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HOME HEALTH TESTS, OMEGA-3s AND AN AGEING WELL WEBINAR

November 3, 2020 14 Comments

Blood all over the kitchen, multiple stab wounds and a lot of swearing – no, not a crime scene but husband and I trying to take an at-home health check recently. Here at The Age-Well Project we’re always interested in monitoring our wellbeing, and I’d been keen to try a DIY test for a while. So when I spotted a 50% offer for a testing kit called Thriva, I decided to invest.

We filled out questionnaires online, and two neatly-packed boxes arrived a day or so later. They contained miniature test tubes, spring-loaded lancets and a lot of instructions. The first one was not to do the test until we’d fasted for eight hours, easy to do overnight, of course. We dipped our ring fingers in warm water to get the blood flowing, set up the dinky little test tubes (only a few drops of blood needed to fill that, we thought) and pressed a spring-loaded lancet to our fingers.

The information video had explained that when we released the spring, the lancet would pierce our fingers, but it wouldn’t hurt. IT DID! Having stabbed ourselves, we then (please look away if you’re squeamish) had to pump the blood into the test tubes. The tubes managed to be both so tiny that it was impossible to accurately drip  each drop of precious blood into the tube, and so enormous that filling  it seemed to take (to quote Hancock’s Half Hour) an armful. In the end, we both had to use all three of the lancets provided to harvest enough blood. So that was three stabbed fingers each and a lot of pumping of blood (and quite a bit of swearing by husband).

For someone as obsessed with their own health as I am, the results were fascinating. They come with a brief explanation from a doctor about what they mean, which is helpful. I had plenty of ‘normals’:

  • B12 – important for the formation of red blood cells, heart and brain health
  • CRP – a measure of inflammation and we know that ‘inflamm-ageing’ is key to much of the frailty of old age
  • HbA1c (Diabetes) – this is a test of how much glucose is attached to haemoglobin (a protein found in red blood cells) which can indicate pre- or full-blown diabetes
  • Free thyroxine (FT4) – a marker for thyroid function

Some ‘optimals’, which made me feel very proud:

  • Ferritin – an indicator of iron levels
  • Triglyceride/HDL cholesterol levels – linked to LDL particle size and heart health
  • Liver function
  • Vitamin D – I took the test in early Autumn so my levels will have been boosted by summer sun, plus I take a supplement

Annoyingly, my iron levels couldn’t be tested because my blood cells burst (must have been all that pumping) and I didn’t get a result for thyroid-stimulating hormone because there wasn’t enough blood for the lab to process. I couldn’t believe that – I felt I’d given gallons!

To my surprise, my LDL cholesterol levels were a little elevated. I need to investigate this further because I eat very little saturated fat, don’t smoke, hardly drink these days, exercise regularly and I’m not overweight. There’s a link between raised cholesterol in midlife and increased risk of dementia, so it’s something I really need to deal with. I’ll report back. Even more concerningly, my omega-3 to omega-6 ratio is out of whack. I’d expected it to be in the normal range as I consume plenty of omegas-3s (oily fish, walnuts, chia seeds) and little by way of seed oils and fast foods, the main sources of omega-6 in our diets.

A recent study by the American Heart Association reports that, in rebalancing our omega-3 to omega-6 ratios the emphasis should be on consuming more omega-3 and worrying less about eliminating omega-6 fats completely.  I’ve upped my omega-3 intake – I realised I’d slipped back on the sardines that form the mainstay of my WFH lunches – and started taking a krill oil supplement. Annabel and I aren’t mad about taking lots of supplements as part of our Age-Well Project, but I want to redress the balance quickly and omega-3 is critical to brain health. I’ve chosen to take krill oil rather than a regular omega 3 supplement because it’s high in the phospholipids which cross the blood-brain barrier and deliver essential fatty acids direct to the brain. As an ApoE4 carrier, my blood-brain barrier is likely to be compromised and to make it harder for these phospholipids to get to where they need to be.

And is it working? Thriva sent me a reminder that I should take another test, but I just can’t face the trauma again! Perhaps when the world feels like a slightly cheerier place I’ll be able to steel myself for more stabbing…

…..Do let us know if you’ve ever taken a home health test, and how it went, in the comments below.

AN AGE-WELL WEBINAR FOR POSITIVE PAUSE

I’m repeating my webinar Ageing Well: How to Live Longer Healthier and Happier in Midlife and Menopause for Positive Pause on Wednesday November 11th at 7pm. It’s packed with powerful age-well strategies that fit into your every-day life  and I’ll be answering your questions too. I’ll even throw in some recipes! The event will be recorded and will be available online if you can’t make it for the live Zoom event. Ticket details here:

https://www.positivepause.co.uk/all-blogs/positivepause-online-ageing-well-how-to-live-longer-healthier-happier-in-midlife-menopause

See you there!

Susan

 

« HOW TO BUILD MUSCLE ON THE SLY – AND WHY
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Comments

  1. Stuart Carr says

    November 3, 2020 at 9:43 pm

    Susan, Like you my LDL is borderline high and I cannot understand why. I am very fit, mainly eat fish, dont eat processed foods, dont eat much lDL containing food and try to get 8 hours sleep.

    Reply
    • Susan Saunders says

      November 6, 2020 at 2:45 pm

      It’s strange isn’t it? Another reader was told her raised cholesterol was due to age. That’s not enough of an answer for me! I’m definitely going to investigate further

      Reply
  2. Rosamund jonkers says

    November 3, 2020 at 11:37 pm

    Sounds ghastly. Are you sure these tests are accurate? Wouldn’t it be better to get them done through your doctor, even if you have to pay.

    I gave up on krill oil for the benefit of the whales.

    Reply
    • Susan Saunders says

      November 6, 2020 at 2:51 pm

      You’re right, probably would be better to go via a doctor. But these home health tests are becoming increasingly popular (and are heavily promoted) and I’m always keen to test things for our readers! The krill oil I take is sustainably sourced.

      Reply
  3. Gill Wilson says

    November 4, 2020 at 12:57 am

    I have been taking the Thriva test for around two years now. I find it very easy to do and have never had issues with getting the blood for testing. I realise from your description of the results I maybe need more knowledge in order to really use the results properly and balance my results with certain foods.
    I find it usually a positive and encouraging experience the graphs of regular testing (now every six months) give me a guide to my changing health.
    As doctors are so difficult to see at the moment I feel empowered to be able to check my own results and that my health is ok without bothering the health service.

    Reply
    • Susan Saunders says

      November 6, 2020 at 2:53 pm

      Thanks so much Gill, I’m glad you’ve had a positive experience and, most importantly, feel empowered by the experience . I think that – however we do it – taking responsibility for our own health, and believing that we can change the way we age, is critical as we get older.

      Reply
  4. Pauline Garratt says

    November 4, 2020 at 8:14 am

    My cholesterol levels have always been low, and the good kind always being higher than the bad.
    However, the levels have risen over the years, and when I questioned my GP over this, because I do eat well and I I do lots of excercise, her answer was that it is something that comes with age.

    By the way, thanks for the reminder of the importance of sardines, I shall have some on toast this evening!!

    Reply
    • Susan Saunders says

      November 6, 2020 at 2:54 pm

      I’m definitely going to dig into the cholesterols results more – is it simply age? I wonder. And yes to sardines! We love ’em!

      Reply
  5. Karen says

    November 4, 2020 at 10:03 am

    What Krill oil supplement do you take?

    Reply
    • Susan Saunders says

      November 6, 2020 at 2:55 pm

      Hi Karen
      I take a supplement by Youth and Earth. I believe it to be sustainably sourced and pure.

      Reply
  6. Kate Flint says

    November 5, 2020 at 11:56 am

    Find your website very interesting but just a thought that if you are going to promote/suggest Krill oil supplements it would be very good if you could also encourage people to ensure that these come from a sustainable source that does not further endanger the wildlife of the Antarctic.
    Thanks
    Kate

    Reply
    • Susan Saunders says

      November 6, 2020 at 2:57 pm

      Hi Kate
      I’m not promoting krill oil, just explaining the path I’ve taken. The krill oil I take is sustainable, I believe. But I totally take your point we have to be vigilant about these things and not allow pursuing our own health to have a negative impact elsewhere. Thank you for raising the point.

      Reply
  7. Andrew Johnson says

    November 19, 2020 at 10:00 am

    Susan, I am a very fit man, healthy diet, who nevertheless had an MI at the age of 54. The surgeon showed me my angiography- bulbous, clear arteries. But I had an almost total block on my left anterior descending aka ‘widowmaker’. I took a week to call an ambulance – thought it was incredibly painful indigestion, thinking it couldn’t possibly be a heart attack. My cholesterol was a tiny bit raised, 4.2. And good to bad cholesterol also a tiny bit out: 2.2. I was told that I had one faulty cell that caused the block, almost certainly genetic (heart attacks in male line), and that for some people ‘normal levels aren’t quite good enough. As a standard part of recovery they put me on a statin for life. With no other changes to my healthy lifestyle within 3 months total cholesterol dropped to 2, and ratio to 0.95, ie half of normal. Surgeon said I would never have another heart attack, stuck me on a fast treadmill and reassured me I could exercise as hard as I liked again. I hate taking any medication, but actually this one is reassuring and I have no noticeable side effects. I asked if I should have been on statins before and was told that for every 435 people prescribed them it only benefits one of them, and I wouldn’t have qualified to be one of the 435. Just sharing this, however, as I am sure you will know, statins do improve cholesterol scores.

    Reply
    • Susan Saunders says

      November 25, 2020 at 8:08 am

      Oh Andrew, thank goodness you called that ambulance! Good to know that your statins have had such a dramatic effect – and here’s to your continued good health

      Susan

      Reply

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Welcome to The Age-Well Project

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Everything we’ve learnt about ageing well points Everything we’ve learnt about ageing well points to a time (for women at least) in their mid-60s when the chronic conditions of ageing, like diabetes, heart disease and dementia, are - statistically - more likely to kick in. 

And we know that our reproductive hormones do so much more than prepare us to have periods and babies, we have receptors for them throughout our bodies and brains. 

Oestrogen, in particular, helps keep bones strong, blood vessels flexible, brains firing and inflammation levels low. Essentially, it wraps us up in a cosy protective cloak to keep us safe and healthy while we're able to reproduce, but once the eggs have run out - we're on our own! 

Between the average age of menopause at 51, and that time in our 60s when the chronic conditions of ageing are more likely to kick in, we have a decade or so in which it’s vital to focus on our health.

And how to do that? It’s on the blog - link in bio

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If you’re lucky enough to have good metabolic he If you’re lucky enough to have good metabolic health you might want to thank your Mum today. Recent studies have found that women who move around during their reproductive years and during pregnancy and then breastfeed for a bit pass on a compound in their milk called 3SL which provides lifelong protection against poor metabolic health. The offspring of moving, breastfeeding Mums appear to have a lower lifetime risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and other chronic metabolic disease. Even gentle strolling during pregnancy and while nursing can produce this compound. So today we thank our Mums for that - as well as everything else.  Susan’s mum in the hat. Annabel’s mum in the pony tail. 

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There’s been lots of good news for walkers recen There’s been lots of good news for walkers recently. A study published last month found that over-60s who walked between 6000 and 9000 steps a day cut their risk of heart disease (including strokes and heart attacks) by 40-50 percent, when compared to a more typical 2000 steps a day. In fact this study found that for every additional 1000 steps walked, the risk fell still further. 

How far are you walking to age well? Let us know in the comments and there’s more on the power of walking on the blog - link in bio

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A big hug from us to you to mark International Wom A big hug from us to you to mark International Women’s Day! 

The campaign this year reminds us to embrace equity as a way to recognise that each of us has different circumstances, and we need different resources and opportunities to reach an equal outcome. Of course, this is as vital in ageing and health outcomes as in every other field.  

So we’re embracing our age and hoping to grow older in a more equitable society ❤️

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We’ve learned to love walking backwards! So many We’ve learned to love walking backwards! So many benefits when it comes to ageing well. 

If you’re not sure how to start or are worried about looking silly (we were) - there are lots of tips on the blog, link in bio. 

If you’re a backwards walker, let us know in comments below! 

If you’re planning to start, save this post for when you’re ready for some reverse walking 

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