other things ).

4 hours ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

Chelated supplements are best, absorbed more efficiently but they are at the expensive end.

Yep, that's what I heard too, so that is what I get. Expensive yes, but what's more important than your health!?

[Galilea]

1 hour ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

Just dont switch it for the rubbish thats produced as a substitute,  some of that is even worse for you than the sugar. The goal is to rid yourself of the sweet tooth altogether .

???? Is this kind one you are familiar with?

Also, let me clarify. I wasn't so much asking about sugar substitutes, and I have fortunately never had a sweet tooth.

I am interested in knowing about the illness and rashes and all that are caused by sugar in the gut, and it sounded like you might know about that all. Thanks

Edited August 12, 2023 by Galilea

[clockboy]

I have certainly started a debate. Interesting  contributions indeed.  What I do know something has changed with our diet certainly in the west. I found a vintage picture of an outside swimming pool in the town where I live. It was packed in the pool and surrounding area. What I noticed there was not one single obese person either adult our child. All of the food (except bread and meat)we consumed was freshly cooked much of which was from my parents garden or my father’s allotment. Our treat was fish and chips on a Friday which was in the 1960,s / 70,s a cheap meal. On the down side life expectancy was far lower my wife’s parents passed away in their mid 50,s so did  my father. The current life expectancy in the UK is 80.

I expect this is due to modern medicines and vaccines but I,m no expert.

Edited August 13, 2023 by clockboy

[Galilea]

13 minutes ago, clockboy said:

I have certainly started a debate. Interesting  contributions indeed.  What I do know something has changed with our diet certainly in the west. I found a vintage picture of an outside swimming pool in the town where I live. It was packed in the pool and surrounding area. What I noticed there was not one single obese person either adult our child. All of the food we consumed was freshly cooked much of which was from my parents garden or my farthest allotment. Our treat was fish and chips on a Friday which was in the 1960,s / 70,s a cheap meal. On the down side life expectancy was far lower my wife’s parents passed away in their mid 50,s so did  my farther. The current life expectancy in the UK is 80.

I expect this is due to modern medicines and vaccines but I,m no expert.

I would not have suspected medicines, and I am no expert either. it seems the parents are living into their 80s and beyond, whereas the kids (the 60-year-old kids, lol) are dying. For instance, my mom is 87 and quite healthy still; her aunt died at 100. We "kids" haven't fared as well, and it seems not to be about how healthy a lifestyle was led. 

In my family's case, it could be because we spent time/ were born on military bases. I know the one I was born on is now a closed toxic superfund site. What I draw from that is perhaps we are dying earlier because we have been thoughtless greedy people, lol, and have poisoned ourselves.

Edited August 13, 2023 by Galilea

[Neverenoughwatches]

17 minutes ago, clockboy said:

I have certainly started a debate. Interesting  contributions indeed.  What I do know something has changed with our diet certainly in the west. I found a vintage picture of an outside swimming pool in the town where I live. It was packed in the pool and surrounding area. What I noticed there was not one single obese person either adult our child. All of the food (except bread and meat)we consumed was freshly cooked much of which was from my parents garden or my father’s allotment. Our treat was fish and chips on a Friday which was in the 1960,s / 70,s a cheap meal. On the down side life expectancy was far lower my wife’s parents passed away in their mid 50,s so did  my father. The current life expectancy in the UK is 80.

I expect this is due to modern medicines and vaccines but I,m no expert.

Modern medicine must be a big part of the reason why we live longer now . I bet there are more people these days suffering from diseases they didn't have back then though. And vice versa many that have been eradicated. It should be about the quality of life you have in old age, i wouldn't  want to be kept alive by popping a dozen pills each day creating more problems and side effects than the illness they are meant to be treating. Folk back in the day worked bloody hard as well, person for person, job for job much harder than we do. The body can only take so much wear and tear, and smoking was more prevalent, everybody and his dog smoked. I dont know many people that smoke and most have now switched to vaping. Would be interesting to see mortality statistics over the last 100 years from different countries, and to see who is taking the most care with their bodies.

8 hours ago, Galilea said:

???? Is this kind one you are familiar with?

Also, let me clarify. I wasn't so much asking about sugar substitutes, and I have fortunately never had a sweet tooth.

I am interested in knowing about the illness and rashes and all that are caused by sugar in the gut, and it sounded like you might know about that all. Thanks

I looked at a few sugar substitutes during my years of training J. Including this one, i seem to remember this was one of the better ones, aspartame being a very overused one and very bad for your gut. A well followed keto diet, is a good option. Its just a shame that food producers can find a way to tag that label on to almost anything they make.  Check out Thomas Delauer, a keto guru, a fairly genuine guy . I'm sure he did a good video about sugar alternatives a few years ago. The best way by far is to alter your palate, cutting out sugar and any substitutes altogether, theres no second guessing then. Nature provides enough sweetness anyway to satisfy our needs in a way that benefits us rather than harming us. It took me years to cut sugar out in my tea, somebody accidentally made me one with sugar a week ago, i nearly threw up .

[Galilea]

30 minutes ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

Modern medicine must be a big part of the reason why we live longer now . I bet there are more people these days suffering from diseases they didn't have back then though. And vice versa many that have been eradicated. It should be about the quality of life you have in old age, i wouldn't  want to be kept alive by popping a dozen pills each day creating more problems and side effects than the illness they are meant to be treating. Folk back in the day worked bloody hard as well, person for person, job for job much harder than we do. The body can only take so much wear and tear, and smoking was more prevalent, everybody and his dog smoked. I dont know many people that smoke and most have now switched to vaping. Would be interesting to see mortality statistics over the last 100 years from different countries, and to see who is taking the most care with their bodies.

I looked at a few sugar substitutes during my years of training J. Including this one, i seem to remember this was one of the better ones, aspartame being a very overused one and very bad for your gut. A well followed keto diet, is a good option. Its just a shame that food producers can find a way to tag that label on to almost anything they make.  Check out Thomas Delauer, a keto guru, a fairly genuine guy . I'm sure he did a good video about sugar alternatives a few years ago. The best way by far is to alter your palate, cutting out sugar and any substitutes altogether, theres no second guessing then. Nature provides enough sweetness anyway to satisfy our needs in a way that benefits us rather than harming us. It took me years to cut sugar out in my tea, somebody accidentally made me one with sugar a week ago, i nearly threw up .

Neverenough, thank you, and although I have that sugar substitute, that is not what I am asking about, so I'll be specific. FYI, I have never had a sweet tooth, not even as a kid.

My mother is suffering considerably from something in her stomach. She is always visibly bloated and feels awful. She has also developed candida (yeast) rashes on her stomach and thighs, concurrent with the gut ache and a constricted feeling around her ribs.

Before you recommend calling an ambulance, I did that. No answers. I don't think you are a doctor, and I have been asking hers but it's a slow system. I was thinking maybe something about sugar because of the yeast rashes, but I don't know the first thing about gut health. I took away most of her sugar and flour a couple of days ago and cut back her booze. I bought those little yogurt-like probiotic drink things, no luck. No help yet.

Can you point me somewhere? If there is a resource or a tip you can offer, she'd be grateful as would I. Like, maybe she should eat some pickles, maybe, or stand on her head? Your post indicates you have some info about this. Thank you.

[Neverenoughwatches]

49 minutes ago, Galilea said:

Neverenough, thank you, and although I have that sugar substitute, that is not what I am asking about, so I'll be specific. FYI, I have never had a sweet tooth, not even as a kid.

My mother is suffering considerably from something in her stomach. She is always visibly bloated and feels awful. She has also developed candida (yeast) rashes on her stomach and thighs, concurrent with the gut ache and a constricted feeling around her ribs.

Before you recommend calling an ambulance, I did that. No answers. I don't think you are a doctor, and I have been asking hers but it's a slow system. I was thinking maybe something about sugar because of the yeast rashes, but I don't know the first thing about gut health. I took away most of her sugar and flour a couple of days ago and cut back her booze. I bought those little yogurt-like probiotic drink things, no luck. No help yet.

Can you point me somewhere? If there is a resource or a tip you can offer, she'd be grateful as would I. Like, maybe she should eat some pickles, maybe, or stand on her head? Your post indicates you have some info about this. Thank you.

Its a while ago since i did any research on this sort of thing and no i dont have any medical background. But i think you need to determine if a sudden change in diet has caused this or if its a gradual deterioration that is starting to show symptoms. At this sort of age changes in anything can have side effects that show quickly. I assume shes taking a lot of medication, who knows what that can effect and its not like you can just take it all away after dependency on it. The healing process is so slow in old age and the body doesn't have the same resilience to changes. Its a really tough question J. and i would hate to give you bad advice.  I remember years ago i introduced a lot of yogurt into my diet, thinking the most common way of introducing pro and pre biotics. Within a day or 2 i came down with a heavy cold. I thought it odd and maybe just coincidental as i didn't often get colds. But decided to do some research anyway. I think i remember it could have been a mass dying off and release of bad bacteria into my system. Like an increase of my good army battling off the bad army. Just thought i would mention that as you mentioned the yakult type drinks. Its always best to start off slow with any dietary changes, the body needs time to adjust to what is happening, more so in old age. Too much pre and probiotic can cause bloating ( sometimes  with explosive gas ) and the candida could be some kind of release.  Only possibilities of course.

Edited August 13, 2023 by Neverenoughwatches

[Galilea]

56 minutes ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

Its a while ago since i did any research on this sort of thing and no i dont have any medical background. But i think you need to determine if a sudden change in diet has caused this or if its a gradual deterioration that is starting to show symptoms. At this sort of age changes in anything can have side effects that show quickly. I assume shes taking a lot of medication, who knows what that can effect and its not like you can just take it all away after dependency on it. The healing process is so slow in old age and the body doesn't have the same resilience to changes. Its a really tough question J. and i would hate to give you bad advice.  I remember years ago i introduced a lot of yogurt into my diet, thinking the most common way of introducing pro and pre biotics. Within a day or 2 i came down with a heavy cold. I thought it odd and maybe just coincidental as i didn't often get colds. But decided to do some research anyway. I think i remember it could have been a mass dying off and release of bad bacteria into my system. Like an increase of my good army battling off the bad army. Just thought i would mention that as you mentioned the yakult type drinks. Its always best to start off slow with any dietary changes, the body needs time to adjust to what is happening, more so in old age. Too much pre and probiotic can cause bloating ( sometimes  with explosive gas ) and the candida could be some kind of release.  Only possibilities of course.

Thank you Rich. I'm up with her tonight, let me go see what I can do. 

[Neverenoughwatches]

4 minutes ago, Galilea said:

Thank you Rich. I'm up with her tonight, let me go see what I can do. 

 

6 minutes ago, Galilea said:

Thank you Rich. I'm up with her tonight, let me go see what I can do. 

Antibiotics kills off our micobiome so i would think most medication would do similar. Sugar substitutes also, aspartame is renowned for it. In old age it must be a constant battle for our bodies trying to stave off bad bacteria growth and increase good. Living a good healthy lifestyle from early years and sticking to it is the way go. I compare my mother to my mother in law, my mum is 5 years older at 86 and is super fit, walks a couple of miles everday and has always looked after herself. My mother in law can barely walk ten yards yet still shovels fast processed food and pastries. Thats more than enough evidence for me. 

[Galilea]

1 hour ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

 

Antibiotics kills off our micobiome so i would think most medication would do similar. Sugar substitutes also, aspartame is renowned for it. In old age it must be a constant battle for our bodies trying to stave off bad bacteria growth and increase good. Living a good healthy lifestyle from early years and sticking to it is the way go. I compare my mother to my mother in law, my mum is 5 years older at 86 and is super fit, walks a couple of miles everday and has always looked after herself. My mother in law can barely walk ten yards yet still shovels fast processed food and pastries. Thats more than enough evidence for me. 

You know the bad bacteria may be hijacking your mother-in-law's mouth. It happens with ants, there is a fungus that zombifies ants, makes the ant be both carriage and snack bar. It controls when the ant drinks and more, and I am not making that up. Be thankful the bacteria holding you m.i.l. hostage aren't demanding a ransom, and don't want to return her 

[Neverenoughwatches]

38 minutes ago, Galilea said:

You know the bad bacteria may be hijacking your mother-in-law's mouth. It happens with ants, there is a fungus that zombifies ants, makes the ant be both carriage and snack bar. It controls when the ant drinks and more, and I am not making that up. Be thankful the bacteria holding you m.i.l. hostage aren't demanding a ransom, and don't want to return her 

I have read that the bacteria in your gut can influence the cravings you experience. I imagine the bad army all sat around a little camp fire in your tummy chanting  " Sugar, sugar, sugar