Your blood is talking to you
And why you should listen
The way I write these posts is as such. The draft is sorted out in an open source word processor which is free and private, no google docs for me thank you. After arriving at a title and subtitle, the first few sentences get scribbled out. Next is to save this file under a name before I forget. Then as things begin to build, I save as I go. Or let auto save do it's thing. This time around I named this file blood.
Anyway, upon seeing this file name finalized, some nefarious imagery of the occult was conjured up within me. Maybe it's because I saw two young and attractive girls at my gym a few days ago, whom did not know one another, each sporting some version of Baphomet’s head as a tattoo. As startling as this was, it's hard to say for sure if they are occultists. Regardless, if my title threw you off in the same way my file name did, need not to worry. Read on to really understand what I'm getting at. We are all positivity over here haha.
Recently, I was struck ill with some unknown sort of virus that has been going around. The symptoms were familiar, yet strange at the same time. It lasted for nearly five days in total, starting out with a strange sore throat on the left side, then traveling to the middle, and finally filling up the entire back of my throat and to the right side. Once this went away, the malaise started happening. So much so that carrying groceries up the stairs got me severely winded. And grilling up a flank steak followed by lunch induced a 2 hour nap. Unheard of for me let me tell you.
Before the coming weekend rolled around, I thought it might be a good idea to get checked out by the doctor just in case this virus is stubborn and needed an antibiotic for I didn't want to suffer while his office was closed. So, during said visit, I got tested for RSV, Covid, the flu, strep throat, along with a cbc (complete blood count) panel including some other metrics. It had been a while, and I needed to know. And some of the results of my blood tests inspired me to write this post.
First and foremost, my total cholesterol was high. Three years ago, it was slightly higher after forgoing having blood work done for 18 years. I'm such a naughty boy. As I'm sure I mentioned in my cholesterol post, during this time of blood test uncertainty I had gone from zero fat dairy to full fat dairy. And this reared its head with horrendous ldl (bad) cholesterol levels. Not great for cardiovascular health. The important bit is that three months later a follow up blood test indicated that I successfully had gotten it under control, sans medication, by simply going back to zero fat dairy for the most part. And my most recent ldl results were basically the same, really, after three years since I've continued to consume non-fat dairy. My hdl (good) cholesterol, on the other end, went up by 30 points and was effectively pinned, or maxed out, on the testing labs scale. This is good because hdl helps your body rid itself of ldl. And my ratio of good to bad has always been bangin', so despite slightly high ldl I've managed to keep the doctor happy.
Now for the concerning bits. My glucose and sodium levels are slightly above the normal range. The sodium levels I've battled with over the last few years. In fact, if you read my post on sodium, you'll find out that domestic well water in the part of the world where I'm from is treated (in our homes) with sodium. This puts a trace amount of this element in the drinking and bath water. Note, your skin absorbs bath water to some extent. I used to drink bottled water for this reason, but the plastics though... So that didn't last. As an above average amount of sodium is used for processing well water in the home I reside in, this is something that I can't necessarily avoid at the moment. So, I must get creative to come up with a solution.
Potassium chloride can be used as a substitute to treat the water. It would decrease the amount of sodium I ingest and absorb in the shower. Additionally, my blood work indicates I could manage a bit more in my system. Mixing salt and potassium would be great for electrolytic balance. In fact, just look at sports drinks or electrolyte water and you'll see some ratio of sodium to potassium. But, potassium chloride is expensive. I've used it in the past to get my sodium levels just below the max value. Also, I have been taking potassium citrate in pill form as an alternative. I feel like if I didn't, my sodium levels would be even higher. For now, I think I will increase my potassium citrate intake by 33% (one extra pill a day) and sort out the water processing machine to use less salt over time. We'll see where that gets me.
Now for the glucose levels.
If you scroll through the rest of the of this blog you'll probably start to understand that I'm a big fan of fruit. Like, as in, consuming fruit every day. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Personally, I've literally done this since my early twenties, just removed from college, and started to take my health and fitness more seriously.
Growing up, we did not have cakes, pies, cookies, or ice cream for dessert. We had fruit. I can still remember my mom cutting up fruit for me to eat as a kid. And my brother's obsession with oranges and cinnamon sticks. He especially liked the flesh on the inside of the rind. And yes, he used to munch on cinnamon sticks. Were their occasions when more traditional decadent desserts had been consumed? Of course, but only during special ones and the odd baking moments by my mom.
So naturally, when I got older, I mimicked what I was used to from childhood. In this case a healthy behavior. And from the quick and mild research I had done as a young man, it seems like a piece of fruit after every meal was the ideal way to ensure I was getting a good dose of the nutrition on offer from fruits.
For years I did not necessarily consider my glucose impact from the amount of sugar each piece of fruit contained. These are so called natural sugars because they are not added to the fruit your consuming. Plus, the nutrition they come with is hard to deny. However, my recent ad hoc investigating has discovered that the NHS (National Health Service) in the UK suggests that the sum of natural and added sugars consumed on a daily basis should be less than 90 grams.
Remember, all forms of carbohydrates whether it be from natural sugars, added sugars, or just plain carbohydrates will all be converted to glucose (blood sugar) by your body at different rates. Now I don't really consume foods with added sugar. But, between the fruit, milk, and bread I do get greater than 90 grams daily. I'd say roughly 65 grams from fruit, 30 grams from dairy, and 30 grams or so from bread. At least.
All these come with a tremendous amount of micronutrients, but somethings gotta give.
The bread is the least oppressive as I eat it in small amounts. It's a good source of fiber and complements my meals really well so for now it stays.
The milk will have to be cut back. Each cup contains 12 mg's of natural sugar. Specifically, I will be making mozzarella cheese from the skim milk I use. This process will result in a sugar free, yet dense source of calcium and ensure I meet the recommended daily requirements for adults. But I'm going to do so sans any salt being used due to my sodium issues. So we shall see how this goes.
As for the fruit this really sucks, cause I love eating fruit. As of right now, I've begun consuming less than half than I used to. Which also means I'm getting less than half of the nutrition fruit offers than I used to. Therefore, in my mind, this is a temporary solution. I need a way to get this lost nutrition back sans sugar.
And there it is. As abrupt as this ending was, you may be thinking to yourself there is what, exactly? There is a typical analysis, or debrief if you will, of the current state of my health via some routine blood work. Rather than just rely on the doctor to give me advice, of which he gave none, I do my own self analysis to determine which eating habits I can continue and which I can improve on.
Whenever I can receive feedback from my way of life, I always do this sort of postmortem, if you will. Most importantly, if this is done in real time then your health presumably will not get away from you.
In my opinion, this is how ALL people should be reacting to blood work from their doctor. Identifying the issues, do your own due diligence to come up with a solution. And most importantly, execute! Rather than, I should be not eating this, or I should be eating that, sans any real follow through.
Keep in mind from my high cholesterol admission above, the doctor was quick to want to put me on medication. I told him not to bother. He said, I'm gonna order it anyway. I replied, don't you're wasting your time. He did it anyway and I let that sh!t sit at the pharmacy for I knew my level of execution (by going non-fat dairy) would allow my body to correct itself. Mind you, this is in the face of high cholesterol being an issue for me since I was a child. And that I've always ate well and been active. Medication for things you can correct via your diet does not make sense to me.
Overall, I can't say that I'm surprised by my slightly elevated sodium and glucose levels this time around. Given that my caloric and nutritional intake is spot on to stay trim and strong, the fat stores on my body as of late have been a little plump juxtaposed to my expectation, or the norm. So, it's quite gratifying that I have blood metrics confirm my eyeballed discrepancy. By keeping my added sugar intake extremely low and lowering my natural sugar intake as I've described above, I'm effectively readjusting my macronutrient balance. Previously, my calories from fat, carbs, and proteins were about equal. Going into the future, they will be more from fat and proteins. And with this, I should see my glucose lower in future blood work. This shall coincide with the fat stores on my body holding less body fat. Those that have read my sodium post will know that excess sodium will make all cells in your body retain water. So, the body fat areas will appear larger. And if you read my carbohydrate post, you'll know that glucose that goes unused by your cells will get stored as body fat for later use.
It bears mentioning again, less sodium equals less water retention and bloating. Less sugar of any kind means less body fat. Both of which if left unchecked can wreak havoc on your health.
Being passive about what your body and blood are telling you can get you into the danger zone real quick. Being active about what your body and blood are telling you will allow you to be a well preserved human being over time. Most likely without the need of expensive medications that contain horrible side effects.
Lord, I hope I don't have an insulin sensitivity issue. But that's a topic for another post.
Check out my full-length posts: phoenixlayland.substack.com
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