I am a retired ER physician and father of many. After graduating from Chicago Medical School in 1990, I embarked on a 23-year career in Emergency Medicine. Medical interests include wilderness medicine, addictionology, and trauma psychology. I currently teach health and medicine online. DISCLAIMER: Accept all medical advice with a jaundiced eye. Before following my suggestions, do your own research and consult with your physician first. Enjoy & Learn!
Aging Gracefully
I mentioned in a recent post concerning the Baby Steps you can take while walking, that one way to improve your posture is to do a chin tuck without tilting your head forward, as taught by the Taoist masters. This video by Rosie and Mike Mew illustrates a modern version called “The McKenzie Chin Tuck Technique.”
I plan on incorporating it into my 5-minute Pomodoro break at least twice a day:
I divide my book Aging Gracefully into three parts: Baby Steps, Teen Steps, and Adult Steps. There is a fourth which will remain a secret until the end. Baby Steps are free, cheap, and easy attitudes and behaviors that require only intentional changes to your daily routine. Teen Steps require more effort and cost a small amount of money. I have been homeless for 78 months out of the last 11 years, so I gained a lot of Teen Steps knowledge. Adult Steps involve focused changes in behaviors, attitudes, and increased costs. I am only now in a financial space that allows me to pursue knowledge concerning Adult Steps, and I am still experimenting on myself. I am fortunate to have fellow self-experimenters like Dave Asprey, Tim Ferriss, Ben Greenfield, and Alex Fergus to guide me along Adulthood. I suggest all of them to you.
Since this is a non-comprehensive list, I’ll make it short and sweet and start with Baby Steps:
Walk continuously for at least 20 minutes every day, weather permitting. The longer, the better. I walk for at least 2 hours daily. The weather be damned!
Inhale through your nose with the tip of your tongue pressed gently against the area of your hard palate where it meets your upper incisors. This creates nitric oxide as the air travels over your tongue. NO is a potent vasodilator, and even opens up the small air sacs in your lungs called alveoli, allowing more oxygen into your bloodstream. It is a small but significant change.
Walk tall. Follow the sage advice of the Taoists: lift your head and tuck in your chin while keeping your eyes up and forward.
Swing your arms as far as you can without drawing stares! Frozen shoulder is a very real thing.
DMSO Part Two
I am a big fan of another idea from Durk Pearson and Sandy Shaw and that is the benefit of copper on joints. You know, like the copper bracelets and the copper-containing gloves and socks you see everywhere. My own creation mixes the carrier properties of DMSO with the joint building properties of copper. I do this procedure every night and it makes a big difference in my pain.
I take the DMSO concoction I devised (DMSO, methyl salicylate, capsaicin, and Magnesium Oil) and apply it to all joints, place a penny over it, and then wrap it. I have braces for my knees and wrists and self-adherent elastic bands for the other areas. I even do this over my Morton’s Neuroma in my right foot. Technically not a joint, I’m still hoping it will be therapeutic. So far, so good.
Copper offers several benefits for joint health:
Collagen Production: Copper promotes the production of collagen, which is an essential component of joint structure. Collagen provides strength and elasticity to connective tissues, including those in the joints.
Calcium Regulation: Copper helps regulate and maintain calcium levels in the body, which is crucial for joint health. Adequate calcium is necessary for strong bones and proper functioning of joints.
Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Properties: Copper acts as an antioxidant and an anti-inflammatory agent. It helps protect the joints from damage and reduces inflammation2. By combating oxidative stress and inflammation, copper contributes to overall joint well-being.
Support for Collagen Activity: Along with other micronutrients like vitamin D and vitamin E, copper boosts collagen activity that affects cartilage in the knees, hips, and other joints. Healthy collagen is essential for maintaining joint flexibility and preventing stiffness.
This is the copper bracelet I used until the Crazy Lady from Memphis stole it one night in a hotel in Columbia, MO. When I couldn't find it the next day, she swore up and down that she didn't know where it was. I literally ran away from her to Effingham, IL because she was on probation and couldn't leave Missouri without her P.O.'s approval. Between the time I wrote this and when I am posting it, I received an Amazon gift card from a medical survey I took last month. So I bought the bracelet again!
I was blessed to come across a copy of Durk Pearson and Sandy Shaw’s phenomenal book “Life Extension, A Practical Scientific Approach” (published 1982) while in my first year of medical school and I credit it with giving me that edge that got me through. Dave Asprey of Bulletproof fame claims that he is the “father of biohacking.” That’s debatable, but if so, Shaw and Pearson are the grandparents.
One excellent resource they turned me on to is dimethyl sulfoxide, or DMSO. They recommend it for delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) which is the muscle and joint pain you experience after physical exertion because it is anti-inflammatory and an analgesic. It is called the universal solvent because it dissolves both oil and water-based substances. Its metabolites leave a garlic-like taste in your mouth but the higher the purity, the less the odor. From Wikipedia:
“This colorless liquid is the sulfoxide most widely used commercially. It is an important polar aprotic solvent that dissolves both polar and nonpolar compounds and is miscible in a wide range of organic solvents as well as water. It has a relatively high boiling point. DMSO is metabolized to compounds that leave a garlic-like taste in the mouth after DMSO is absorbed by skin.”
Because of its solvent prowess and ability to be absorbed through the skin, it is an admirable carrier medium for other beneficial chemicals. I recently bought some at the local Rural King farm supply store here in Paducah (99% pure) and added generic BenGay (methyl salicylate) and capsaicin ointment. The methyl salicylate is anti-inflammatory and analgesic, too. It also dilates skin capillaries, increasing blood flow (a “rubefacient effect”). Capsaicin does all that too, but it also directly blocks pain receptors and inactivates neuropeptide release from peripheral nerve endings. Let’s just say this: the combination works well, at least for me. Results may vary.
DISCLAIMER: Although I am a retired physician, everything I post about our health and safety is NOT medical advice. The posts are solely about recommendations based on my own experiences, a ton of research, and occasionally anecdotes from others. If you follow any of my recommendations, after all it is your own body, be aware of any side-effects and risks. The main side-effects of topical DMSO are skin irritation and garlic breath, both of which usually dissipate in less than a minute.
