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The Results Are In · 15 August 2013

I am excited about the results of my annual physical examination.


Like I mentioned before, this is the first time I have been excited to go in for my annual physical. I have been worried for years that my doctor would put me on some strict eating regime or try to convince me I should take some medication to lower my cholesterol. And I always wondered whether I was getting close to being diabetic or not.


This year, I was confident that I would not have anything to worry about. It is true that my friend put a seed of doubt in my mind, but the notion that I might need to start at square one again was alleviated by the doctor even before I went to get blood drawn. When I asked him what he expected, he said that he everything ought to be A-Okay.


Thankfully, it turns out that he was right and that little doubt (introduced by my friend) was wrong. The exciting thing is that this is the first time in ten years that I have had normal readings of cholesterol.


My HDL (good cholesterol) is the highest it has been since I have been keeping track (49.0 mg/dl). The doctor said it tends to go up with exercise. My LDL (bad cholesterol) is still normal (88.0 mg/dl) although it has fluctuated up and down for many years. But I am happiest about my triglycerides being normal (138 mg/dl) again. (As I looked at the data, I was shocked to see that at my worst, I had over double the suggested high end of triglyceride level. Especially since according to the Mayo Clinic, having high triglycerides is bad for your heart.)


I know that I have abused my body with lots of different ways of eating and had periods without much exercise. In fact, I know that my own choices are what govern my health. All I need to do is look at the last year to see the effects of choice. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that what I eat and what I do have the greatest impact on how healthy I am. And that is the reason I am so excited about the results of my annual physical examination.

© 2013 Michael T. Miyoshi

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