Sometimes doing your own research is a good thing

[MightyGiants]

At the start of Covid, I was told after a physical that my white blood cell count was low (not what you want to hear when there is a deadly virus circulating).  I checked my medical portal and saw it's been below the minimum for a couple of years but my latest test was the lowest.

Well a follow up test was also low and I was sent to a Hematologist.  I was hoping my issue was just lack of sleep from my volunteering and stress and not cancer (a common cause of low counts).  Well when my Hemo tested my blood it came in just above the minimum and he chalked it up as good news and said a virus was the likely cause of the dip.

Well in May I had another physical and once again might white blood cell count was low.   I was given a 6 month follow up.  Now I have been retired from volunteering so my sleep had been good and my stress wasn't bad, so I was puzzled.   So I set myself to researching my problems and problem and trying to figure out what was wrong with me.   After many hours of research over the course of weeks I decided I had the answer.   One cause of low counts is a protein deficiency.   I knew I got more than the recommended amount, but it seemed like the only likely solution.   So I did some digging and discovered I could be deficient for the following reasons.

1. Protein is a by weight requirement and I am about 50 pounds heavier than the weight their requirements are based on. 

2. I am very physically active with walking and strength training so I need more protein to repair the muscles I use heavily.

3.  As we age we don't absorb protein as well.


So I committed to boosting my protein by changing to higher protein protein Greek Yogurt, protein powder, and protein bars and chips.   One thing I noticed is I felt less hungry.  I also suspect my arms got a little bigger.  Then the big test came, to see if my theory was sound.   My count was boosted significantly and was now comfortably in range.   

Had I not done my own work, I never would have known what was wrong.  Neither my regular doctor or the Hemotologist had made suggestions or offered solutions. 


I will add one qualifier.  While I did my own research, I did not ignore or contradict my doctors or current standards and boosting my protein (while expensive) was not considered dangerous.

[Bob In PA]

Had I not done my own work, I never would have known what was wrong. 

Rich: Congrats on a successful outcome. I suggest even more sleep. You had five typos which I fixed. lol

Neither my regular doctor or the Hematologist had made suggestions or offered solutions. 

I've experienced the same regarding both myself and my wife; she also does her own research and headed off reduced kidney function (common in connection with the aging process, even if nothing is wrong) as a result of her due diligence (or hypochondria, I'm not sure which, lol). IMO doctors have too many patients and not enough time -or- there are problems with the admission process to medical schools which have still not been adequately addressed -or- both.

I will add one qualifier.  While I did my own research, I did not ignore or contradict my doctors or current standards and boosting my protein (while expensive) was not considered dangerous.

That point does require emphasis, especially when addressing a group of men, who characteristically pooh-pooh health issues until it's too late. I thank God every day that I can afford periodic health care such as regular check-ups, which is the best way to nip stuff in the bud, IMO.

Bob

[MightyGiants]

@Bob In PA

While getting check ups as we get older is lesser fun, as they are more likely to find something wrong, finding out sooner rather than later is, as you say, very important.

As for my sleep, since resting from the squad, I am enjoying good amounts of sleep.   My fitness watch, tracks (Venue 3) tracks the quality and quantity of my sleep.

[DaveBrown74]

Rich,

Nice to hear that (1) your efforts have paid off and (2) the cause of the low white cell count was relatively innocuous. Good results all around.

As a side note, I'm a big fan of yogurt. Not that I love the taste (it's fine but it's nothing exciting), but the protein boost is big, and I find that it really goes a long way on hunger management as a snack in exchange for a very modest amount of calories. A 100 calorie (might even be 90) single serving of plain fat free greek yogurt, while not exactly delectable (though not bad either), goes a long way towards curbing my hunger. It surprises me how effective it is at that. I should probably eat it more frequently than I do.

[Jolly Blue Giant]

I was sent to a hematologist after contracting Lyme Disease about 10 years ago. The doctor was on the strange side as she wore giant pendants, multiple gaudy rings, and dressed like a gypsy in the movies. She analyzed my blood six ways to Sunday and said every measure was perfect...like "that of a teenager"...yet I still felt like crap most of the time. She asked me when I had my last prostate exam and I lied and told her "last month" and she replied, "well, I'm checking it again today"...awkward. Again, everything was fine

I have to have my blood drawn and analyzed twice a year (since my stroke in 2006) as well as a yearly CAT scan on my lungs). I do nothing that is good for my body (smoke, drink, eat junk food, way too much sugar, eat bacon like crazy, don't exercise, etc.), yet my numbers always come back as good or better than that of a man 50 years younger than me 

My results from my CAT Scan last month came back, and I was told my lungs are "fine", yet I feel as if I am fading away, weak, short of breath, joint pain, etc; however, I think I'm getting stronger because I can carry a hundred dollars worth of groceries with one hand now...something I couldn't do ten years ago...LOL

Anyway, it sucks to feel like crap and am constantly told my tests show I'm as close to perfect as I can get. BP: 117/56, lung capacity "good-to-great", etc. To expound on your "self-analysis", I don't know what
I could possibly do to research my own downhill slide. I can certainly tell I'm getting old, and my friends who are the same age as me (or even older) seem to be in better physical condition than me 

Here's an example of my test results I got back in July:

[Bob In PA]

Anyway, it sucks to feel like crap and am constantly told my tests show I'm as close to perfect as I can get.

Jolly: Feeling bad?  Here's a quote from a guy who should know better...  "I do nothing that is good for my body (smoke, drink, eat junk food, way too much sugar, eat bacon like crazy, don't exercise, etc."). 

Sound familiar?

You can only cheat the reaper for so long. If you feel bad and know why you feel bad, then you know the answer.

Bob

[Bob In PA]

As a side note, I'm a big fan of yogurt. 

DB: Aha, we disagree on something. I don't like yogurt. I don't know why. I don't even like the word itself. lol

I happily eat all foods (except red beets, which taste like eating dirt - it's the iron content, I suppose).

Like you, I can abide yogurt. I also have little to no affinity for sour cream. Both of these dislikes are odd inasmuch as I like all other "intentionally abused" foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, blue cheese, etc.

Bob

[Jolly Blue Giant]

Jolly: Feeling bad?  Here's a quote from a guy who should know better...  "I do nothing that is good for my body (smoke, drink, eat junk food, way too much sugar, eat bacon like crazy, don't exercise, etc." 

Sound familiar?

You can only cheat the reaper for so long. If you feel bad and know why you feel bad, then you know the answer.

Bob

Yup...very familiar. After watching my father deteriorate after turning 90 (he lived to 94), and caring for my 92 yr old mother (cognitive decline among other issues), I don't care to live long enough to wear diapers and be a burden to society or to my children. That is my mindset. I'm not going to give up some of life's joys in order to stretch my life out a couple years. I look back at my life and feel as if I've done more and seen more than I ever planned, and there isn't anything I'd like to do. I guess if I was rich enough, I'd love to learn to fly a plane...something I always wanted to do. But with my nest egg and rural living, there are not a lot of options to take flying lessons

Anyway, I'm not complaining. Life has been very good to me, for which I am grateful to God. My greatest joy is probably watching my grandchildren succeed in life and the occasional fishing outing with my buddy

[DaveBrown74]

DB: Aha, we disagree on something. I don't like yogurt. I don't know why. I don't even like the word itself. lol

I happily eat all foods (except red beets, which taste like eating dirt - it's the iron content, I suppose).

Like you, I can abide yogurt. I also have little to no affinity for sour cream. Both of these dislikes are odd inasmuch as I like all other "intentionally abused" foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, blue cheese, etc.

Bob

Bob,

I probably could have worded my answer more accurately. "Big fan" implies that I love yogurt. I wouldn't say I love eating it, the way I would love eating a heaping bowl of rigatoni bolognese or a nice medium rare NY strip steak. I'm not a big fan of it that way. I more a fan of it for what it seems to accomplish (for me at least) from the perspective hunger alleviation relative to calorie count. If I just need some sort of mid-afternoon snack due to being hungry and knowing dinner isn't for 3 hours, I find yogurt to be a great option there if I'm trying to be healthy. As for the taste, it's pretty bland. It's only delicious if you load it up with granola and fruit etc, but then you're talking about a totally different (and far less efficient) nutritional proposition.

[Bob In PA]

For anyone who sees this and (like Jolly) eats a lot of bacon.... I have a suggestion (just in case you aren't aware already, which you probably are):

Un-cured bacon. 

More expensive (shouldn't be, but is).  If you can't tell the difference, you will have cut out some of the very worst aspects of bacon.

Same goes for ham. Eating cured stuff is just silly if you can't tell the difference. The curing process was devised before the advent of refrigerators.

You DO have to watch the expiration date because it's not cured.  Small price to pay IMO for reducing your intake of crap.

Bob

[MightyGiants]

I was sent to a hematologist after contracting Lyme Disease about 10 years ago. The doctor was on the strange side as she wore giant pendants, multiple gaudy rings, and dressed like a gypsy in the movies. She analyzed my blood six ways to Sunday and said every measure was perfect...like "that of a teenager"...yet I still felt like crap most of the time. She asked me when I had my last prostate exam and I lied and told her "last month" and she replied, "well, I'm checking it again today"...awkward. Again, everything was fine

I have to have my blood drawn and analyzed twice a year (since my stroke in 2006) as well as a yearly CAT scan on my lungs). I do nothing that is good for my body (smoke, drink, eat junk food, way too much sugar, eat bacon like crazy, don't exercise, etc.), yet my numbers always come back as good or better than that of a man 50 years younger than me 

My results from my CAT Scan last month came back, and I was told my lungs are "fine", yet I feel as if I am fading away, weak, short of breath, joint pain, etc; however, I think I'm getting stronger because I can carry a hundred dollars worth of groceries with one hand now...something I couldn't do ten years ago...LOL

Anyway, it sucks to feel like crap and am constantly told my tests show I'm as close to perfect as I can get. BP: 117/56, lung capacity "good-to-great", etc. To expound on your "self-analysis", I don't know what
I could possibly do to research my own downhill slide. I can certainly tell I'm getting old, and my friends who are the same age as me (or even older) seem to be in better physical condition than me 

Here's an example of my test results I got back in July:

A few years back, I was feeling pretty tired and fatigued.  Then I lost about 20 pounds and felt 10 years younger.  You might want to consider some exercise and weight loss (blood work is only part of the equation).  One thing I love about my Garmin fitness watch is it has a metric called body battery.  It gives me an idea of how my energy levels are, and I can see how exercise, sleep, rest, stress, and even heavy meals near dinner or drinking affect my energy levels.