Blood and Fat

I have new health insurance, and I'm now in the final year of "my thirties", so I figured it was about time I saw a doctor for a physical. After all, except for a visit to a health clinic several years ago (turned out to be non-STD urethritis, cleared up on its own), an emergency room (lacerations on my hand from slamming a beer bottle down on my desk over an infuriating e-mail), or a specialist (fixing a torn meniscus in my knee from a backpacking accident), the last doctor I'd seen professionally was a pediatrician. Plus with a history of cancer and diabetes on both sides of the family, one ought to be careful.

The good news is all the stuff that's not "broken". Blood, urine, and stool samples failed to turn up any kidney, liver, or gastroinstestinal dysfunctions. No diabetes, prostate enlargement, or high blood pressure. So most of the health-threatening ailments that I occasionally fret about in my more depressive moods have been ruled out.

The bad news is that I'm 15-20 pounds into "overweight" territory (which I already knew; I can read a height/weight chart and I do have mirrors in the house), and my serum cholesterol is in the "moderately high risk" range (which I did not know).

The doc is giving me 6 weeks to see what I can do with a change of diet and more regular exercise, and depending on the results, maybe he'll prescribe medication. I'm from the try-to-avoid-artificial-chemicals school, an attitude reinforced by my former boyfriend, a nursing and alternative-medicine student. And it's hard not to associate the phrase "prescription drugs" with "senior citizens", which is a category I'm not ready for.

So I'm all for trying the exercise and better eating strategy. It's going to be difficult, especially with a work and school schedule that leaves me little time or energy for daily exercise. And it's too bad I don't still have the aforementioned boyfriend to reinforce the better eating habits I used to have. But I'm going to try.