Bet You're Sorry You Asked

[Guest guest]

We'd spent a hot day outside at a flea market, selling things for

charity, and that evening I felt kind of tired and my shoulders kind of

ached. My youngest son even massaged them for me. I went to bed as

usual and about one woke up to pee, and noticed my elbows were burning.

For some reason, I knew this was serious and woke my wife. We went

straight to the emergency room, and when I said the magic words

" possible heart attack " they rushed me in to check me out.

 

My wife didn't see me for the next several hours, and was told by some

callous doctor at one point that they were giving me " drano " that would

either " kill me or cure me " . What a joker. She was terribly worried by

this, and had our youngest with her, too. (My other two kids had to get

up and go to school by themselves that day; not big deal, but remember

that we were living in Germany at the time; my wife was in the Air

Force.)

 

So anyway, they unclogged me and I've been fine since. I'd gone

vegetarian prior to my heart attack, but afterwards began really

watching my cheese intake and so on. Cholesterol, you see.

 

Right now I " m a lacto-ovo vegetarian who doesn't eat real cheese at

all. I eat no meat of any kind. I am on fish oil capsules -- yeah, I

know, but it's the only feasible source for Omega-3 fatty acids and I'm

more interested in staying alive than being a stickler. I am losing

weight, of course, and getting regular exercise.

 

My weight also kicked me into Type II, or Adult Onset, diabetes. So

far, pills and diet work to keep me in normal bounda, but I must check

my blood sugar twice a day and eat virtually no carbohydrates. Try

doing that AND being a vegetarian. lol

 

You're probably right to worry some about your heart and the hearts of

those around you, but each individual is different, too. While sudden

death heart attacks run in your family, that's no reason to believe

you're at risk. The risk can be assessed by cardiologists. It would

not hurt to get checked.

 

Also, I don't know your age or physical condition, but if you're under

40 and in good shape, you should be fine. It would surely help to avoid

meat and dairy products, though. Why add to the cholesterol your body

may already be making.

 

Also, pay attention to your ratio of good to bad cholesterol. Good is

HDL and you want that high, while bad is LDL and you want that low. In

fact, I was told I had my heart attack not because I had high

cholesterol -- it was never over 210 total -- but because my HDL (good)

sllipped too low.

 

I was also told that it matters greatly which side of your heart a

blockage occurs -- one side = sudden death, the other = what they call

eschemic attacks, which are slower and not instantly fatal. They're

survivable, obviously.

 

Also, go and get checked if ever you're in doubt. I was told that very

few men come in during their heart attacks, and the average wait after

one is ten days. This explains why so many have so much damage and live

so restricted a life afterwards.

 

Anyway, don't worry too much. Stress isn't good, either. lol

 

Relax and stay healthy and you'll be fine.

 

 

On Tuesday, November 12, 2002, at 05:54 PM,

wrote:

 

> Sorry to choose this one to reply to but I deleted all

> your other emails.

> What is your exact heart condition? I'm curious

> because I'm a bit neurotic about the heart. I watched

> my Dad drop dead of a massive heartattack

> (artherosclorosis - not sure if correctly spelled) at

> the age of 44. I witnessed it, we were alone at his

> house, it was a major shocker and quite the

> surprise...I was 21. I'm 28 now and am living in a

> state of paranoia about my heart, my husband's, my

> son's, you name it! People think I'm nuts (including

> my Mother) but I try to do everything daily to ensure

> that never happens to me. My hubby will be forty next

> year and I'm afraid, very afraid. When you see

> something like that -- it stays with you forever.

> Well, just curious as to what your condition is, how

> it happened and what you're doing about it.

> Warmly,

> Allison

>

" Far from being allergic to sex, the Victorians were obviously besotted

with it. Distinctions between erotic and pornographic (the word was

evidently coined then) and between art and obscenity were cheerfully

debated, the paintings, sculptures, drawings and photographs here

proving how vigorously artists threw themselves into the discussion...

Fortunately, the show does not stint on genuine porn... Erotic these

snippets are not, but then, perhaps it's just that the excitement caused

by seeing a naked or almost naked body tends to peter out when you see

so many of them at a time... "

--Michael Kimmelman in " Invasion of the Nude Victorians (In the Name of

Art, of Course) " , NY Times, 6 Sept. 2002

[Guest guest]

On Wed, 13 Nov 2002 16:19:50 -0600, you wrote:

 

 

>

>Right now I " m a lacto-ovo vegetarian who doesn't eat real cheese at

>all. I eat no meat of any kind. I am on fish oil capsules -- yeah, I

>know, but it's the only feasible source for Omega-3 fatty acids and I'm

>more interested in staying alive than being a stickler. I am losing

>weight, of course, and getting regular exercise.

>

I wouldn't worry about the fish-oil capsules either, but

there is an alternative, you know. Flax seeds or flax seed

oil.

 

My DH's cardiologist recommended that he take flax seed oil.

We couldn't find any oil that wasn't rancid though: it goes

off VERY quickly. Even oil refrigerated in the stores was

rancid - just terrible, awful taste.

 

So we bought flax seeds and we each eat 2 tablespoons of

flax seeds, ground, per day. We grind them in one of those

little electric coffee/spice grinders and it only takes

about 30 seconds to do it. We mix them in with hot cereal

(after it's cooked), or with a smoothie, or put them in

applesauce. They have a mild pleasant taste.

 

I buy them from: http://www.bulkfoods.com - we get the gold

flax seeds.

 

Pat

--

Pat Meadows

Books, books! Low prices.

Music CDs too!

http://www.wellsborocomputing.com/sales.html

[Guest guest]

What a scary experience it must have been for you.

How proud your family must be that you have taken such

great steps to keep your heart happy and

healthy...MANY, MANY people are just stubborn and will

not change until death comes to claim his prize.

I was seriously thinking about fish oil as well...And

fish if it were available fresh out of the water here.

My reason for vegetarianism isn't for philisophical

reasons, only health. I'm waiting until I go to a

health food store (not one in my small town) and

purchase good capsules, not the type they have in all

huge groceries. Pat mentioned flax seeds, and yes the

oil is hard to take so I put a shot of it in my shakes

when I make them. I just don't make them but once a

weel usually...So, I need something else.

I keep my weight down. I'm still losing my pregnancy

weight but only have 5 lbs to go. I weigh 150 right

now and I'm 5'9 " My body fat is at 25%...Which is

great. I can't get my cholesterol checked until I

quit breastfeeding...Baby is just now 8 months old so

I have a way to go before she's weaned. As soon as

she is, I'm there! I am young, 28, and in great

shape: I lift weights 3-4 days a week and ride my bike

on serious hills for 5 miles on the weekends. I

believe I have a great diet. Though I slurge on the

sweets from time to time and get the urge for the

dairy. But all in all...I'd say it's pretty healthy.

But alas heart disease is rampant on my Dad's side of

the family so I'll always be keeping my heart in mind.

And you're right, I shouldn't stress about it b/c

that is, at times, worse!

Thank you for writing back. Keep up the good work, I

think it's wonderful that you are so willing to change

for the good of your health and family.

Take care.

Warmly,

Allison

 

--- The Stewarts <stews9 wrote:

> We'd spent a hot day outside at a flea market,

> selling things for

> charity, and that evening I felt kind of tired and

> my shoulders kind of

> ached. My youngest son even massaged them for me.

> I went to bed as

> usual and about one woke up to pee, and noticed my

> elbows were burning.

> For some reason, I knew this was serious and woke my

> wife. We went

> straight to the emergency room, and when I said the

> magic words

> " possible heart attack " they rushed me in to check

> me out.

>

> My wife didn't see me for the next several hours,

> and was told by some

> callous doctor at one point that they were giving me

> " drano " that would

> either " kill me or cure me " . What a joker. She was

> terribly worried by

> this, and had our youngest with her, too. (My other

> two kids had to get

> up and go to school by themselves that day; not big

> deal, but remember

> that we were living in Germany at the time; my wife

> was in the Air

> Force.)

>

> So anyway, they unclogged me and I've been fine

> since. I'd gone

> vegetarian prior to my heart attack, but afterwards

> began really

> watching my cheese intake and so on. Cholesterol,

> you see.

>

> Right now I " m a lacto-ovo vegetarian who doesn't eat

> real cheese at

> all. I eat no meat of any kind. I am on fish oil

> capsules -- yeah, I

> know, but it's the only feasible source for Omega-3

> fatty acids and I'm

> more interested in staying alive than being a

> stickler. I am losing

> weight, of course, and getting regular exercise.

>

> My weight also kicked me into Type II, or Adult

> Onset, diabetes. So

> far, pills and diet work to keep me in normal

> bounda, but I must check

> my blood sugar twice a day and eat virtually no

> carbohydrates. Try

> doing that AND being a vegetarian. lol

>

> You're probably right to worry some about your heart

> and the hearts of

> those around you, but each individual is different,

> too. While sudden

> death heart attacks run in your family, that's no

> reason to believe

> you're at risk. The risk can be assessed by

> cardiologists. It would

> not hurt to get checked.

>

> Also, I don't know your age or physical condition,

> but if you're under

> 40 and in good shape, you should be fine. It would

> surely help to avoid

> meat and dairy products, though. Why add to the

> cholesterol your body

> may already be making.

>

> Also, pay attention to your ratio of good to bad

> cholesterol. Good is

> HDL and you want that high, while bad is LDL and you

> want that low. In

> fact, I was told I had my heart attack not because I

> had high

> cholesterol -- it was never over 210 total -- but

> because my HDL (good)

> sllipped too low.

>

> I was also told that it matters greatly which side

> of your heart a

> blockage occurs -- one side = sudden death, the

> other = what they call

> eschemic attacks, which are slower and not instantly

> fatal. They're

> survivable, obviously.

>

> Also, go and get checked if ever you're in doubt. I

> was told that very

> few men come in during their heart attacks, and the

> average wait after

> one is ten days. This explains why so many have so

> much damage and live

> so restricted a life afterwards.

>

> Anyway, don't worry too much. Stress isn't good,

> either. lol

>

> Relax and stay healthy and you'll be fine.

>

>

> On Tuesday, November 12, 2002, at 05:54 PM,

> wrote:

>

> > Sorry to choose this one to reply to but I deleted

> all

> > your other emails.

> > What is your exact heart condition? I'm curious

> > because I'm a bit neurotic about the heart. I

> watched

> > my Dad drop dead of a massive heartattack

> > (artherosclorosis - not sure if correctly spelled)

> at

> > the age of 44. I witnessed it, we were alone at

> his

> > house, it was a major shocker and quite the

> > surprise...I was 21. I'm 28 now and am living in

> a

> > state of paranoia about my heart, my husband's, my

> > son's, you name it! People think I'm nuts

> (including

> > my Mother) but I try to do everything daily to

> ensure

> > that never happens to me. My hubby will be forty

> next

> > year and I'm afraid, very afraid. When you see

> > something like that -- it stays with you forever.

> > Well, just curious as to what your condition is,

> how

> > it happened and what you're doing about it.

> > Warmly,

> > Allison

> >

> " Far from being allergic to sex, the Victorians were

> obviously besotted

> with it. Distinctions between erotic and

> pornographic (the word was

> evidently coined then) and between art and obscenity

> were cheerfully

> debated, the paintings, sculptures, drawings and

> photographs here

> proving how vigorously artists threw themselves into

> the discussion...

> Fortunately, the show does not stint on genuine

> porn... Erotic these

> snippets are not, but then, perhaps it's just that

> the excitement caused

> by seeing a naked or almost naked body tends to

> peter out when you see

> so many of them at a time... "

> --Michael Kimmelman in " Invasion of the Nude

> Victorians (In the Name of

> Art, of Course) " , NY Times, 6 Sept. 2002

>

>

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

On Thu, 14 Nov 2002 05:57:05 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

 

> I'm waiting until I go to a

>health food store (not one in my small town) and

>purchase good capsules, not the type they have in all

>huge groceries. Pat mentioned flax seeds, and yes the

>oil is hard to take so I put a shot of it in my shakes

>when I make them. I just don't make them but once a

>weel usually...So, I need something else.

 

If the fish oil capsules don't work out for some reason, do

try the flax seeds - their taste is mild and very pleasant.

Nothing whatsoever like the horrid oil.

 

The ground seeds can go on any hot or cold cereal, in

muesli, sprinkled on yogurt, or in applesauce, as well as in

smoothies. I use them in various ways, DH just eats a small

amount of applesauce each evening to get his flax seeds.

 

There seems to be some controversy about whether they lose

their effectiveness if cooked, so we use them uncooked, in

the above ways.

 

Pat

 

 

--

Pat Meadows

Books, books! Low prices.

Music CDs too!

http://www.wellsborocomputing.com/sales.html

[Guest guest]

I purchased some flax cereal not too long ago...Very

tasty and didn't last too long:) Anyway, I assumed

the flax seeds were the little, brown seeds that

resembled overgrown sesame that floated on the milk.

I did like that cereal a great deal, cannot remember

the brand but it was purchased in a health store.

Around here, unsweetened cheerios is the healthiest so

I eat that. It would be a good idea to buy flax seeds

to have onhand...Too bad about the cooking...They

would be great on top of whole grain breads, bagels,

etc.

 

Take care,

Warmly,

Allison

 

--- Pat Meadows <pat wrote:

> On Thu, 14 Nov 2002 05:57:05 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

>

> > I'm waiting until I go to a

> >health food store (not one in my small town) and

> >purchase good capsules, not the type they have in

> all

> >huge groceries. Pat mentioned flax seeds, and yes

> the

> >oil is hard to take so I put a shot of it in my

> shakes

> >when I make them. I just don't make them but once

> a

> >weel usually...So, I need something else.

>

> If the fish oil capsules don't work out for some

> reason, do

> try the flax seeds - their taste is mild and very

> pleasant.

> Nothing whatsoever like the horrid oil.

>

> The ground seeds can go on any hot or cold cereal,

> in

> muesli, sprinkled on yogurt, or in applesauce, as

> well as in

> smoothies. I use them in various ways, DH just eats

> a small

> amount of applesauce each evening to get his flax

> seeds.

>

> There seems to be some controversy about whether

> they lose

> their effectiveness if cooked, so we use them

> uncooked, in

> the above ways.

>

> Pat

>

>

> --

> Pat Meadows

> Books, books! Low prices.

> Music CDs too!

> http://www.wellsborocomputing.com/sales.html

>

 

 

 

 

Web Hosting - Let the expert host your site

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[Guest guest]

On Thu, 14 Nov 2002 07:32:18 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

 

>I purchased some flax cereal not too long ago...Very

>tasty and didn't last too long:) Anyway, I assumed

>the flax seeds were the little, brown seeds that

>resembled overgrown sesame that floated on the milk.

>I did like that cereal a great deal, cannot remember

>the brand but it was purchased in a health store.

>Around here, unsweetened cheerios is the healthiest so

>I eat that. It would be a good idea to buy flax seeds

>to have onhand...Too bad about the cooking...They

>would be great on top of whole grain breads, bagels,

>etc.

>

 

It's fine to use them in bread and such, and people do -

just I don't think that the omega-3s survive much cooking.

 

Your body can't digest them unground - they'll pass right

through you. So if you are using them for the omega-3s, you

need to grind them.

 

I have one of those little coffee/spice mills and it grinds

them beautifully - very fast too. A blender also works.

 

Pat

--

Pat Meadows

Books, books! Low prices.

Music CDs too!

http://www.wellsborocomputing.com/sales.html

[Guest guest]

Thank you so much...I will grind them. I wonder if my

baby food hand grinder will work for that??

 

Warmly,

Allison

 

--- Pat Meadows <pat wrote:

> On Thu, 14 Nov 2002 07:32:18 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

>

> >I purchased some flax cereal not too long

> ago...Very

> >tasty and didn't last too long:) Anyway, I assumed

> >the flax seeds were the little, brown seeds that

> >resembled overgrown sesame that floated on the

> milk.

> >I did like that cereal a great deal, cannot

> remember

> >the brand but it was purchased in a health store.

> >Around here, unsweetened cheerios is the healthiest

> so

> >I eat that. It would be a good idea to buy flax

> seeds

> >to have onhand...Too bad about the cooking...They

> >would be great on top of whole grain breads,

> bagels,

> >etc.

> >

>

> It's fine to use them in bread and such, and people

> do -

> just I don't think that the omega-3s survive much

> cooking.

>

> Your body can't digest them unground - they'll pass

> right

> through you. So if you are using them for the

> omega-3s, you

> need to grind them.

>

> I have one of those little coffee/spice mills and it

> grinds

> them beautifully - very fast too. A blender also

> works.

>

> Pat

> --

> Pat Meadows

> Books, books! Low prices.

> Music CDs too!

> http://www.wellsborocomputing.com/sales.html

>

 

 

 

 

Web Hosting - Let the expert host your site

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[Guest guest]

On Thu, 14 Nov 2002 09:18:39 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

 

>Thank you so much...I will grind them. I wonder if my

>baby food hand grinder will work for that??

>

 

Don't think so. Do you have the Happy Baby babyfood

grinder? They're neat, I've given them as shower gifts a

couple of times.

 

Pat

--

Pat Meadows

Books, books! Low prices.

Music CDs too!

http://www.wellsborocomputing.com/sales.html

[Guest guest]

Hey..I grind them also...sprinkle them on top of salads..kinda like bacon

bits...lol...I also put nutritional yeast flakes on top of the salad..or

popcorn...

happy eating!!!!!

*Chana*

 

 

[Guest guest]

Yes I do! They're great...And cheap. Just wish it

were a little bigger as her appetite is increasing:)

 

Warmly,

Allison

 

--- Pat Meadows <pat wrote:

> On Thu, 14 Nov 2002 09:18:39 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

>

> >Thank you so much...I will grind them. I wonder if

> my

> >baby food hand grinder will work for that??

> >

>

> Don't think so. Do you have the Happy Baby

> babyfood

> grinder? They're neat, I've given them as shower

> gifts a

> couple of times.

>

> Pat

> --

> Pat Meadows

> Books, books! Low prices.

> Music CDs too!

> http://www.wellsborocomputing.com/sales.html

>

 

 

 

 

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