Wow, do I ever like Texas! Aside from it being hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk, it’s great. As we’re in the process of moving into our new house, I managed to break the toes on my right foot. OUCH!!!! In my old house, the stairs have a 6″ rise, but the new house has standard 8″-rise steps. My legs seem to think that they don’t have to lift those extra two inches. And I know that there is usually no point in seeing a doctor for broken toes because they don’t do anything other than sell you an expensive boot. But after a couple days, the swelling went down enough that I could see this m ..read more

It’s been over a year since I last posted. Partly, I’ve had nothing to say about RA because disease activity was mostly under control, and partly because I decided to pretend like I’m perfectly healthy. Living like an ostrich was fun – until it wasn’t. Effects of Nutrition on RA I continue to be fascinated by all the RA symptoms that could easily be attributed to vitamin deficiency – someday I’ll make a list. After merging a few different eating theories that seem to be well-supported by science, I created an eating plan and stuck to it. I felt better than I had in years, lost weight, and was ..read more

Did your doctor ever warn you that cataracts are a possible side effect of steroid use?  I don’t think mine did.  I was warned about weight gain and thinning of the skin.  I was told how to taper off prednisone.  I was even told of the possibility of tendon rupture.  No discussion of eye care to delay cataracts ever took place. Why do patients have to search to find information such as this? Millions of Americans take corticosteroid medications daily to address a variety of health problems, from arthritis to asthma. While these prescription drugs often deliver conside ..read more

Funny how we can think we’ve figured out how to navigate the medical system, only to see just how wrong we are. Quite a few years back I was diagnosed with a macular pucker. After two years of watching things, the retina guy told me it seemed stable but to come back if it got worse. Well, to tell the truth, after a while I forgot about it, but then I changed optometrists and the new one was insistent that I 1) figure out the cause of my double vision, and 2) follow up with a retina specialist because straight lines should not look wavy and it might be time to do something about this problem. B ..read more

Did you know that there’s a nutrient that is neither vitamin nor mineral? Choline acts sorta like an amino acid, and sorta like B-vitamins. It is a component of foods that our bodies need to thrive. Think of it in the category of micronutrients like vitamins and minerals. But what does this essential nutrient contribute? And how much do we need? Where do we get it? Purpose Our bodies require choline to do the work of making cell membranes. Without sufficient choline, those cell membranes are defective. Liver function depends on choline. Choline deficiency is implicated in non-alcoholic fatty ..read more