“Genetics are the loaded gun,” I once heard a doctor say. “Lifestyle pulls the trigger.”
I apologize for repeating this reference. I say it a lot. It’s even in my newest book in the healthy living chapter. I wonder how many people who read that book will skip that chapter?
I know the doctor’s statement doesn’t apply to every situation. It is a general principle, not an unquestionable fact. I believe, however, it has merit.
My friends and I have reached the age of different conversations. Sure, we talk about normal things like trips, what to watch on which streaming service, sports (well, I don’t, but plenty of people around me do), children and grandchildren, and so on.
But we also talk about colonoscopies, an acquaintance’s diagnosis of cancer or other serious illness, blood pressure, and all the things our parents used to talk about. We talk about doctors and how insurance controls medical care. We have reached “a certain age.”
My genetics lean toward high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes. Both my parents had all three conditions by the time they were the age I am now. Yet I have none.
Why? I’m not sure, but what follows is why I believe this to be the case.
Years ago, when I had my annual bloodwork (we got a discount. on our insurance if we did annual bloodwork), my LDL was over the desired 100. My total cholesterol was fine, but that LDL concerned me. I had watched my parents add more and more medicines to their repertoire with each passing year while they did nothing to change their eating habits. I watched their lack of physical activity–Dad’s due a severe back condition, Mom’s due to a lack of belief in exercise as being important.
I watched Mom, who died just over five years ago at the age of 93 (she would be 99 today if she had lived), hit the prescription doughnut hole each September because her medicines were so expensive. I watched her go through two procedures to open blockages in her arteries. I watched her eat desserts after every meal (well, Dad, too) while taking metformin. I watched as her blood pressure continued to get out of control (partly due to her anxiety (she had an undiagnosed anxiety disorder) until she was taking FIVE blood pressure medications.
I did not want that to be my story. So, when my LDL hit 127 a few years ago and my doctor wanted to prescribe cholesterol medicine, I asked him to give me time to control it by dietary changes. He agreed, and I cut out red meat completely. I ate pork very seldom and eliminated cookies and cakes since they normally contain butter or shortening. I switched to using extra virgin olive oil. I avoided fried foods. I researched foods that would increased my HDL, the healthy cholesterol, since my HDL was only in the thirties.
Three months later, I went back for the follow-up bloodwork, and my doctor was amazed. My LDL was 104. “I wish all my patients would do what you did,” he said. “But most of them just want a prescription.”
For the past two years, my LDL has been well below 100. My HDL increased to 65.
Exercise is and was important. Those who know me are only too aware of how I’ve always been a fitness walker. But I have done that my entire adult life. The difference in my exercise routine from that time? I am doing weight training in addition to the walking. I go to the wellness center at least twice a week and work out using the machines. I am actually building muscle at my age. Occasionally I participate in a Silver Sneakers class, and trust me, those are real workouts. They’re not “sitting in a chair” workouts. LT has us working out every muscle in our bodies, and to say that squats while holding weights works your muscles is an understatement.
The type 2 diabetes? I don’t eat sweets usually. I’m lucky because I don’t crave them. My usual dessert is greek yogurt with berries and a drizzle of honey topped with some walnuts. Oh, by the way, foods that increase your good cholesterol include avocados and healthy nuts like walnuts and almonds.
My blood pressure is perfect, so no medicine is needed there.
I’m not sharing this to make it seem like I have all the answers. I definitely don’t, and yes, I have my junk food weaknesses. A bag of tortilla chips can go very quickly if I don’t watch it. And yes, I like a daily Diet Coke. Not a large one, but I do crave it at times. I’m proud of myself on the days I don’t drink one. And I do love Chick-Fil-A minis, but luckily the local restaurant is on the college campus and not easily accessible, so that helps remove the temptation. I always get a yogurt parfait to go along with it and tell myself the yogurt is counteracting the harm done by the fried chicken pieces and roll.
I know if I live long enough, a health condition I cannot control naturally will affect me. Cancer, an autoimmune condition, or any number of things can strike. But until then, I want to feel as good as I can, avoid spending my hard-earned money on medicine, and have the best quality of life possible.
The photo of my mom, her mom, and her siblings is a reminder of how they all were on multiple medications. They had heart issues. But they lived well into their eighties, and as I said earlier, Mom was almost 94. So, yes, the medications, surgeries, and interventions helped them live longer lives. And yes, they prioritized eating what they wanted because eating was one of their greatest joys in life.
Not me. I eat to live, not live to eat. So I guess my lifestyle changes were not as hard for me as it would be for some. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a good meal. But what I consider to be a good meal (vegetables, salads foods not fried) is not the norm.
My brother valued food as one of life’s greatest pleasures. Unfortunately, what he valued were all the wrong foods. He overate and over drank. He died at the age of 74.
Genetics are the loaded gun. Lifestyle pulls the trigger.
Life As I know it 