Most travel warnings just tend to alarm people excessively. We were actually wavering on a planned side-trip during our Arizona stay next month because we'd have to stay overnight in a somewhat sketchy small town along the main highway. But the only places we'll be is in the hotel and a restaurant; we don't expect to be strolling the streets after dark. Sort of like downtown Detroit: you pretty much have to go well out of your way to be affected by crime in the central district.
Dave, I've got my fingers crossed that your symptoms are (were?) not stroke-related, but are you telling us that you ditched the Reese's cups? What's this place coming to??
What was supposed to be "an inch or so" of snow today turned into a good four inches as measured in our driveway, and very wet stuff too. I cleared about half of it, mainly to test the limits of our new electric snowblower, but will let the guy we've paid for snow removal do the bulk of it. We've got a couple of 40+ degree days coming up, so it will be melted by the weekend in any case.
I had an enjoyable day with a coffee-time get-together with my biking group in the morning, a very good lunch at a new place called Breadless, and then a strength workout at the gym in the afternoon. I was less than energetic and actually got a better workout pushing the snowblower through the heavy snow.
Doug, runnin' cycling in Rochester, MI
"Think blue, count two, and look for a red shoe"
[[[dave]]]
[[[dunkin]]]
..nothing takes the place of persistence.....
Hi all,
I'm sorry to hear about your papa, Tammy!
2 pokey slow miles for me. And a belated note about a nice 7.7-mile run along Portland's waterfront on Sunday...
InTetsujian prose: The day before my Sunday waterfront run I had thrown out my shoulder (partially dislocated it and then popped it back into place) while getting bonked on the head by a parking garage gate that came down quickly because Herr W and I were trying to get down into the parking garage on foot, escorting a cart with some furniture on it because there's no parking where Herr W bought it and we had to park at Whole Foods across the street and buy $10 worth of groceries for the honor of doing so. The gate hitting my head didn't hurt (it was padded), but reaching back to steady the furniture on the cart was what threw out my shoulder in the moment of chaos. Herr W said he watched in slow-motion, thinking,"Noooooo."
Tomorrow I'm excited about meeting my new PCP for the first time and the chance to ask him for a referral to PT to get the shoulder strengthened. This dislocating biz is a drag -- it happens several times/year.
Herr W and I are running the NYC half marathon in March (the first time we have been able to both get in on the lottery the same year). Is anyone else planning to do that race? Which means I'd better get training. 7.7 mile training "long runs" isn't great preparation.
Marathon Maniac #957
Moebo - too funny!
Econo - ouch!
So, the conversation about the placebo effect is fine, but what my actual question was, does Prevagen actually work? Not as a placebo but as a drug. And or do any of the drugs for cognitive health actually do anything?
Life is a headlong rush into the unknown. We can hunker down and hope nothing hits us or we can stand tall, lean into the wind and say, "Bring it on, darlin', and don't be stingy with the jalapenos."
ez 5k on the Bay Trail. Probably my last run for a few days with the perfect storm of load-in/tech week and the atmospheric river. Looks like I have 19.3 miles for the month, if I'd known before I went running I woulda bumped it up to an even 20.
I wouldn't worry at all about tourist areas of Jamaica. Tourism is such a big part of the economy that the officials make darn sure nothing happens to tourists. Just make sure not to leave the tourist areas. Same goes for Mexico, Belize, even Merkuh. I was in downtown Oakland all day and didn't get shot at even once.
60-64 age group - University of Oregon alumni - Irreverent and Annoying
Moebo - hysterical!!Tet - I did decide on a dress - it's a cute pinkish Flapper style dress!! And funny thing - one of my friends did do a montage of all the dresses she has worn over the years and it was cool to see!!
Holly - I'm sure you and dh will have lots of fun and stay safe -- just hope you stay C virgins as well!! I have heard CoQ10 is good for both heart and brain function but don't know anything about prevagen. I do a lot of word puzzles to try and keep my brain sharp.
Econo - big ouchie!!
I was up at 4:30am to get in a 15 minute glutes/legs class before getting ready for work. Then walked the almost mile from garage to hospital both ways. Should do more as I am in a work fitness challenge, but going up to bed so I can do a 30 min bike before work tomorrow - trying to challenge my inner Jay when the alarm clock goes off!!
Nite all!!
denise
Holly S. the vast majority of supplements do nothing. Some even have evidence that they might be harmful. Regarding Prevagen I did not find any meta studies. The only semi-review article I found at http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1908/the-price-of-predatory-marketing-on-older-adults-a-perspective-on-prevagen-potency said this:
Prevagen is advertised as a supplement that is capable of improving memory and helping with memory loss associated with aging, with the company going as far as to claim that these findings are clinically proven. However, when investigating these claims, there are concerns regarding these reports.First is that the basis of their clinically proven claims is a single study, the Madison Memory Study.[22] This study was conducted by researchers at Quincy Bioscience, the same biotechnology company responsible for developing Prevagen. This would be an apparent conflict of interest. Because of commercial interests and confirmation bias, it is unclear whether this research is to be trusted, especially when it is the only research provided as evidence to support their claims. Further, this study reports no statistical significance in the difference between the control groups and the experimental groups.[22] Therefore, the only study provided as evidence for apoaequorin activity when orally consumed does not fully support their claims.
I have no idea if the journal is or is not of high quality. However, it is a pretty recent piece, 2021, and taking it at face value, if Prevagen works, nobody has proved it. From the article's discussion it also seems unlikely that it can work. But who knows. A lack of evidence of efficacy, is not proof that something is ineffective.
As a friend of mine would say, if a placebo makes you feel better who is to say you do not.
I ran 5 today. It appears the weather if finally breaking in CT. Rumor is that some big yellow disk will appear in the sky tomorrow. According to the weather service its scientific name is the sun. I do not believe it. I cannot recall ever seeing or hearing of such a thing.
Live like you are dying not like you are afraid to die.
Drunken Irish Soda Bread and Irish Brown Bread this way --> http://allrecipes.com/cook/4379041/
MM#209 / JapanJoyful#803
Moebo - excellent Dr. Placebo dad.
I was in downtown Oakland all day and didn't get shot at even once.
Surly - I bet it wasn't in the dark at night.
Be careful 'cause, admit it, you can't run
as fast as you used to anymore.
Econo - huh? did you go to the UW too?
ps - happy doubles NYC Half.
Dave without Reese Cups is like me
without running shoes, I mean with them.
Let us know if you find any viable substitutes.
Twocat - good luck on seeing the sun in January back there, or anywhere but I doubt it.
Holly - I haven't flown in almost five years now but was listening to some commentators explaining that, with some airlines charging up to $100 for a carry-on, $49.99 for a window or aisle seat, etc., the fare price is no longer any indication of how much it costs to fly nowadays. Do you still get a suitcase or two included in the price on your flights?
Plans to take advantage of the failure of the continuing threat of rain still not yet materializing by taking the same bus line I go to/from Dr. Torture's biweekly PT sessions that goes past our sr. housing to the hillside park terminus turnaround fizzled when, voila !, I was able to do full revolutions on the stationary bike for the first time pedaling anything since pre-op, semi-pedaling through November but, instead of letting well enough alone, he kept me on it pedaling for ten minutes finding and tiring muscles to get tired that haven't been tired, if not not even used, since last summer.
"Enjoy yourself. Your younger days never come again." 100yo T. Igarashi to me in geta at top of Mt. Fuji (8/2/87)
I am also not much of a believer in supplements. I think they can help in certain situations. I do take the Vit D and Calcium that was strongly encouraged for my osteoporosis, but that’s all I take.
Out there running since dinosaurs roamed the earth
as mentioned before, I'll take a multi maybe 4-5 times a week at most. Sometimes I'll pop an iron pill, because I didn't think I had much iron-rich food for a while.
I looked into what decreases with age in men, and there is a cocktail of supplements that are supposed to maintain or increase testosterone levels. Seemed like a lot of trouble.
We're of the age that grew up with the "there's a pill for it" mentality, that all illness and ailments can be cured with a pill. Thankfully we're transitioning into a "it's what you eat" mentality, but there was a transition period of "supplements will cure you" mentality, an offshoot of the "there's a pill for it", but replacing pharmaceuticals with vitamins and herbs.
Holly, the best prevention for dementia is what you are already doing: working your brain, lots of social interactions, and in particular, keeping your cardiovascular risk low by exercise and diet. There is a correlation between these unhealthy conditions and dementia. I think depression is also a risk factor.
Other than that, there isn't much one can do, as it will be determined by genetics.
So re your question: And or do any of the drugs for cognitive health actually do anything?
As Twocat said, probably not. Unless you have Alzheimer's and want to pay 100K a year for the newest antibody-based drugs to clear amyloid plaques from your brain. But I assume you are not there yet!
"During a marathon, I run about two-thirds of the time. That's plenty." - Margaret Davis, 85 Ed Whitlock regarding his 2:54:48 marathon at age 73, "That was a good day. It was never a struggle."
I have no idea if the journal is or is not of high quality. However, it is a pretty recent piece, 2021, and taking it at face value, if Prevagen works, nobody has proved it. From the article's discussion it also seems unlikely that it can work. But who knows. A lack of evidence of efficacy, is not proof that something is ineffective. As a friend of mine would say, if a placebo makes you feel better who is to say you do not.
Which is why I think Holly's question spurred a series of comments about placebos. I'm heartened by the recent news that a daily multi-vitamin can help stave off dementia symptoms, but I'm not banking on it. But I do take a calcium/D supplement and a multi-vitamin daily, just because the former was recommended for bone health and the latter might just help fill in the gaps when I'm light on green/yellow veggies. I don't count on them to prevent or cure any disease.
My mom was a very savvy, high level intelligence woman with an advanced degree in health care (ANP). She does puzzles regularly, reads voraciously, has an active social network and a loving spouse and is still falling into the frustrating memory failure of dementia. It's sad and aggravating, that she's done everything to protect herself but is still getting worse and worse on her short-term memory. It's also scary, knowing what the genetic connections are.
We've had a brief warm up to the highs in the minus-teens, but soon will see lows in the -40's and maybe even -50. Looking forward to next week when we'll see some above zero temps! I did 21.2 on the bike yesterday, and 18.6 today. Reading "Night Angels" about Vienna in the late 1930's and the awful times the Viennese Jews had, from the perspective of the Chinese diplomat's wife's view. I'm almost halfway done.
I read so much stuff that I often forget the source or when I read it (or maybe I forget because of age-related cognitive decline...). But, I think a lot of what falls in the catch-all of dementia has been attributed to reduced cardiovascular activity in the brain. Arterial plaque, dead capillaries, that kind of thing. Blood thinners might improve brain function, I don't know for a fact. The least risky and proven thing to do for cognitive health is to eat right and exercise. That has the side effect of helping with almost everything else, too.
My Mom is 93, lives on her own and does just fine. She has never purposely exercised as far as I know, but she has always done chores and still chops wood for her stove unless someone beats her to it (me or neighbors). Being that age, she's eaten unprocessed food most of her life, but the last 25 years or so she eats more frozen or processed foods. With all those anecdotes, it's hard to say if it's genes or lifestyle that have served her so well, probably a combo of both.
I don't think the object of the game is to live as long as possible, but to live as healthy as possible. "They" are calling that "healthspan" as opposed to lifespan. Living 70 healthy years is probably better than living 100 years, but on medications and with limited activity level from age 50 on.
Surly and erika's moms being lucky enough to be healthy enough to still be able to do and look forward to things they like reminds me of the 90yo dog musher airlines gal down the hall from San Francisco who went up there in the sixties to start anew after her DW married her tennis partner and whose lifelong interest has been frenetically following and looking forward to how her favorite teams and players are doing in pro and college sports with baseball being her favorite, basketball, football, tennis, etc. so much she can name the Superbowl, World Series, Grand Slam champions, etc. from Bart Starr, Mickey Mantle, George Mikan, etc. that I kind of remember too to the players and their stats on today's teams, especially the 49'ers, Warriors, Giants, etc. from San Francisco. From out in the hallway, you can hear her cheering when the games are on and the one neighbor's apartment abutting her wall has long since got used to it. I think I'll be nuts about real or audio books I wanted to read, and ones I want to read again, poems I've memorized and, even though it's a lot harder now, want to memorize, if not learn to write on my own like Mike and Henry when I can't get out on my own. What are you going to do when you can't do what you do now?
Holly - Thank you for the start. That is concerning about Jamaica. Staying on the resort is a good idea. Fingers crossed on the Covid.
Sub7 - Good luck getting workouts in.
Tetsujin209 - You had me at "Sumo Oranges". I hope to hear a race report about the Icicle Trail.
I've never heard of a Nutella turnover.
Jay - Sorry to hear about the medical bills.
Happy Hammies For Leslie!
I have to stop eating like an unregulated 15 year old
I don't understand the words you are using.
Where is Bioguy?
BTY - It sounds like a good night.
Moebo - Is DD embarrassed about the Placebo?
Econo - Yeouch!!!!
I slept two nights in a row without going to the recliner in the middle of the night. It's funny. I told PT that I was captiously optimistic. If the sleep is a placebo thing, I'm still calling it a win. Then the topic popped up here.
I got 2.5 on the mill and an hour worth of mixed PT.
My replacement dude has really started screwing up. To say it is concerning is an understatement.
A coworker was complaining about her 27-year-old son. After I got home, I wrote each of our kids a note telling them what qualities they have that makes me proud to know them.
SteveP