organicgreendoctor: covid 19-this puts you at risk if you get the infe...

organicgreendoctor: covid 19-this puts you at risk if you get the infe...:   COVID 19-THIS PUTS YOU AT RISK IF YOU GET THE INFECTION now i definitely dont have this risk factor but i do have at least two of them i a...

covid 19-this puts you at risk if you get the infection

 COVID 19-THIS PUTS YOU AT RISK IF YOU GET THE INFECTION

now i definitely dont have this risk factor but i do have at least two of them
i am 70 and i have high blood pressure but im not on meds for it right now since my blood pressure is normal since ive lost weight

if you plug in your height and your weight into this nih bmi calculator linked here you can see what your body mass index is

if your bmi calculates 30 or above then you are considered obese
eg
if you are 6 ft and weigh 225 lbs then your bmi is 30
thus
you are considered obese
thus
you are in the high risk category of dying if you get the covid 19 infection

also folks with obesity also tend to have other diseases that makes things worse
like
hypertension heart disease diabetes kidney disease sleep apnea respiratory issues lower immune response etc

if you add those to the risk factors for dying from covid 19 then the percentages go up

being obese when you get the covid 19 infections increases your chances of dying by 50%

its also possible obese folks will not respond as well to the vaccine when it arrives since they tend to have a blunted immune response

we now have lost 182000+ americans so far

by election time that number will reach 200,000+
something we americans shouldnt be very proud of i might add
we should be leading the world in other things

now might be a good time to go on that diet if you are overweight
ie
loose weight
wear a mask
keep a safe distance from others
avoid large groups
wash your hands frequently and or use hand sanitizer a lot

be safe

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-alzheimers walks this year

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-alzheimers walks this year:   ALZHEIMERS NEWS-ALZHEIMERS WALKS THIS YEAR they will be different this year because of the covid 19 pandemic this year the alzheimers walk...

alzheimers news-alzheimers walks this year

 ALZHEIMERS NEWS-ALZHEIMERS WALKS THIS YEAR

they will be different this year because of the covid 19 pandemic
this year the alzheimers walks will all be virtual
you can go to www.alz.org to find the details on the alzheimers associations walk to end alzheimers in your area
for those in texas the alzheimers texas walks times and more information can be found at their website at 
www.txalz.org/walk/

for those in southern california los angeles area the walk information for the alzheimers greater los angeles can be found at their website www.alzheimersla.org/alzheimers-walk-los-angeles/

charity organizatons and nonprofits are being hit hard by the covid 19 pandemic
almost all of the alzheimers organizations depend on our donations to operate 
these organizations are the reason why we are making the advances we are making in alzheimers treatment and alzheimers care

we cant forget them as the covid 19 pandemic hovers over all of us

this year the walk to end alzheimers here in santa barbara will still happen

here is how
at 1000am on saturday november 7 2020 there will be a virtual opening ceremony and a promise garden ceremony 
then afterwards each individual teams members will then walk in the area where they live the designated distance which is usually 2-3 miles
afterwards the closing ceremony will be done virtually

our team organicgreendoctor will each walk by themselves
my wife she and i will don our purple alzheimers tshirts and do our 3 mile walk in our neighborhood
then we will return home to watch the closing ceremonies

i dont know yet if i will talk at the opening ceremonies yet but i will if asked

this is our gap year for the alzheimers walks
we want it to be as successful as possible to bridge us to next years hopefully live event

folks
alzheimers disease didnt take a day off during the covid 19 pandemic
its still here
granted alzheimers patients are in the group of folks who have been ravaged the most by this disease
many have died from it

you can donate and or join our team organicgreendoctor 
at this link
then walk in your own neighborhood the morning of the walk to honor those lost in our families to this disease and to those who are affected now by this disease

we need your support

the organicgreendoctor

organicgreendoctor: garden news-pests in the garden

organicgreendoctor: garden news-pests in the garden: GARDEN NEWS-PESTS IN THE GARDEN   when i gardened at the country n i had more pests to deal with than i have here at the community garden on...

garden news-pests in the garden

GARDEN NEWS-PESTS IN THE GARDEN
 
when i gardened at the country n i had more pests to deal with than i have here at the community garden
one beetle was a gray hard shelled beetle called a blister beetle
it would come through in batches in the hot summer

ncsu.edu
the beetles would cover a plant like a bell pepper and in one day could devour all the leaves on the plant

when you walked into the garden they would all fall to the soil and immediately climb under the mulch so you couldnt see them
my wife she and i would go to the garden when it was cool in the early am
we would wear gloves to pick them by the handfuls off the plants
we then would drop them into a bucket of soapy water to swim as long as they could

we use to try to feed them to the chickens but they wouldnt come anywhere near them
they always seem to know when a bug was toxic

they get their name from a chemical that oozes from them that can cause blistering of the skin
an extract called blister beetle extract or cantharadin is used in dermatology on warts to blister them off

another pest the chickens would not eat was the stink bug
yes it stinks if you squash one
they would get mostly on our tomatoes in texas in the hot summer sucking juices from the tomatoes
we would catch them in the early morning with a dust buster vac
we would empty the vac into a bucket of soapy water

the squash would get a squash vine boer 
a moth would deposit its eggs into the vine 
when the eggs hatched the worm or boer would cause the healthy squash plant to suddenly die
i finally quit planting squash in my country n garden because of this pest

ufl.edu
the big ole tomato worm use to get on our tomatoes each summer

you would go out into the garden and all your leaves would be gone from your tomato vine branch
usually the worm would have to get real big before you could find it since it was so well camouflaged 

we use to pick them off and feed them to the chickens who loved the tasty morsel

in the summer we would get overrun with grasshoppers
they when they were bad would completely eat all the leaves off you tomatoes and other plants
they would eat holes in your tomatoes
we controlled them with nolo bait a fungus that invades their brains and kills them
the other grasshoppers would eat the dead ones and get infected 
we also kept them under control with the guineas and chickens who would eat them in large numbers

in the morning when it was cool i would go out to my garden and let the chickens out in their chicken run that circled our garden on three sides
i would shake my tomatoes and peppers and egg plants to scare the grasshoppers off the plants into the chicken run
the chickens were like sharks after fish bait
they would noisily go after those grasshoppers
usually i could get some type of control of these grasshoppers this way

fire ants would try to take over a portion of the garden beds
i dont know if they really harmed the veggies but i know if you stepped on  a mound they would sure sting the heck out of your legs and arms

i would use a mixture of orange oil and molasses in water to drench the mounds
this would drive the fire ants out of the garden at least temporarily 
their numbers were worse after a rain it seemed

then i really had trouble with a big pest that would go after my green tomatoes before they would ripen
that pest was my wife she who would pick them green to fry as fried green tomatoes
i know i know i usually ate them when she fried them even though i complained about her picking them

here in santa barbara in our garden we tend not to have any of these pests mentioned above
except 
for my wife she who has been known to get some of my green tomatoes but luckily she doesnt come into the garden as much here as she did at the country n

our biggest pest here is aphids which usually when they arrive it seems its telling me the plants need to come out of the garden as they have gotten old 
usually i just spray the aphids off with a good burst of water
if i use any organic spray its neem oil
usually i just use water spray

we get snails fairly heavy during the wet season or if you over water your plants anytime
i try to pick off as many as i can and feed them to the chickens 
seeing the chickens go after the snails reminds me of how our country n chickens would go after those grasshoppers

if i cant keep them picked off i sprinkle sluggo plus to keep them under control
it is an organic product

when i plant a veggie from seed or as a young plant the pill bugs or roly polys will chew the whole plant up
so
i usually will sprinkle sluggo plus down as i plant these veggies

occasionally in the fall and winter and early spring i will get small caterpillars on my cabbage or kale or broccoli so i use either spinosad spray or bt spray to control them
usually if its not too bad i dont do anything but try to squash them when i find them

we get the squash bug and cucumber beetle here
it chews holes in the plants leaves and spreads viruses and fungi
i dont have a good treatment that seems to work for them

we get a lot of fungal infections and powdery mildew here because of the morning fog
i use corn meal sprinkled on the soil and neem oil or hydrogen peroxide on the leaves
this year when it got bad i finally removed my squash and cucumbers from the garden

usually i dont have to use much organic sprays and organic control products in the garden since i tend to tolerate a few pests in the garden 

so overall the pests we get here in santa barbara in our garden is not as bad as what we had at the country n garden in texas

its easier to garden here than in central texas because there is less heat and fewer pests

the organicgreen doctor 

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #54-wichita lineman and more st...

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #54-wichita lineman and more st...:  MY STORY REVISITED #54-WICHITA LINEMAN AND MORE STUDIES glenn campbell died in the final stages of alzheimers disease in 2017 at the age of...

my story revisited #54-wichita lineman and more studies

 MY STORY REVISITED #54-WICHITA LINEMAN AND MORE STUDIES

glenn campbell died in the final stages of alzheimers disease in 2017 at the age of 81
i watched him at the grammys then later in his documentary called ill be me
you could see the changes that occurred since then
it was painful to watch at times
he lived five more years after the grammys

back in 2012 the research was being started on the antibodies to the amyloid studies
the theory was the antibodies would bind to the amyloid and remove the amyloid from the brain
and
if you removed the amyloid you might slow down the disease

originally the antibody drugs were given to folks with moderate alzheimers with not good results
later they started giving them to folks with early alzheimers then later mci (mild cognitive impairment) folks then now they are giving it to prealzheimers folks who have positive biomarkers but no symptoms yet
the thinking is that the earlier in the disease process it is given the more likely it is to slow down the disease
those studies are ongoing now and we should eventually know if that approach will really work

my drug biogens aducanumab an antibody against the amyloid deposited in the brain was used in the study i was in in folks with mci and early alzheimers disease 
it appears it may help to slow down the disease in that study
they are awaiting fda approval for its use
it wasnt long after the grammy show that campbell was at that i identified the aducanumab and other studies to start following closely through the research world

i eventually identified the biogen aducanumab as the one with the best chance of working
i may have guessed correctly

i eventually about 5 years later got 18 months of placebo then 7 months of the real drug
enough i hope to help slow it down some
i hope to restart the aducanumab when they reactivate the treatment studies

we all though are trying to do all the healthy things one needs to do
right now thats the best we can do to slow it down unless like me you get into one of these research treatment studies like i did
__________

02-17-2012
WICHITA LINEMAN IS STILL ON THE LINE

watched glen campell at the grammys sing
he did a good job singing
but
seemed a little lost when he finished

he is in i think stage 4 alzheimers
he probably doesnt drive
he probably couldnt use his phone and call someone
he would not do well on the simple mmse test thats given
in many doctors office and would do less well on the moca or
more advanced neuropsychological testing
he may not know what day it is what time it is whos president
his address his phone number but

he was able to sing his old songs without a problem
the brain does funny things doesnt it
if youve been around alzheimers patients you know they will
sometimes be able to do things like singing a song they wrote
and had sung it a lot over the years then not be able to tie their shoes

the cruelty of this disease

good job glen campbell we wish you the best
keep it up as long as you can

MORE STUDIES
since what i have may be very early alzheimers disease i keep up
with as many new studies or articles on alzheimers as i can
i know if i have the big a then i have a window of time where if
something comes along it can help me
if the disease progresses too much so much damage is done its
unrepairable

two companies are doing phase 11 and phase 111 studies on their
version of the alzheimers vaccine
basically antibodies bind to beta amyloid-the culprit thought to be the
cause of alzheimers disease or the end result of whatever the process
is that causes it-
these antibodies-betamyloid are then removed from the brain
its not a 100% effective product
it may be only 25% effective
only some of those treated will get improvement
some will have side effects
on apoe 4 genotypes like i have the vaccine may not be as effective
and more side effects are noted

time will tell

air pollution exposure may spend up the development of alzheimers
studies showed that in some the exposure to higher levels of pollution
could increase the rate of cognitive decline by up to 2 years

am glad i live in the country where there is good fresh air
another good reason to live in the country

another study showed that sleep deprivation can lead to
cognitive decline
ever tried to take a test after staying up all night studying
thats a simple test

those patients with sleep disturbances had increased levels of
that bad old beta amyloid

another reason to have a good night sleep

add a good restful sleep to your bucket list along with exercise
good diet cholesterol control blood pressure control and
normal weight
__________
so what was recommended in 2012 is still the same that is recomended today to decrease your chances of getting alzheimers or of slowing down the symptoms

now hopefully soon we might be able to add an antibody treatment like the aducanumab to help slow it down if it gets fda approval
there are others that are also being studied now that my help some

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: will it all be gone eventually

organicgreendoctor: will it all be gone eventually: WILL IT ALL BE GONE EVENTUALLY  maybe if we dont do something the picture below is of the santa barbara harbor the structure in the middle a...

will it all be gone eventually

WILL IT ALL BE GONE EVENTUALLY 
maybe
if we dont do something

the picture of google maps below is of the santa barbara harbor
the structure in the middle attached to the shore is the stearns wharf that extends from the shore out into the ocean 
as you enter the wharf you can walk all the way to the end
all 2300 feet and 3.8 acres

you can drive your car on there and park to shop or dine at one of several restaurants
there is a small aquarium on the wharf
you can fish off the wharf also
there is a lot of foot traffic on the wharf
its a place that many tourists go to when they visit here
we always try to bring visitors there when they come to visit

you can on some days see big oceanliners parked out in the harbor letting their passengers go into the town to shop and dine
last week the dallas cowboy owner jerry jones huge yacht was parked out there

in a few years this will all be gone
unless
something is done

the city has a group looking at suggestions to maybe raise the stearns wharf several feet so that when the sea rise comes that it will not be underwater
some of the streets and businesses you see in the picture will be gone
not in my lifetime but maybe in my grandkids lifetimes this will probably happen
unless
we can do something to slow this down

first you have to believe in climate change and sea level rise
then
you have to attack climate change with enough environmental changes to make a difference

i read this week in this article that the greenland glaciers are melting at a fast rate so that we will get several feet of sea rise from this melting

it may have hit the melting point of no return such that we may not be able to stop it now

cities like miami and new orleans will be maybe under water eventually

i thought about this this week as those two hurricanes barrel down on new orleans
imagine if its several years from now and this happens
new orleans would be wiped out 
miami might be gone already anyway 

as we were walking on the beach the other day i looked up at the bluffs with the houses and condos up there
and
i thought of all the erosion that was going to happen in the next several years such that those condos and houses will all be gone

we have a relative that has a house on a bluff overlooking this harbor
we have enjoyed sitting on their patio looking out over the harbor
its sad that all you might see one day is just the ocean and the shoreline

we need to do something about climate change to slow it down
whether you believe in it or not
its still going to happen

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: covid 19 stats dont lie

organicgreendoctor: covid 19 stats dont lie:   COVID 19 STATS DONT LIE the stats dont lie when it comes to the covid 19 infections we make up about 5% of the worlds population we have a...

covid 19 stats dont lie

 COVID 19 STATS DONT LIE

the stats dont lie when it comes to the covid 19 infections
we make up about 5% of the worlds population
we have about 25% of the world cases of covid 19
we have about 25% of the worlds deaths

there have been 800,000+ deaths worldwide
we have had 175,000+ deaths

there have been over 23 million cases worldwide
we have had 5 million+ cases in the us

those are not good stats
we are doing something wrong with how we are dealing with this crisis
stats dont lie

its so easy to look at other countries that are doing better with the covid 19 outbreak
we need to look at what they are doing that gives them better numbers
maybe even look at states like new york 
what did they do eventually to get their numbers down 

what did denmark do to have such good stats on opening their schools
cant we look at what they did and emulate their plans
instead
it seems we have all these hodge podge plans that dont always seem to be based on any scientific basis

we seem to be doing this massive scientific study instead using our kids and our teachers as guinea pigs
we really dont know what to expect
sadly the results of that experiment will be available in about 4-8 weeks
in numbers
like
the number of cases in our kids who we sent to school
now statistically those kids may not get very sick
the number of cases in our kids teachers

the number of hospitalizations in our kids teachers
the number of icu admissions in our kids teachers 
the number of deaths in our kids teachers 
also add to that the principals janitors cafeteria workers librarians and other school employees
also add to that the kids parents grandparents aunts uncles etc
also add to that the other employees parents grandparents aunts uncles etc
the numbers could eventually grow and grow

we dont really know what will happen 
we dont really know

my guess it will be like the recent maine wedding where 150 folks attended that resulted in 50+ cases and one death

we also are doing a mass experiment with our kids sports teams
i see where a lot of kids teams are starting their seasons like volleyball and football
looking at what is happening with professional football and baseball now 

the odds are there will be outbreaks that hopefully wont end up like that maine wedding did

we seem in most places to be getting over the hump with this second wave as hospitalizations are starting to drop and icu admissions are starting to drop and deaths drop will follow soon
but
i read where there will be a third wave coming again 
if not after labor day definitely this winter when its flu outbreak time

as an side immunize the whole family this fall for the flu
if you are older be sure and also get your pneumonia vaccine

then i read where a researcher said like the flu this virus this covid 19 virus may always be with us
requiring regular vaccine shots to keep it under control

for those of you who think this is a hoax i recommend you spend some time with the medical folks in your local icu when the surge hits your community
maybe watch some of these folks smother to death in icu 
if it hasnt got where you live yet it will probably with this third wave

i hope our experiment with our kids and their families and their teachers and schools doesnt go all wrong
if it does we will be set back for along long time

as someone who is observing how virtual learning works in the kindergarten world i realize that its not going to be easy to do this
but
it may be the safest way to do this

we really all of us need to take a gap year or sabbatical year for our schools by doing virtual school
we may save a lot of lives

in the mean time

wear a mask
keep a long safe distance from others
wash your hands with soap and water or disinfectant
avoid large groups
be safe

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-all you need to know about alzheimers

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-all you need to know about alzheimers:   ALZHEIMERS NEWS-ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ALZHEIMERS this article i am linking here is a thorough review of what we know about alzheimer...

alzheimers news-all you need to know about alzheimers

 ALZHEIMERS NEWS-ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ALZHEIMERS

this article i am linking here is a thorough review of what we know about alzheimers disease how to diagnose it and how to treat it in 2020

it is a review article that covers it all
biogen sponsored the article
they make aducanumab the drug i was on

many of the things thats written about in the article has been in my blog over the last few years
if you read this article you will know when you finish reading it what we know about alzheimers in 2020

there is a discussion of the three phases of alzheimers
preclinical or prealzheimers
mci or mild cognitive impairment
alzheimers with its 3 stages mild moderate severe

eg i am mci
when i was 50 i was probably prealzheimers
ten years ago i thought i would be in the mild to moderate alzheimers stage in 2020
but so far im not

some of the genetics are discussed
i have the late onset gene double version apoe 4 which increases your risk for developing late onset alzheimers
some folks have the inherited early onset alzheimers disease
this gene represents <1% of the cases of alzheimers disease cases

the new tests for biomarkers are discussed
i have had all of them but the tau protein scan
my spinal fluid for amyloid and tau are positive as is my amyvid pet scan for amyloid

the memory testing is discussed
i have had a lot of  memory testing over the last 10 years
lucky for me my memory test normal now

treatments that are approved by the fda are discussed
there are many options
i use aricept (donnepezil) to slow down symptoms
there are several research drugs including the biogen aducanumab drug i was on discussed
one of these will probably eventually be approved by the fda and be used to slow the disease down

if you want to know where we are with alzheimers disease read this article
if you have a loved one with the diagnosis and want to know more about the evaluation and treatment and research of alzheimers then read the article

most of the most important potential treatments that are being researched are mentioned including my drug the aducanumab

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: garden news-varmints in the garden

organicgreendoctor: garden news-varmints in the garden: GARDEN NEWS-VARMINTS IN THE GARDEN when i use to garden at the country n in texas i had a different set of pests and varmints to contend wit...

garden news-varmints in the garden

GARDEN NEWS-VARMINTS IN THE GARDEN

when i use to garden at the country n in texas i had a different set of pests and varmints to contend with compared to gardening here in santa barbara

in the country n i had a 900 sq ft garden surrounded by a 6 ft fence 
it was inside a 1 acre area that had a 7 ft fence around it
inside that area were two large dogs
so
varmints like deer and rabbits and raccoons and skunks and possums and squirrels were kept from getting into the garden
i never really had a problem with varmints in my garden
well
except for my wife she when she would pick my green tomatoes

the ban of our existence gardening at our community garden here is two varmints
the gopher
the vole

the gopher is mainly kept out of the garden since we have fence wire buried deep around a 5 ft fence around the perimeter
they however sometimes sneak in anyway 
usually they can be eventually caught in our traps


wikepedia.com
the worse is the vole shown in the picture above
i say it looks like a beaver head stuck on a rat body

it digs tunnels around your garden deeper than a mole so you really cant see they are there like a mole tunnel except for when they open up holes in the ground

they will eat the roots but also will come up to the surface and eat the plants to the ground
eg they ate all my green beans plant beans and all to a small nub 
interestingly they never ate my billie beans or peruvan beans i planted
they will eat your lettuce swiss chard basil kale broccoli cabbage peppers tomatoes etc

i try to keep them at bay by filling their holes with cayenne pepper and scattering the cayenne around the perimeter of the garden where they seem to cross into my garden

i use an old fashion rat trap like you get at the hardware store
i put a piece of tomato on it
i gradually keep down their numbers that way
but
i think they multiply like rabbits

if i control them in my plot then they just go somewhere else since we have 20 other plots they can chose from

we do have an owl box at the edge of our garden hoping an owl will take up residency soon
we have hawks that live around here but the crows that live nearby keep the hawks run off

maybe we need a big ole tomcat to take up residency in the garden

any suggestions on their control will be appreciated

mr hudson update
his labs are all normal now
his new kidney is working great
he is back at home and is he happy

he is growing and his development is kicking in
he has a melt your heart smile

ms b update
she begins kindergarten today online
she was going to have to do online anyway for 6 months at the request of the kidney transplant doctors
now she gets to do it with all of he classmates together
her kindergarten teacher is the teache that i did volunteer gardening with for the last 3 years
i guess ill have to do the garden stuff with her at her house this year
she is excited today

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #53-early detection and alzheim...

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #53-early detection and alzheim...: MY STORY REVISITED #53-EARLY DETECTION AND ALZHEIMERS QUESTIONNAIRE over the last 10 years a lot of folks have reached out to me about what ...

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #53-early detection and alzheim...

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #53-early detection and alzheim...: MY STORY REVISITED #53-EARLY DETECTION AND ALZHEIMERS QUESTIONNAIRE over the last 10 years a lot of folks have reached out to me about what ...

my story revisited #53-early detection and alzheimers questionnaire

MY STORY REVISITED #53-EARLY DETECTION AND ALZHEIMERS QUESTIONNAIRE

over the last 10 years a lot of folks have reached out to me about what do do about a loved one or friend who might have memory issues

many times i suggested to them that they complete the 21 question questionnaire and score it based on the questions hat are asked about the affected persons

if the score is less than 5 there probably is not a problem
if they score a higher number there is likely an issue that needs medical evaluation
if they score a real high number there is more than likely a memory problem

i scored myself when i was diagnosed and i scored in the normal level since i was so early and was not having symptoms others would notice

i scored my younger brother when he was diagnosed based on what i knew of his condition at that time
he scored at a higher number which meant it needed to have an evaluation for his memory which he did

these things he was having issues with lead to his diagnosis and treatment

remember this test is not for the patient to do
copy the test and results and take it with the patient when they go to the doctor
go with the patient or someone like a spouse or sibling or close friend should go with them
when the medical provider sees the results of the questionnaire it tells them what they need to know
ie this patient probably has memory issues and warrants further evaluation

here is the uk daily mail link i like to use for the 21 question alzheimers questionnaire 

it is easier to understand than the original scientific article linked here

four of the questions below in the old blog could be used as a quick screen on your loved ones
if the answer is yes on these 4 there probably is a memory issue that warrants further testing
of course
doing all 21 questions is more accurate

notice in my blog my wife she failed some of the questions but thats just the way she is

note my wife she is a good sport when i blog about her
she just smiles and looks at me
im sure she gets me back in some way that i dont know about

__________
02-10-2012
EARLY DETECTION
as these new drugs and treatments get developed new ways to detect
people early are being worked on

find people early like me and get them on something when symptoms
start or before the symptoms start

a recent small study using just 4 questions from the alzheimers
questionnaire dementia assessment test might pick up patients with
amnestic mild cognitive impairment (mci)-thats what i have but i
have a very mild form of it

these could be used in a doctors office and could be easily used as
a screen test for patients

the questions are
does the patient have trouble repeating questions or statements
in the same day
does the patient have trouble remembering the date year or time
does the patient have difficulties managing finances
(oops my wife she flunked this one)
does the patient have a decreased sense of direction
(oops again my wife she flunked this one also
she never could read a map)

no my wife she doesnt have mci
i pass all four of these tests as mine is picked up on more extensive tests
but there are a lot of patients showing up in doctors offices who 
can not answer these questions and families and friends arent really
aware they have a problem
if they dont pass the screening then further testing could be done
__________

consider doing the 21 question alzheimers questionnaire on your loved ones if they might have memory issues
if its scored high encourage them to be evaluated for memory issues
dont let them go by themselves
take a copy of the scored alzheimers questionnaire to the visit
make the visit only for possible memory loss

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: right to vote

organicgreendoctor: right to vote: RIGHT TO VOTE  i have voted every presidential election since i was eligible to vote i usually vote for the candidate from a particular well...

right to vote

RIGHT TO VOTE 

i have voted every presidential election since i was eligible to vote
i usually vote for the candidate from a particular well known party
but
in at least 3 elections i voted but not for that partys candidate
one year i even wrote in a name
no it wasnt donald duck

so now when i vote i usually get that i voted sticker to wear
i hope to wear it again this fall
no matter how much they mess with the post office

thats sad that they would try to mess with the delivery of the mail to affect the election
that seems unpatriotic third world like

now when i use to vote i loved to go to the local precinct i was to vote at
i loved to stand in line 
listen to all the folks talking
say hi to folks i knew
it was a social event
that i looked forward to

when we lived at the country n we voted at a local community center in a nearby small town
it use to be the old high school that had closed years ago
it had high ceilings and well it looked like an old high school from the 40s or 50s
it added to the feel of the event         

now since we moved to california we were given the chance to do mail in voting
at first i thought no i want to go in person
then
life got busy so i checked out this vote by mail thing

we got the ballot in the mail
we also got a booklet that gave descriptions of the candidates and all the other things you vote on
so i read all the stuff
marked my ballot
sealed it
signed it carefully on the outside like my official signature
not my doctor signature

i then walked a block over to the blue mailbox and dropped the envelope into the box
then
they had also sent a i voted sticker that i proudly wore that day

it never crossed my mind that
that ballot would never make it to be counted on time
that blue mailbox may not be there come november

now its in doubt that if you mail your ballot as you are told to then the ballot may not make it on time and get counted

that i wrote that is so wrong

i should get my ballot in early october
i plan to mark it sign it and hand deliver to the ballot box stand downtown so i wont have to deal with them mucking with the postal service

why are they mucking around with the postal system now
i think most of us know why

just leave the post office along for now 
make your changes if they are needed and im sure some are needed but do it after all the votes are counted
i think thats what most americans want to leave it alone right now

this voting thing we all get to do is a sacred right we all have
messing with the post office to stymie that right needs to stop
we all need to make sure it doesnt happen

then
after the election congress should take a long hard look at the post office
im sure changes are greatly needed but we have to have a dependable efficient accurate post office for our letters our packages our legal documents our tax forms our medications etc to arrive on time

some folks lives depend on this well functioning post office system we have

the post office is mentioned in the constitution
there are services it provides that cant be cost efficiented we just have to have it 

reform it but not now

we all have the right to have our vote counted safely during this covid 19 outbreak
there is enough voter suppression going on so we dont need to add the post office to that list

over half of us are going to vote by mail so the postal system has to work for us 

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: new way to sterilize your face masks

organicgreendoctor: new way to sterilize your face masks:   NEW WAY TO STERILIZE YOUR FACE MASKS i wear several different type of face masks i wear a n95 mask with a ventilator on it that i have duc...

new way to sterilize your face masks

 NEW WAY TO STERILIZE YOUR FACE MASKS

i wear several different type of face masks

i wear a n95 mask with a ventilator on it that i have duct taped closed inside and out
it actually is the one that fits the best and feels the most comfortable
it has straps that i can tighten to make the mask fit to my face
doing it this way keeps a tight seal so it functions better
the way i clean it is i only wear it to high risk areas like the grocery store or pharmacy or stores or nurseries etc
when i return i take it off by the straps only
we have an area we leave our masks as we take them off
remember the outside of the mask is probably the most contaminated
i spray the inside and outside of the masks with hydrogen peroxide then move it to the front porch of our condo which gets direct sun for several hours each day

the mask gets a chance to air out some and hopefully any germs that have grabbed onto the mask will have died
i may only wear that mask once or twice a week

i wear a kn95 mask
one is labeled for grandson mr n who is a newborn 
the other is labeled for mr h who is immunocompromised since he takes meds to prevent his kidney from being rejected
wearing this mask which is probably as good as the n95 mask protects both grandkids
wearing the masks also protects us from infections
i recently ordered a strap that holds the elastic off the ears and it also tightens the mask around the face to make it evem more effective

the mask is only worn around the grandkids
then its removed
it will also be routinely sprayed with hydrogen peroxide and allowed to air out between uses

hydrogen peroxide evaporates eventually to just water and oxygen
you do have to be careful what you put on your masks since you will be breathing that stuff into the lungs

i also wear cloth masks someone made for me
the masks also have a slot for a filter if i want to insert it
they are two layers of cotton thick
i wear them anytime im not using the n95 masks like going to the garden to work or going for a walk or going to the gas station or anytime i go outside the condo
i only wear it one day then its cleaned

right now i hand wash it by putting soap on the mask and washing it real well in hot water
i usually let it sit in the sink in hot water then later will rinse it out 
i place it on our front porch to dry and air out
you also can use the washing machine with hot water and washing detergent

its the soap that removes the outer layer of the virus 
thus killing it

if you dont keep your masks clean you will accumulate germs inside and outside on the masks making it possible to infect yourself from the masks
always remove the masks by the straps trying never to touch the front 
as thats where the covid germs will mostly be on the front of the masks

then
i saw online this article on a new way to sterilize your n95 masks
it caught my eye since we use our instant pot a lot for cooking

here is the article linked here

basically you put a folded towel in the pot so the masks dont touch the sides
you then cook it at 212 degrees f for 50 minutes then open the lid and remove the masks
this kills the covid 19 virus according to the university of illinois researchers
there is a video on how to do it in the article
the masks retained its effectiveness even after over 20 times 

if you dont have an instant pot this may be a good time to get one huh

my guess is this would also work for cloth masks

now what will i do 
well ill probably just keep sterilizing mine like i am now letting nature kill the virus with sunlight and time and a little peroxide for the n95 and kn95 masks and soap and water for the cloth masks

remember dont just keep wearing your masks every day without cleaning them
you can catch fungal and other infections from the inside of the mask if you dont keep them clean

the common symptom of covid 19 you present with is fever first then cough then muscle pain then later cough and some develop nausea vomiting diarrhea fatigue etc

of course not everyone presents the same way

be safe
be sure and wear you masks and keep them clean

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-getting vaccinated lowers your risk

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-getting vaccinated lowers your risk: ALZHEIMERS NEWS-GETTING VACCINATED LOWERS YOUR RISK   i have gotten my flu shot every year for the last 40 years  well except for one year w...

alzheimers news-getting vaccinated lowers your risk

ALZHEIMERS NEWS-GETTING VACCINATED LOWERS YOUR RISK 

i have gotten my flu shot every year for the last 40 years 
well except for one year when i didnt get the flu shot and ended up with the flu

reading the research in this article shows that if you get the flu shot you may lower your risk for getting alzheimers by as much as 30% in some cases

also it seems that getting the pneumonia vaccine can also lower your risk for getting alzheimers by as much as 40%

also about 60,000 folks die each year in the us with the flu
about how many will die with the covid 19 in the us over the next few months

when you get around 60 there are several vaccinations one should get
the flu shot
the pneumonia shot
the shingles shot
an updated tdap shot
and
i will add to that when it becomes available 
the covid 19 vaccine

now i have had all of these but of course i havent had the covid 19 vaccine but i plan to get it when it becomes available 

when you get a flu infection there is an immune reaction that occurs and an inflammatory reaction that occurs that can contribute to the inflammatory reaction that occurs in the brain with alzheimers disease

in the development of alzheimers the amyloid plaques form first then the tau tangles get deposited in the brain then the body brings in its inflammatory reaction that causes more brain cell destruction

getting the flu infection and the pneumococcal pneumonia infection activates this immune and inflammatory reaction that can eventually end up in the brain

research has shown also that the inflammatory reaction from dental infections and from the intestinal tract can also contribute to the inflammatory reaction in the brain

its easy to see how eg getting the covid 19 infection which is notorious for an overwhelming inflammatory reaction in the body 
many folks even young folks have complained of a residual memory issues after covid 19 infections

i recently spoke with a physician who had the covid 19 when i was sick
he had memory issues for several weeks after being sick with the covid 19
his symptoms when he was sick were mostly upper respiratory symptoms
as he told me that day doc the covid 19 messes with your brain

if you get the flu or pneumococcal infections and dont die you have an increased risk for alzheimers

if you get the vaccines and prevent the infections then you may lower the risk by 30-40%

you can add these vaccines to your other healthy things to do to slow down the disease like controlling your blood pressure your cholesterol your diabetes your weight exercising getting adequate sleep controlling anxiety depression stress being active physically and mentally etc

so
when someone says i dont want to get a flu shot
say
it will help lower your risk for alzheimers if you do

the organicgreen doctor 

organicgreendoctor: garden news-making my soil richer

organicgreendoctor: garden news-making my soil richer: GARDEN NEWS-MAKING MY SOIL RICHER recently i was working in my garden plot which is 400 square feet i was all by myself in the community gar...

garden news-making my soil richer

GARDEN NEWS-MAKING MY SOIL RICHER

recently i was working in my garden plot which is 400 square feet
i was all by myself in the community garden for 3 hours

around the garden is our orchard which is outside our fenced area
folks in the neighborhood like to walk their dogs through the orchard around the fence 

on that day two different folks walked by to chat with me
they both said we have been admiring your garden for months as we walk up here in the orchard
we especially have admired your tomatoes
how do you get them to grow

well
they shouldnt have asked me
 
i told them how i replenished the soil in this originally wore out plot

other gardeners have come back to ask what i do 
this is what i tell them

the original soil for our community garden was bulldozed down onto this spot when they built the church that is next to the garden
all that soil was just old clay dry soil from the top of a hill that got leveled off for the church

the soil is mainly what i call a grey clay with not much in it

my plot had sat empty for a long time and had been walked on and had the soil packed down
in fact in places it was like cement
i had to use a rock bar to dig it out in places

organic gardeners have a saying
put a 5 dollar plant in a 50 dollar hole 

i dug out a hole that was 3 ft x 3 ft and the depth of a five gallon bucket
i made my original bed layouts 3 ft x 8 ft beds
so i did my holes in these segments gradually over several months until i had done all 400 square feet
in that hole i layered cardboard original soil compost mulch newspapers

i repeated those layers until i got about 6 inches from the top then i just alternated compost with the original soil
i also added in those layers a sprinkling of an organic fertilizer and soaked the layers with a mixture of fish emulsion plus molasses plus sea weed
see picture below of what that stuff looks like

i then covered it with a layer of pine straw to just sit for a few weeks
then
when it was time i planted into the bed

after all the beds were finished this way what was left was a rich rich soil the plants love
then

  
in my walkways between the 3ft x 8ft beds i buried these 5 gallon buckets so the top of the bucket was on the surface

the bucket had 3/8 inch holes drilled all around the sides and under the bottom of the bucket
a concrete block in set on top to keep varmints out

in the bucket i added a slight amount of compost with a few worms then all i do is add the vegetable waste from our kitchens
i have been doing this worm bucket composting now for 2 years
i end up with a bucket of worm compost that i harvest every 4 months 
it gets all dumped onto my garden beds right before i plant my veggies
the bucket gets loaded with worms as they multiply and move in from the surrounding garden

one bucket i didnt add any worms just veggie scraps and within a few weeks it was full of worms
they are able to move out into my garden back and forth via the holes in the bucket
i will harvest about 25 gallons of worm compost from the 7 buckets i have buried

the mulch placed in my walkways are put in a trench thats about 1 ft deep
every year this mulch deep down in the trench is dumped also back onto the garden when it has turned into compost then the mulch is replenished in the walkways and the process starts all over again

so as i wrote recently now that my soil is in good shape throughout my garden all i do after i harvest is i add a layer of compost plus an organic fertilizer that is forked into my beds with a garden fork
i then soak that in with my solution of fish emulsion plus molasses plus seaweed
then i cover all this with a layer of mulch until planting time

so
thats how i am able to grow those big tomatoes and have a nice veggie garden

now in texas i built my garden beds framed with limestone rock
the soil was too rocky to dig in 
then i bought already made good rich garden soil into the bed and just planted my veggies 
then
overtime i did what i do here in santa barbara to keep the soil replenished

if they would let me here in the community garden i would have just built 3 ft x 8 ft garden frames and filled them up with garden soil or just made my own soil like i did to start with 
so 

thats how you put a $5 plant in a $50 hole

you end up with great tomatoes and a beautiful garden

the organicgreen doctor 

 

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #52-testing

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #52-testing:   MY STORY REVISITED #52-TESTING i wrote about this testing more than once in the last two weeks  when i wrote this old blog from 2012 when ...

my story revisited #52-testing

 MY STORY REVISITED #52-TESTING

i wrote about this testing more than once in the last two weeks 
when i wrote this old blog from 2012 when i had memory testing it still wasnt normal yet
now it is
a lot of the testing i had done wasnt available in the private world yet and if it was wasnt covered by health insurance
some of it still isnt

now today one can have the complete work up i had done for memory loss in the private world granted some of it is not paid for by health insurance

you can have the usual work up done that insurance pays for usually like
a good history and exam
labs like cbc chemistry profile thyroid level vitamin b12 etc
in office memory testing like the moca or the mmse 
maybe a full neuropsychological exam if necessary
a mri of the brain
all of these can usually define whats causing ones memory loss

if you wont to have a more accurate diagnosis then you could have an amyvid pet scan for amyloid in the brain ie if you have alzheimers it will be positive

you could have genetic testing to see if you have the early onset genes or the late onset genes
these probably arent paid for by insurance
you could have a spinal tap and have the fluid tested for amyloid protein and tau protein levels
these levels change with alzheimers diseseae

soon maybe within 2-3 years an accurate blood test may be available that will tell you if you have it
my guess is it will not be covered by insurance to start with

or
you could volunteer for a research study like i did and have all this done for free
see clinicaltrials.gov

i did have to duplicate some of them and pay for them since the results were protected by the research study

much of the labs and memory testing and mri scans i got the results of
i had to pay for the spinal fluid tests and the genetic tests
i did get the amyvid pet scan results eventually

so when i wrote this blog in 2012 i didnt have my definitive answer yet as they came about 5 years later when i had my positive amyloid amyvid pet scan
i had my spinal fluid evaluated by then i think and it was positive

so i know my diagnosis
i am glad i know since i think i have slowed the symptoms down some for now with all i am doing

__________
02-03-2012
TESTING

if you are genetically related to me then you should be reading
this blog and doing all these things that are recommended

although most cases of alzheimers are not genetic ours in our
family may be

yes im talking to all my nephews and nieces and their kids
and of course their parents and cousins

multiple aunts and uncles had some type of dementia as well as
at least 2 grandparents and at least one great grandparent
and a 1st cousin of mine developed it under the age of 60
both my parents had it and my younger brother has it

because of this a close relative decided to get evaluated
they took the article that was written about my case and
showed it to their primary care doctor and to a neurologist

the labs were all done and were normal
the history and examination was normal
the lengthy neuropsychological test was done recently and
although described as a torture test like i describe it
the test was normal adjusted for age and degree of education

(my test showed and still does a deficit of short term memory loss
that is below what is expected for my age and degree of education
when compared to a shorter version which was normal two
years before)

they feel a sense of relief that everything was ok
its like getting a brain scan for severe headaches
and there not being any brain cancer or tumors
it doesnt mean it wont happen but its not showing up
as being there at the present
for me my last memory test shows that it has not progressed
which is like getting a scan and showing that a mass
has not changed in size

we all worry about getting the big a or the big c
the sense of relief from this work up is unmeasurable

the only part missing of course is some testing that is
not available yet to the general public-blood biomarkers,
spinal fluid biomarkers (beta amyloid and tau protein),
and a pet scan for beta amyloid
when these are available and done then an even more
reassurance can be given to patients
__________

so as of today i have had all the workup i need to have done

maybe later i might have the tau protein pet scan when it becomes more readily available
i dont think i need to have the blood test when it becomes available since the amyvid pet scan tells me what i need to know
so
i didnt get reassured like they did with their testing but at least i know

the organicgreen doctor