"Just a thought"

[oldfella]

Watching the Olympics, and having spent last evening with my neighbours, drinking wine, and realizing they were older than me, two even in their late 80s got me to thinking.

Question 1
Do these folk, run Faster, Jump Higher, Lift more weight, go Faster on bikes, Swing on bars better than Apes, Run, Swim, Ride Bikes all in one race, in a couple of hours;

Question 2.
When I was a young man, we thought that a man in his late 60s was doing well. Now it is accepted that we are staying alive far longer.

Question 3
Why are we trying so hard and busting our backs, to grow and eat the right food, and avoid eating what we feel is not good for us.

I will still do it cos that's the way I am, but as I say Just a thought

[boboff]

No
Yes
Don't know

I think the actual gains made are marginal really, but the way of life.
The 80's are the new 60's
You have to eat the way you want to, being healthy does depend on what you eat and how much you do, it's not as bad as the media make out though

[2ndRateMind]

The NHS, I am told, often makes its life and death decisions on the basis of 'qualyia' or 'quality adjusted life years'. For my part, I cannot see the benefit (as my late grandmother recently did) of spending my ending years in a care home, subjected to the care home regime, with all the loss of autonomy and dignity that implies. I need not relate the symptoms of senility and old-age, I am sure you are familiar with them. For myself, I don't want to be old and decrepit - I don't see the advantage of that. Prolonging life, for the sake of prolonging life, seems to me to be a cruel and unusual form of torture.

But eating freshly grown, taste variety selected, self-nurtured, organic, food - that is enhancing the here and now, for yourself and, indirectly, for the nation and the world. If you simultaneously benefit from the exercise, and if that keeps you active and interested and capable, then I think that is a very fine thing. The fine line is to know when you have passed your sell-by date (and may you all reading this, live as long as you want to, and want to as long as you live), and then, courteously, release the resources you employ for your own maintenance for the benefit of the younger generation, by dieing the moment your life becomes a burden to you.

Qualyia? Sure. Great concept. Let's extend our qualyia as far as we can, and take control of our food, but recognise that a poor quality, pain-wracked, undignified dependent life is worse than no life at all.

As for Olympians. They will retire still youthful, but after that and eventually become old. Let us hope that on retirement, they find a way of life to replace their sport that offers them the same fulfillment, and extends their qualyia, too.

Best wishes, 2RM.

[trinder]

I was at my sisters funeral yesterday. She had spent two years racked with pain, on morphine and often very very confused. She was in and out of hospital and yet In all that time all she ever said that she wanted was to go home. She never mentioned taking her own life or wishing to be dead. The nearest I got to asking myself exactly what she meant was when she said "she wished this was all over" but she could have meant the pain.

I have a friend who suffers with depression, she has an extraordinary child like attitude to happiness believing that if she could be with "a certain person" her life would be so happy. She has spent a lot of time paying for therapy and she does lots of meditation.Our conversations are regularly based on taking responsibility for your own happiness and not making someone else responsible for it and although she understands the words and the logic she will not apply it. She is a very attractive woman and goes to great lengths to eat healthily exercise fully. Lots of walking working out in the gym yoga and stretching. She has most definately felt like life is so very awful and she would be happy for it to end.
There is the rub ? surely the discipline of healthy eating and lifestyle is about extending life ? Surely if you want no more of this life one would think about the nicest way to end it . Eat or drink yourself to death?
So no 2nd rate mind the evidence is that although people complain about going into a care home very few take up the alternative!

We humans are still animals and the will to live is normally so strong that even in a dreadfully unhappy state we still keep taking another breath.

[2ndRateMind]

Dear Trinder.

My condolences on the loss of your sister. I am truly sorry for your loss.

Best wishes, 2RM.

[Green Aura]

So sorry to hear about your sister Trinder

surely the discipline of healthy eating and lifestyle is about extending life ?

I don't think it's necessarily about extending life but doing what one can to make it healthier and hopefully more pleasurable - whatever the length of it turns out to be. It is for me anyway.

[boboff]

Supersize me sums this up, eating shite makes you feel shite, and crave more shite! The point is valid why would you want to live longer, when that time is spent in incontinent inconvenience.

Fortunately though we can't make those decisions for ourselves.

The other point to note is nutirtion when growing up is important factor in your adult health. Children getting taller, faster, stronger due to better and cheaper and more accessible food and vitamins, is going to improve age expectations. Don't they predict most people being born now will see 100.