Wednesday, October 3, 2018

I went to Walmart yesterday to try to find a decent multivitamin or chewable or gummy. I found that there are a lot of generics at the store with excessive food colorings and fillers and potential allergens. Sometimes in order to get better purity you need to make sure that you are reading the label. I was surprised also at the differences in coloring for some of the multivitamins.

Not all products are equal. Read the label.

For example the One-A-Day Multivitamins for the Women were different colors than the Men’s. The Women’s had a bit more of a solid and white color versus the Men’s that seemed to be more of a gel consistency. After looking around I concluded that it’s likely the Women’s multivitamin contained more calcium. The gels seemed more substantial and also to be possibly a bit harder which was what I was looking for, a more substantial gel based vitamin. I did not actually pick up the container and look at both to compare but it would be an interesting project to look into.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

I was also looking for some cold prevention or aid. I noticed one time I was at the bus and sneezing and coughing and this guy was popping Airbornes like candy probably being paranoid. Well lately I don’t know if I’ve had allergy or a cold but had funny feelings in my nose, a bit of irritation or stimulation in the nose. Had some soreness in the throat as if I had been burned or something. And I did also have some honey echinacea menthol based Ricola. Also don’t know if it was something that happened from heat exertion and temperature changes. So yesterday I thought I needed an energy and vitamin boost to help my immune system. They have a few different products. One is a Vitamin C citrus based formula. Then they have a multiflavor bottle. You’re able to take up to 3 of the gummies a day which has a tangy fruity flavor. I noticed after taking it that I wasn’t having a runny nose as much but it may possibly not perform any better than placebo and the statements are not designed to cure or assist in diagnosis of any medical conditions. Just my own personal observations.

Being sick is not fun.

So last night I took a chewable Centrum silver vitamin which had some zinc and selenium. And then I also had at least two of the Airborne vitamins.

My nasal passage way after about 3 or 4 days so far is seeming to dry up. I had some olives and some dill havarti cheese which I suspected an allergy of sorts and I was still drippy last night but not as much. Also bought some Great Value Kleenex (tissues).

“Get ready to have a short life.” Quote from a gym teacher on my disdain for taking medicine.

Sometimes I realize the body needs additional sources to help fight off foreign invaders. We don’t want to take medicines and often prefer certain supplements and we often aren’t shy about taking body building supplements and such but more reticent to take medicines.

But if we didn’t have modern medicines many of us would not be able to get through the day. Polio was almost eradicated and many of us had to take measles, mumps and rubella shots when we were young and have the scars to prove it. Not everyone takes flu shots these days but sometimes if you can’t let your body fight any more medicines are a boon to our lives that stop dangerous reactions that could be life threatening such as closing of ones throat in an allergic anaphylactic reaction. Or perhaps you might have a headache and need medicine to counter the throbbing incessant pain or recently (updated 3/30/2019) you might need something as simple as a saline solution to clean out your nose or clogged ears. Medicine is not something we need just like we don’t always want to go to get teeth cleaned or see the doctor for a checkup. But it’s something we should and a minor inconvenience for good health. So to live the good life, sometimes you have to walk the aisles at the grocery or drug store and just have awareness. Awareness that there are products can ease the pain or make your day a little better. Now should you take pills and supplements all the time. Not necessarily. There is an opioid epidemic, but just know that your body is an amazing wonderful thing and that it’s amazing that tiny microorganisms, chemical reactions, or even small foreign substances have that much influence over how you look and feel.

Do you find yourself doing the same and not want to pop pills if you’re sick? What do you know that you take that helps you out when your immune system is down? Chicken soup? Pop a vitamin? Listen to a comedy show? And what do you do when you’re not afraid of taking medicine or going to a doctor? Do you ask a friend to go with you? Comment us a story about health and how it turned out for you.