CommenTerry

Is the Glycemic Index Just a Fad?

It seems that everyone is talking about the glycemic index today. Instead of dieting by simply cutting down on calorie intake, the focus now seems to be on limiting carbs in order to lose weight and/or avoid obesity. While I’m not an expert on the glycemic index, it appears to be some kind of measure that people use to determine how much certain carbohydrates effect blood sugar levels. People who pay close attention to the glycemic index tend to avoid foods that are high in the types of carbohydrates that spike blood sugar levels the most.

Consumption of large amounts of these types of carbohydrates is associated with obesity. And many people claim that they can feel the effects of the spikes in blood sugar levels that they cause. They also claim that they can feel the effects of the dips in sugar levels that eventually follow. The spikes supposedly cause people to feel a surge of energy, while the dips supposedly make them feel tired and lethargic.

While there may be a lot of truth in all of this, and it might be medically accurate, I tend to believe this whole glycemic index thing is just a fad that will soon pass. I don’t care what anybody says, the best and most time-tested way for most people to lose weight is to just not eat as much. Period.

I am heavy consumer of just the type of carbs the glycemic index would indicate that you should avoid. I eat more of those foods that any other kind. According to the strict adherents of the glycemic index, I should be a 400-pound diabetic who suffers from constant spikes and dips in energy. At 51 years of age, I am only slightly overweight and am not yet a diabetic. I use the word “yet” because Type 2 Diabetes is very prevalent on both sides of my family. Most of my relatives have gotten it by age 60, no matter what their diet was like.

And I do not suffer from spikes and dips in energy, nor do I remember ever suffering from this malady. Except when I’m ill, I feel exactly the same from the time I get up in the morning to the time I go to bed at night. Therefore, I cannot relate to what people are talking about here. Anyway, I’m still betting that this whole glycemic index craze and all the jargon that goes along with it will soon go the way of pet rocks, eight-track tapes, and VHS cassettes.

Marathon Running Is Bad for Your Health

I’ve always suspected that marathon-running is bad for one’s health. Year after year, I hear and read news stories about people who were thought to healthy and athletic dropping dead while running marathons or even half marathons. Now a recent study confirms my suspicions. It revealed the fact that those who make a practice of regularly running long distance develop scar tissue around their heart over time. While exercise is obviously good for one’s heath, it should be acquired in moderation, like almost anything else. Marathon running is exercise taken to a dangerous extreme. It is unnatural, so the human body reacts negatively to it.

Could Vaccination Opponents Be Sued?

A significant and growing number of parents now are refusing allow their children to get some types vaccinations that were previously required before kids could begin attending public school. These parents are concerned about the safety of these vaccines, although there has been no solid proof that they are unsafe. The danger is that this steady increase in the number of children entering school without these vaccinations could lead to new outbreaks of childhood diseases that had been nearly eradicated.

What if something like that happened, leading to the unnecessary deaths of hundreds, or possibly thousands, of children? Wouldn’t the parents who refused those vaccinations be subject to lawsuits? After all, they would be at fault if something as catastrophic as that were to happen. They should stop and consider how their ignorant and selfish decisions might be endangering entire communities or regions.

Bursting Their Bubbly

A recently publicized study shows that moderate drinking can increase a woman’s chance of getting breast cancer by as much as 15 percent. This is the first known study that indicates a possible harmful side effect of moderate drinking. However, I have suspected all along that any alcohol consumption at all is a net negative for most people. I see this study as a bit of personal vindication. Of course, I realize that I am a contrarian in regard to this issue.

The majority of Americans enjoy an occasional drink and never expect it to cause them any ill effects. Most will probably look at this study with a great deal of skepticism. Members of the media seem to feel the same way. According, some of them have labeled this study “controversial.” Funny though, they never seem to attach such a label to studies that point out the harmful effects of smoking, obesity, or lack of exercise.

Pain Can Sometimes Be Caused by Boredom

The other day, I was having all kinds of minor pains – until I got busy. It’s funny how all of those pains vanished when I really got involved in working on something. I was so into what I was doing that I forgot all about the pain. Of course, any kind of pain that one can simply forget about when he or she becomes occupied with something else is not likely caused by any serious condition. Actually, I believe the condition that causes it is called boredom. When I have too much time on my hands, I often imagine problems, such as pain, that don’t really exist. That’s all the more reason to stay busy.

Sleep: Quantity Vs Quality

I don't buy the whole idea that an acceptable amount of sleep should be measured in the number of hours of it one gets each night. When it comes to sleep, I think quality is more important that quantity. For example, five good hours of sleep is probably better than eight so-so hours of sleep. Anyway, that's the way I see it.

Do the Morbidly Obese Hate Themselves?

I can understand why morbidly obese people don’t seem to get much sympathy from everyone else. Most people are probably like me. Assuming they didn’t have some kind of medical problem beyond their control, they know they would hit the panic button and do something long before they got anywhere near 100% above their ideal weight.

What I Am Afraid Of

We're all afraid of something. What kinds of things are you afraid of? Have you ever taken the time to make a list of the things that scare you the most? Here are the 10 things I’m the most afraid of (with number one being my primary fear). How do they compare with your list?

1. A life-threatening and/or incapacitating illness or injury.

2. Getting into some kind of trouble with the law.

3. Financial problems.

4. Getting lost or having my car break down in a strange place.

5. Being caught in the middle of a personal conflict, i.e., one person demanding that I do one thing and another person demanding that I do just the opposite.

6. Driving in traffic through large metropolitan areas like the DC beltway.

7. Creepy creatures such as spiders and snakes.

8. Speaking (or just having to stand) in front of a large crowd.

9. Being embarrassed and humiliated by failures, mistakes, and gaffs.

10. Social functions where alcohol is served.

There Is Unsually No Good Reason for Anger

If we’re completely honest with ourselves, we’ll come to see that most of our anger is completely unjustified. When we start to become angry about something, we need to ask ourselves the following question: Is the thing we’re about to get angry about going to matter to us at a given point to the not-too-distant future, i.e., a year, a month, or even a week from now? In most cases, the answer will be “no.”

The One Fault I Find with Big Pharma

Other than Big Tobacco and Big Oil, I hear more complaints about Big Pharma (the pharmaceutical industry) than any other major type of business. However, I think most of these gripes are unjustified. I know these firms charge what seem like exorbitant sums for the drugs they produce. I have heard people say things to the effect of, “those little pills can’t possibly be worth all that money.” The pills themselves probably aren’t, but just look at all the money that had to be spent in research and development just to make them possible. The companies who bring these lifesaving medicines to the market have to be rewarded for it some way. Therefore, I don’t begrudge their profiting from the production of quality medications.

What I do have a problem with are their sales people, who invade the offices of doctors while they are seeing patients. Obviously, they make these visits to lavish their freebies on physicians and to try to persuade them to prescribe their company’s pills, serums, creams, jells, and what-have-you as often as possible. I see that as a somewhat questionable practice in and of itself. Doctors should be free from undue pressure and influence when deciding on what medications to prescribe for their patients.

That issue notwithstanding, doctors shouldn’t be bombarded with sales calls while they are seeing patients. When someone visits a doctor due to an illness or injury or simply for a checkup, he or she needs that doctor’s undivided attention. The last time I visited my doctor, he was called out of the examining room to see a drug salesman, leaving me sitting in there alone for over 30 minutes!  Doctors should set aside separate blocks of time for visits from pharmaceutical representatives peddling their wares.