Stop Wining

Captain's Log Supplemental

I like wine. It seems one of those simple pleasures that I enjoy. Even though I like chemistry, the idea that there's resveratrol in red wine kinda ruins it for me. Besides, when I'm chilliing out in the evening, grape juice is not what I want to relax with a glass of anyhow.

Resveratrol comes in many foods. The stuff we eat that has skin has so many great ancillary benefits. Everything in the photo looks and tastes better than a pill. If there happens to be some nominal health benefit, I will stick with a bit of dark chocolate and berries each day. If it turns out the benefits are nominal or non-existent, I still get some good chocolate and some wine!

Editor’s Note

I constantly request that each of you, at least occasionally send a comment or two. I recently received a thumbs up from a reader for a good pun in the post “Nature’s Cookbook”. She does not know me as well as some of my other readers. Given a green light to pursue puns makes me happy but might lead to some collective shrugs. The power of reinforcement at work. If you have not considered it, take a look at THIS LINK and I believe most all of you will find something quite wonderful to read. Just enter an interest of yours in the search bar and you will be amazed by what you find. Signing up for Substack doesn’t mean you have to write a Newsletter, you merely get a chance to discover a lot of great writing. It has been an inspiration for me as I try to improve. For me, I then get to see your comments and I would appreciate that. No matter what else you find, I hope you continue to take some time for my posts.

The Inspiration

One of my FAVORITE television shows of my youth was Star Trek. How this becomes the inspiration for my post today is a tribute to the unusual workings of our minds and how thoughts beget other thoughts. On a morning trip on the treadmill, I watched a video related to health and today’s real subject. I think this short 3-minute video captures succinctly why I enjoy the hosted website. I love wine and I do not need a health benefit to justify its powers. The people I share it with are the superpower. Today I talk about the tendency to seek supplements as a shortcut to health. The word supplement tickled my memory and reminded me of William Shatner as James Kirk and the recording of his thoughts in the captain’s log. He would say as the subtitle shows “Captain’s Log Supplemental”. I am no longer surprised that almost any incomplete memory can be resolved on YouTube as the link provided validates.

The Setup

I have arrived at the ripe old age of 61. I believe that I am much wiser. What I also know is that what I have learned and how I have changed was certainly not linear. I believe now that we can change, learn from our errors, and apply lessons that we may have ignored only when our minds are in a state to accept the offer of change. I believe what I say in this paragraph applies to all facets of life. Today I am going to discuss this relative to nutritional supplements.

Several years ago I engaged with the craze of fish oil supplements. There was nothing worse than if one of the gelatinized caplets opened prematurely as that taste in your throat was not pleasant. Was there ever REAL science backing up the claims? Was there a RELIABLE AND CERTIFIED way of sourcing the oil? Was swallowing a caplet of oil the best way to get the perceived benefit of fish oil? What does my mind after careful consideration tell me about nutritional supplements? If you are a frequent reader, there have been hints in some of my writing. Nowadays I take two supplements, a vitamin B-12 tablet (once every three days) and an adult multivitamin (not sure what the “adult” means besides being a little more expensive or perhaps us old folks need more zinc?). I was not always that wise and was just as gullible to try supplements on a limited basis. I provided a humorous look at how we keep track of all the pills we take in “Pill Popper“ if you are interested.

The Details

It is useful to scour our minds once we realize there is a better way to think or do something. I believe looking back that what I know about fish oil supplements today I likely knew all along! That, for me, is a fair insight and perhaps useful and more consequential than in reference to supplements.

I think this behavior must be tied up in human nature. When we feel powerless, we seek answers and more accurately shortcuts. I think that a supplement is a working definition of a shortcut, or as a great friend of mine named “P” likes to say, “the easy way out”. He coined the phrase one day on the way to lunch when we noted a man we knew who had chosen a bariatric surgical procedure to deal with his overweight condition. In a bit of jest, “P” remarked, feigning as if he was eating from the smallest of cups with a baby spoon. “He took the easy way out.” I am not making light of the real challenge people might face when they are dealing with obesity. This just happens to be what I remember when I think of “the easy way out”.

When a close family member was amidst a dreadful diagnosis, I look back to a time when you might immerse your mind in alternate and ‘miracle treatments’. Alas, this is the human condition I am afraid. We seek hope even when there is none. I think that became the moment when the idea of supplements of different sorts became promising. I realize now our minds can set aside reason and hide what our rational minds know as truth. Becoming the masters of our own minds is a worthwhile goal. I think, for me, that has defined a greater journey.

So how did my mind end up here? This morning my treadmill journey introduced me to Resveratrol. I now believe this is a story that we can all relate to! Resveratol is just a chemical. It happens to prevail in the skin of red grapes, peanuts, and two of my favorite berries; raspberries and blueberries. Once it was perceived that it had some outsized health benefit with claims for treating cancer, diabetes, Alzheimers, and arthritis. Wow, what a wonderful product! I am afraid this is the path to the peddling of supplements. In the post “Truth” I discussed the manipulation of our minds and how they are prone to different kinds of truth. I think it is safe to assume the supplement industry has figured out how to scare us with our deepest fears like cancer and Alzheimers. I am sure all wine drinkers have come to know and perhaps believe there are real benefits healthwise of red wine. I believe now the real benefit is the relaxation with those you share it with.

Did you know there is a logical reason why nutritional supplements continue to emerge? Here’s a hint, it is the same reason there is such a multitude of cosmetic and health and beauty aid products on the shelves. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) exempts supplements and cosmetics from the wide range of safety and efficacy claims that are applied to things we eat and pharmaceuticals we prescribe. Every chemical including water has a toxicity level. Too much water can lead to brain swelling and death. The point is not to be dramatic but rather the perspective that chemicals are good until they are not. Too much of a good thing as the expression goes. My personal belief is that different types of products merit a sliding scale of regulation, it is more a matter of finding the right level.

With age comes wisdom. If you want to have some resveratrol, just eat some berries, peanuts, or grapes. So how did we get here? It all likely began with “The French Paradox”. Look it up if you wish. Perhaps we will return to the French Paradox on another day. It is time for some music and maybe a glass of wine.

WHAT’S NEXT?

My next post is titled “History Bookclub MAR-2022”. It is exciting to me that I have a recurring feature in this Newsletter and I look forward to this post. My book club is a wonderful pattern in my life. This month’s book was EXCELLENT.