Dave, very well said, your comments below say everything that needs to be said. The Functional Medicine Cardiologist that I am likely going to work with spends a lot of time on exercise, fitness and stress reduction, besides nutrition and getting at the root cause.
I've begun to make changes on my own, I had already gotten into the habit of walking 2-3 miles a day, I plan to step that up, and add some resistance training after I get the ok from my Doctor. And I've also begun intermittent fasting, using an 8 hour window of low carb eating, and the other 16 hours nothing but coffee (1 - 2 cups) and lots of water.
Its very difficult to stop atherosclerosis its a progressive disease, but I am hoping to at least stop progression, and who knows maybe I'll be lucky.
I don't consider myself too old to change at age 72.
Your descript
ion of the barriers to good care due to demands on most doctors was very well put.
slapshot said...
"Nobody wants to change their lifestyles if they can just take a pill".
Most GP's have busy practices where they see every day, people of all ages who have abused their bodies with poor lifestyle choices. The doctor might only have 15 minutes to give the patient advice on what ever the physical issues they have after blood tests/scans etc. The default solution are pills which do work to some extent. See the quote above. But this thread is about treating causes and not just throwing pills at the symptoms which , see the quote above, is the route most doctors prescribe. And for my observations, most of the time, once you are on these pills that treat the symptoms, with their many SA, you will take them until you die
Prato, like many men, chose a wife and family and a possible financially lucrative but stressful work career as a priority over adding a short daily regime of exercise and diet which has left him to deal with physical issues later on in life. He ain't alone.
That seems to be the majority of the men on this forum. If he could go back 40 years ago and make changes to his physical life like all of us would, he would do it. But that ship has already sailed.
My life on paper is similar to Pratos. Wife of 44 years, 2 kids with their own families and grandchildren, some money in the bank for retirement vacations, RP 13 years ago, GS= 3x4, RT 5 years ago, 6 months ADT, PSA undetectable.
Where we differ is that I am prescription drug free except for Cialis on demand. Mild arthroscoratic disease, low resting HR(46 ) if sitting at computer for a few hours, moderate BP, 5'11", 168lbs, normal cholesterol, triglyserides etc numbers and my wife and I plus our family when they were with us, made physical activity a priority which continues to this day.
Exercise is the first pillar for a healthy life followed by good nutrition, a normal BMI, quiting smoking, lowing alcohol consumption, reducing stress, well you know the drill.
It is not too late in life to alter some of the bad habits we have had for years. Turning off the TV, putting on the shoes and walking out the door is a good start to a new, improved man.
Dave