Monday Morning Adjustment - Week of April 29th, 2024
Blueberries for your eyes, pieces of advice, and decluttering...
Hey Folks!
It’s gonna be May! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Take those moments for quiet that you need/want, and otherwise be productive. Also, don’t forget to tell/show those you love that you do, it’s an easy way to make someones day.
Research of the Week - “Intake of Blueberries, Anthocyanins, and Risk of Eye Disease in Women”
“A diet rich in fruits and vegetables has been consistently associated with reductions in total and cause-specific mortality…”
“Blueberries are a good source of fiber, vitamin C, and anthocyanins, a major subclass of flavonoids and a bioactive component that gives blueberries their characteristic blue color. Anthocyanins are the dominant flavonoid in many berries and have potent antioxidant properties, which is particularly important in vision and eye health as oxidative stress has been implicated in the pathogenesis of age-related eye diseases.”
“In this cohort of middle-aged and older women, we found that even modest levels of blueberry intake (≥1 serving/wk) were significantly associated with a reduced risk of incident total Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD)”
So what does this all mean???
Surprise! Fruit and veggies are good for you! To that end this is fairly unremarkable, BUT, often in speaking with folks concerned about heart disease, dementia, or other issues associated with aging, folks are looking for more drastic changes to make than simply eating some blueberries.
That is a problem. Folks want to take the new, sexy vitamin/supplement/medication, and yet they aren’t doing the normal, foundational healthy diet and lifestyle things they should be. Folks want something with marketing and advertising, and a celebrity pictured taking said product. But what they really need to do, is try to eat more fruit and veggies, good quality meats, get 7-9 hours of sleep, and show some love to someone/thing on a daily basis. That would cover a lot of bases.
Actionable Steps:
Get some blueberries into your diet on a weekly basis. Come July or August, get out there in Sudbury somewhere and pick a whole tub of them to freeze and last the whole year. Bright colours and a variety of textures is a good sign you’re getting a broad range of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals in your diet.
Helpful thing I found on the internet this week:
Kevin Kelly has written several lists of actionable advice. He turned 73 recently and wrote 101 more pieces of advice. I like it.
Challenge of the Week - Declutter
It’s spring! Take some time to tidy up the house, and get rid of/donate any things that might still be great, but that you don’t need anymore or don’t use. Apparently you can make a space look much more luxurious by removing items.
Help us reach more people by leaving a review on google or if you want, on facebook! We'd really appreciate it! Feel free to forward this to friends and family as well :)
Have a great week!
Dr. Adam Ball