{"id":7427,"date":"2018-07-23T02:16:15","date_gmt":"2018-07-23T02:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/?p=7427"},"modified":"2021-03-20T00:31:15","modified_gmt":"2021-03-20T00:31:15","slug":"an-old-geezers-guide-to-supplements","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/?p=7427","title":{"rendered":"A Geezer\u2019s guide to supplements"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

No, I don\u2019t want a\u00a0Schwarzenegger<\/a>\u00a0body.\u00a0 At age 67, I just want to stick around a while yet\u2026\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

\"http:\/\/img2-2.timeinc.net\/people\/i\/2014\/news\/140210\/christie-brinkley-300.jpg\"I recently flew back from Newark to the\u00a0ATL<\/a>.*<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Southwest\u00a0Airlines\u00a0in-flight magazine<\/a>\u00a0had a full-page ad for M-drive<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong>\u00a0The ad was for a “daily supplement designed specifically for men.”\u00a0\u00a0Since I just turned 67, it piqued my interest.\u00a0\u00a0(For reasons including some noted in\u00a0Part II<\/a>.\u00a0 Like I said,\u00a0<\/em>I want to stick around awhile.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>And<\/strong> maybe run into a cute “young” 60-year-old, like the one shown at left.)<\/em><\/p>\n

As It turned out,\u00a0M-drive<\/a>\u00a0wasn\u2019t my cup of tea.\u00a0 But the ad did<\/em> <\/strong>get me thinking.\u00a0 (Supplements and such.)<\/em><\/p>\n

So I did some\u00a0Googling<\/a>\u00a0and came up with this:\u00a0\u00a0The Top 10 Supplements for Men\u00a0\u2013\u00a0menshealth.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A side note:\u00a0 I was already taking a multivitamin and Glucosamine Chondroitin<\/a>, both via \u201cgummies.\u201d\u00a0 (Despite my dentist\u2019s warning that “gummy vitamins<\/a>” – like\u00a0<\/em>Halloween\u00a0Candy<\/a>\u00a0– can “pull your fillings out and crack your crowns.”\u00a0 But\u00a0<\/em>I\u2019m careful, and essentially “gum the gummies.”)<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>Also\u00a0Vitamin D3, on doctor\u2019s orders.\u00a0 (Which is ironic since I am and have been in the sun a lot.)<\/em><\/p>\n

So here\u2019s what\u00a0Menshealth<\/a>\u00a0said, and what I\u2019ve gotten\u00a0 \u201cextra,\u201d and how much it all costs.<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0 BORON<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0TO PROTECT YOUR PROSTATE<\/p>\n

This note got me really<\/em><\/strong> thinking, since my brother and father both got prostate cancer.<\/p>\n

The site said men with high boron levels are \u201c65 percent less likely to develop prostate cancer than men with lower levels.”\u00a0 It added that American men on average have one of the lowest<\/em> <\/strong>boron intakes in the world.\u00a0 The site recommended\u00a03 milligrams (mg) a day, and added that it \u201cdoesn\u2019t just fight cancer:\u00a0 USDA researchers found that this is the best dosage to improve memory and concentration.\u201d\u00a0 (Which I could definitely use.)<\/em><\/p>\n

As it turned out, I could get most of my supplements straight out of the local\u00a0General Nutrition Center<\/a>.\u00a0 (This was\u00a0after trying \u2013 without success \u2013 to buy them at some local \u201chypermarkets<\/a>,\u00a0discount department stores<\/a>, and\u00a0grocery stores<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0 It seems they cater more to the\u00a0trendy<\/a>\u00a0– if not\u00a0gullible<\/a>.)<\/em><\/p>\n

However, the local\u00a0GNC<\/a>\u00a0didn\u2019t<\/em> <\/strong>have Boron<\/a>\u00a0on hand, so I had to special order it.\u00a0 Online, it cost $6.41, including shipping, for a bottle of 100.\u00a0 That worked out to under seven cents a day.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0 CALCIUM<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0TO LOSE WEIGHT AND STRENGTHEN BONES<\/p>\n

Menshealth<\/a>\u00a0said most men don\u2019t get the recommended 1,000 mg of calcium a day.\u00a0 (And that a cup of milk only has 300 mg.)\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0It added that men with the highest calcium intakes weigh less on average than men consuming less calcium.<\/p>\n

\"AHow much?\u00a0 <\/b><\/em>The site said to aim for 1,200 mg calcium citrate<\/em><\/strong>; “half in the morning, half at night, to maximize absorption.”\u00a0 It also said to avoid coral calcium, because of impurities.\u00a0 But here I made a misstep.\u00a0 The first “calcium” I got was calcium phosphate<\/em>, at the local hypermarket<\/a>.\u00a0 But it turns out calcium phosphate<\/em> increases the danger kidney stones<\/a>.\u00a0 (As seen at right.)<\/em><\/p>\n

So I ended up getting calcium citrate “soft chews” from the same local\u00a0GNC, at $30 for 60 “chews,” each 500 mg.\u00a0 But I ended up opting to take only one<\/em><\/strong> of these day.\u00a0 For one thing, I don’t want to risk one of those dang kidney stones.\u00a0 For another I get some calcium \u2013 of the right kind \u2013 from my morning cheese and multivitamin, and other sources as well.\u00a0 Plus of course it’s cheaper taking one.\u00a0 That ends up costing 50 cents a day, and I still increase my calcium substantially.<\/p>\n

Number 3 on the list \u2013\u00a0Chromium \u2013\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>is covered adequately by my multivitamin.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0 COENZYME Q10<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0TO BOOST ENERGY<\/p>\n

Here I found a real bargain, as noted below.<\/p>\n

But first, Menshealth<\/a>\u00a0said your body naturally produces Coenzyme Q10<\/a>, which\u00a0helps cells manage your body\u2019s energy supply.\u00a0 However, “as you get older, production decreases,” and the only way to “get back up to youthful levels is by taking a supplement.”<\/p>\n

Recent studies suggest that coenzyme Q10 may fight cancer, Parkinson\u2019s disease, and Huntington\u2019s disease, and may thin the blood to help prevent heart disease.\u00a0 Q10 is also packed with free-radical-fighting antioxidants, which can slow the signs of aging.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

How much?<\/b>\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0Menshealth<\/a>\u00a0said researchers recommend 100 mg a day, but you “won\u2019t find Q10 in a multivitamin or get any useful quantity from food.”\u00a0 And that’s where I lucked out.<\/p>\n

It turns out this supplement is covered by GNC\u2019s\u00a0Triple Strength Fish Oil Plus<\/em> <\/strong>CoQ-10<\/a>.\u00a0 (“Two for the price of one.”)\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>This \u201cfish oil plus<\/em><\/strong> supplement\u201d cost $52.50 for 120 softgels.\u00a0 But that rounds out to 44 cents a day for a three month supply of\u00a0both<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0CoQ-10 and Omega-3s.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0 CREATINE\u00a0<\/strong><\/strong><\/em>TO BOOST MUSCLE AND MEMORY<\/p>\n

As\u00a0 Wikipedia<\/a>\u00a0noted, Creatine “can increase maximum power and performance in high-intensity anaerobic repetitive work<\/strong> <\/em>(periods of work and rest) by 5 to 15%.”\u00a0 But\u00a0I put the kibosh on this one.\u00a0 After visiting both Walmart and the GNC, this one looked like too much trouble.\u00a0 (What with having to mix it with whey<\/a>, and thus being a bit too “body-builderish.”)\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

The verdict:\u00a0 “NOT interested.”\u00a0 Getting older, I’ve moved to low-weight high repetition<\/a>\u00a0strength training, since a big benefit of “using light weights is the diminished risk of injury.”\u00a0 Which I came to appreciate recently.\u00a0 I “tweaked” my right shoulder lifting a bag of garbage I’d always handled easily before.\u00a0 It took a month of rehabilitation and a couple of sleepless nights to work through that one.\u00a0 And I came to appreciate not<\/em><\/strong> being able to raise your right arm.<\/p>\n

So as they say, “Discretion is the better part of valor<\/a>.”\u00a0 As they also say, “To be continued<\/a>…<\/em><\/strong>”<\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

The upper image is courtesy of\u00a0Bodybuilding\u00a0\u2013 Wikipedia<\/a>.\u00a0 Caption, \u201cArnold Schwarzenegger<\/a>, one of the most notable figures in bodybuilding, in 1974.\u201d\u00a0 See also\u00a0Arnold Schwarzenegger\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Wikipedia<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The \u201chypermarkets<\/a>,\u00a0discount department stores<\/a>, and\u00a0grocery stores<\/a>\u201d is from\u00a0Walmart\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Wikipedia<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

I borrowed the Christie Brinkley image from\u00a0On RABBIT \u2013 and \u201c60 is the new 30\u201d \u2013 (Part II)<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Re: Whey. See\u00a0Why You Should Take\u00a0Whey\u00a0Protein,\u00a0Creatine, And Glutamine<\/a>.\u00a0 (“Bodybuilding.com.”)<\/em><\/p>\n

In the original (2018) post, a lower image was courtesy of\u00a0<\/em>Creatine Body\u00a0–\u00a0Image\u00a0Results<\/a>. (Re: the sentence “not interested” in that supplement.) For this update, the lower image is courtesy of\u00a0Discretion Is The Better Part Valor\u00a0– Image Results<\/a>. Answer? “Henry IV, Part 1 Act 5, Scene 4,” from\u00a0Discretion is the better part of valor<\/a>\u00a0(bardwords.org), and\u00a0What is the meaning of Falstaff’s motto<\/a>, summarized, “the phrase ‘the better part of valor is discretion’ means that the best sort of courage – the\u00a0kind that constitutes true bravery instead of recklessness – is courage that is guided by wisdom (discretion). Bravery applied blindly without caution and wisdom is meaningless.”<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

No, I don\u2019t want a\u00a0Schwarzenegger\u00a0body.\u00a0 At age 67, I just want to stick around a while yet\u2026\u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 * I recently flew back from Newark to the\u00a0ATL.* The\u00a0Southwest\u00a0Airlines\u00a0in-flight magazine\u00a0had a full-page ad for M-drive.\u00a0 \u00a0The ad was for a “daily supplement designed specifically for men.”\u00a0\u00a0Since I just turned 67, it piqued my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7427"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7427"}],"version-history":[{"count":28,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7427\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7513,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7427\/revisions\/7513"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7427"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7427"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}