So valuable for health…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn medium4 Comments

At least it is to me for reasons of health and pleasant survival. I love education on topics about health that I haven’t heard from local doctors. Since I am 81 soon to be 82 in September, I have been educating myself ever since I watched the movie “Forks Over Knives” in 2011. It has taken me down many paths while I enjoy the visits to the local Farmers’ Markets here in and around Morro Bay, California. I’ve explored new foods that I’d never eaten before such as collards, kale, arugula, citron, Melogold grapefruit, Cara Cara oranges, pomelos, purple sweet potatoes, Hana yams, Olallieberries, etc. I’ve always loved the stone fruits, strawberries, Brussels Sprouts, red peppers, carrots, celery, cauliflower, broccoli, cherries and grapes, etc. I’ve learned these are the foods that support our health when cooked very simply.

2024 Food Revolution Summit is running now. I should have let you know before it started because each episode can be watched for free for 24 hours.

The first episode which started last Wednesday I found so interesting, I’ve watched it a second time already!

Today is the fifth episode focusing on our hearts. Take a look. If you are really interested you can purchase access to the whole 2024 Food Revolution Summit here. I really think it is a bargain for $97. How many times have you paid for health insurance, a dinner out, an electric bill, a gasoline bill, and many others for more than that and had it made you feel not so good because you will have to pay it again and again. The 2024 Food Revolution Summit will last you for as long as you make learn and use the information and notice how your body feels. I have done these for years in the past and always found great value!

Join me and let me know how you are doing.

Until the next person sketch, PEACE and HEALTH, Heather

Brief, but most important…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn nutritionLeave a comment

There is little I can say except to either watch the YouTube.com or listen to The Exam Room podcast that I’ve given you links to. If you are not sure who the Esselstyns are, please go back to the previous post “Watching friends…” and look at the book cover.

If you wish to see the occasion which acknowledges the Esselstyn Family on YouTube.com, it’s impressive in a little bit over an hour.

The Esselstyn Family is on this Exam Room podcast and the best podcast you’ll ever listen to if you’re interested in being the healthiest you can be!

Please let me know if this was useful to you whether you are young or old or somewhere in the middle, are 100% healthy or have some sort of illness. I listen to information like this daily to stay on track with my health since I am 81 years old and wish to be just like Ann Esselstyn at 88 years old! How about you? Your goals?

Much of my exercise is house and yard work, like gardening, pruning trees and shrubs, staining my fence and, going out birdwatching and going to Cuesta College for an aquarobics class, etc. My intention is to just keep moving!

Remember to put your email in to subscribe to my website, heather-oconnor.com . I do not post too often so your mailbox won’t be stuffed. My intention is to only pass on well researched, scientific information from Whole Food Plant Based physicians and PhDs. I want you to have the opportunity to be well. Your body always wants to heal itself. So please give it the opportunity to do that.

Until the next personal sketch, PEACE and HEALTH, Heather

Watching friends…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn medium2 Comments

I want to share with you some very special and bold people who have ideas that may be of value to you now. It is never too late!

One of my favorite families that works hard to educate people on how to avoid heart disease. The Esselstyn family is being honored! November 7, 2023 at the Press Club, Washington, D.C., USA. This event is the acknowledgement of the Esselstyn family’s work . You can listen to it through the Exam Room Podcast.

As I have gone through 80 years of life, experiences have been exciting, saddening, joyful, entertaining, educational, health promoting and led me to meeting many fascinating people. As I go into my 80s, I see so much that could be handled by a preventive approach to health. It makes me sad to see people dealing with health problems that they didn’t have to encounter such as heart disease, cancer, obesity, eye diseases, diabetes, dementia, depression and other problems. Yes, I know, but it is my genes I’ve been told. But wait a minute. It is my genes that loads the gun and it is the lifestyle that pulls the trigger. We have time to change!

What I’ve seen as I age is that many friends have suffered ill health due to lack of good information and poor information from companies involved in medical care just to make money to keep selling pills and procedures rather than educating people to make lifestyle changes which are less costly. Not once has a doctor asked me or my family “What do you eat?”

Below are books that I have read and cook with. The China Study was the first book I read after seeing the movie “Forks Over Knives.” I have no desire to die the way my parents did!

The Standard American Diet is full of processed food, too much oil, salt and sugar and quite unhealthy. Remember when we grew up, we ate real fruits, vegetables and whole grains and legumes and meat. I’ve since learned that I do not have to eat meat and have learned that it is one of the most important foods to avoid to save our environment. I loved the split pea soup that my mother made. We’ve slipped away from that and need to be reminded to return to the simpler and more active lifestyle. It includes visiting and getting to know my neighbors, walking places, swimming laps, chatting with person on the phone, getting together with friends, etc. Some of the best benefits are the new and exciting recipes that I have tried and some that I am about to try. Jane and Ann Esselstyn show delicious recipes being made on YouTube.

Pumpkin Cranberry muffins

Semester at Sea, the University of the Seven Seas in 1963, was an opportunity that was given to me by my parents. I was 21 and have always been fortunate and have gone for the exceptional and unusual experiences. It has broadened my perspective and educated me in many areas. Being a thinker from the time my mother told me to “think” when working on a project and being able to find solutions to an activity or job, I noticed there were many solutions, not just one answer. Being involved in “critical thinking” is useful. Not being gullible is protective. So therefore I have followed the best possible approach to aging that I know.

You wonder why you should listen to me. I don’t have an M.D.. I am not a researcher, I do have two college degrees (BFA in Illustration, BS in Animal Biology), but I do have an analytical approach, am curious and am a keen observer. I have sorted through information on nutrition and lifestyle and selected the valid and well researched information to share with you. Make your own decision and choice about your lifestyle.

Until the next personal sketch, PEACE and HEALTH, Heather

Winter Greetings 2022

On By Heather O'ConnorIn birds7 Comments

Wishing you peace and health in the New Year

We had a very busy birding year with Bob going daily to Morro Rock showing hundreds of visitors the Peregrine Falcons, a Burrowing Owl and many other birds. Heather went out eBirding keeping Checklists for Cornell most days and is up to 277 species in the San Luis Obispo County so far. I also went on a Pelagic Trip. Photos from top left down: Peregrine Falcon, Burrowing Owl, Bob, Pigeon Guillemot, Blue Grosbeak, Western Gull, Black-crowned Night Heron, Nuptials’s Woodpecker, Black Oystercatcher, Heather, Black-footed Albatross, American Avocet. 

The best in the New Year for all of you

Heather O’Connor in Morro Bay California, USA

A useful idea…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn birds, lifestyle3 Comments

It’s been a very long time, but I haven’t forgotten you. I’ve been out doing lots of birding.

American White pelicans and Caspian Terns

Recently, I took an in person DMV Mature Driver Improvement Course. It took eight classroom hours spread over two days. I thought it would be a good idea as I am 79 now and should be aware of the new rules and suggestions on how to be in good condition for driving. They also offer a 10% discount on car insurance once the course is completed. That will be good for 3 years. I rather like that very much!

Part of the course gave us a list of questions to respond to. The list of things that I had to complete were just three. Get an eye exam, go for a hearing test and buy new tires. All important things to take care of as I aim for my 80th birthday on 27 September 2022.

First, the eye exam pointed out that the capsule that holds my IOL lens had become cloudy. I sort of noticed it, but needed guidance. So I made an appointment to have a laser surgical procedure, capsulotomy, to open up the viewing area. Easily done quickly. So that is handled!

Second, I had driven down Main Street in Morro Bay passing the hearing aid center which always has a sign outstaying FREE hearing test, so I made an appointment and went in. A year ago my son, Adam, said I missed hearing something Livia, my granddaughter, had said. Also, when out eBirding with friends, some said they heard birds that I was missing. Hearing loss can be rather sneaky. It’s so gradual. My hearing test pointed out that I had a high frequency hearing loss in the mild to moderate range. Not a problem when I found out that a pair of Oticon hearing aids solved the problem. I consider the devices just like getting a pair of reading glasses, but at a steeper cost. Medicare doesn’t pay for them! But, I am a saver and shelled out for them. Now I hear the birds fully, the crickets at night, the rain, and voices more crisply. How nice! I also, found a YouTube site by Dr. Cliff to be highly informative when new to hearing aids! So that was handled!

Third, on to my last job… get new tires. Easy, since all I had to do was go to Hinson’s in Morro Bay and get and estimate and have them ordered . That’s handled.

Bridgestone tires on my Chevrolet BOLT EV

So back to life and eBirding. I am up to 261 birds seen this year having learned many new birds that I’d never seen before. Feel free to guess how many birds I’ll have by the end of 2022. The correct guess will receive one of my eBird photos!

A Ruff was the most exotic bird that I saw. Using Cornell’s “Birds of the World”, I found out it is much more showy when breeding in Finnmark, Norway. Oh! how I’d love to see it in breeding plumage!

So while it has taken time to get my three jobs handled while going out eBirding almost daily, I now have more jobs to do like the front and back yard clean ups. Perpetual in California!

But for now I’m going for a swim!

Morro Bay High School Pool

Until the next sketch, peace and health, Heather

Be vaccinated and boosted!

Be a wise…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn birds, pastel2 Comments

Thought you’d like some artwork instead of my opinions. You’ll get both in case you were wondering.

My father gave me a Peterson’s Bird Book when I was around 8 or 9 years old. It had a colorful bird, a Painted Bunting, on the cover. Always wanted to see one. It took me years and many miles of travel to find one! Another time, I gave my Banma gift of a painting of a Ruddy Duck. I loved the duck because it had a bright blue bill.

Great-horned Owl – a pastel sketch

Lately, I’ve been involved with eBirding. Don’t know what that is? It’s a way to become involved with Cornell Lab of Ornithology by recording the birds seen. An app in my iPhone called eBird is where I record my checklist, then at the end of my day submit it to Cornell University which has local reviewer to make sure I’m doing my job correctly. Very satisfying since it makes thousands of birds available to researchers who are studying climate change along with other fields of study that will impact us over the years.

Maybe you’ve noticed the tragedies in the past few days, months and past years that involve so many of us. The wildfires in California, the extremely damaging hurricanes that have roared up the east coast USA, the Covid-19 pandemic that has affected our planet. Tampering with our given natural conditions has created the conditions to spin off all sorts of positive and negative situations.

Be a wise person and consider the consequences.

Until the next sketch, peace, get the vaccine and be well, Heather

P.S. If you are local and want to draw birds, please contact me.

Never too late…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn mediumLeave a comment

July 2021

You think about going to a whole food plant based way of eating for your health, but you don’t. 

Now I’ll give you this cookbook to play with. It’s like having a new toy! I never used to read the Foreword or Introduction in a book, but do it in this one even if you never read the rest of the book. I don’t believe you’ll be able to skip the rest of this colorful and these delicious recipes. I learned so much from this cookbook. Ann and Jane Esselstyn even put demos on YouTube ! So much fun to watch.

I’ve invited friends over to make the S.O.B. Veggie Burgers and had loads of fun.

The reason I continue eating this way is because as I got older, I was scared of debilitating diseases. I don’t want to be diminished by poor health. Recently, I have lost family and friends to heart disease. You do know it takes years to develop heart disease. It just doesn’t happen all of a sudden like a cold or sore throat and will go away in a couple days. I am convinced you can start living a way to avoid heart disease. 

My main reason is to not have this happen to anyone you or I know. On the 2nd of September 2020, I lost my nephew to a widowmaker heart attack when he was just 48. It happened so suddenly!  I am convinced it didn’t have to happen. A huge emptiness was left in the hearts of his family, my sister (his mother) and her two daughters, his wife and four children, all the people he came in contact with through coaching, work, neighbors and me. 

The younger you are the better the time to start. I ate high fiber brown rice, granola along with my wealthy diet which included butter, sour cream, milk, chicken, fish and other meats along with fruits and vegetables. Later in 2011, I started avoiding meat, dairy, cheese, ice cream and other high fat foods when I was 69 and wish I’d started when I was a lot younger! You’re lucky, you can start now!

I beg you to consider the situation that you are in and make a healthful choice. We all have our own personal demons that run our lives in the background. The “I don’t want to”…ideas. Can you tell them to be gone and do something kind and beneficial for your life? 

P.S. There are other reasons to go WFPB…like diseases that take a long time to develop- cancer, obesity, diabetes, and other annoying and scary health problems.

Until the next sketch, peace, get the vaccine and be well, Heather

Go plant-based…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn fruit, lifestyle, nutrition, plants, vegetables, website2 Comments

Plant Stock 2020

There is an excellent program on your computer right now that I started watching last night. Avoid so many health problems! It runs through the weekend. If you’re willing to spend $97 then you’ll have all the information you can possibly use. Re-watch all the presentations, the ones you want to see again or missed.

If you eat well, you feel well! You are happy, have energy and sleep well.

There is more education here for the rest of your life. Especially for men! I say this because many men depend on the women or partner in their life for what they eat or are too lazy to cook for themselves. Men are just as smart and capable in feeding themselves healthfully. Think about your sex life, your heart, your weight. It’s all about your total health. All information is suitable for men, women and children.

This program is run by the Esselstyn Family Foundation especially Caldwell Esselstyn Jr. M.D. who wrote the book How to Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease. Others include the well respected physicians in Lifestyle Medicine. Drs. Klaper, McDougall, Barnard, Greger and many more.

Vegan pizza
Farmers’ Market

So eat it fresh and raw or cook it up. Enjoy your good health. Remember that it has taken you years to create habits that have made you sick, fat and miserable. Jump in 100% or start gradually by including plants in place of the animal products you used to eat day by day. So sign in to Plant Stock 2020 Consider it an education and a prescription for HEALTH !

Let me know if you have registered and watched this Plant Stock 2020. I’d love to hear what you thought about the program and all the reruns. Tell me what you’re eating and cooking too! We need to create a plant-based support group.

Until the next sketch… Peace and health, Heather

P.S. Maybe you thought I forgot some hearty food like grains, legumes and nuts. Wait for my next post, friends.

Curiosity…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn lifestyle, nutrition, pandemic6 Comments

I’ve always been very curious. I had first heard of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic in January in a wet market, a place where small animals were kept crowded together in small cages before being butchered. My search was on. I needed to know as much as possible. I learned a little about bats, pangolins and civets. As the days in February crept on I was worried. It was not something we, all around the world, knew how to deal with. The disease had strange and somewhat familiar symptoms in combination with powerful symptoms which could easily kill a person. We didn’t have medicine which could make it disappear.

  • Bob reading the early chapters
  • Heather H. O'Connor
    Heather reading the later chapters

I found I had to go back to the 1918 Spanish Influenza outbreak. My mother born in 1908 would have been only 10 years old. Her father was a doctor and would have to have treated the people in Pennsylvania. My father born in 1901 would have been 17. Both parents are now gone. A friend of mine who is 98 years old was the closest I could get to 1918, but she was born in 1922… So no one to talk to and ask questions. In 2020, I had no idea what to do except to read a book.

So off I went to the internet to order a hard copy, something that I could hold in my hands, John M. Barry’s book, The Great Influenza, The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History. I love being read to, so when the book arrived Bob and I decided to read it to each other chapter by chapter. We learned about the history of medicine in America and Europe. America was far behind. Many of our physicians traveled to Europe to study. The book told where the assumed first case started, how it spread because of soldiers traveling to be trained and fight in WW1, the sequence of waves of infection, how our body steps up our immune system to fight off an invader and many brilliant men and women who experimented for long hours searching for vaccines and cures.

After reading this extensive book on the 1918 pandemic, I had a much better view of what we are dealing with in these times of the COVID-19 pandemic. I am clear on the following these important points.

Respect the knowledge of the epidemiological scientists. Use common sense. Think how best to curtail the disease as rapidly as possible. Continually self-educate on topics of this disease from reliable scientific sources. Do not be selfish or think you are invincible or immortal. Be curious! Be healthy. Eat your veggies, fruits, legumes, grains, nuts and seeds for a strong immune system. This disease has no boundaries. Be very, very careful to be well educated and stay up to date with the latest information. Do not be bashful wearing a mask. It has two way protection and could save your life and others lives.

Until the next sketch, Heather

I wish I had…

On By Heather O'ConnorIn cookbook, nutrition, plants, vegetablesLeave a comment

Lately, I have thought of all the things I wish I had done. I have the time now. California is in “shelter at home” situation to slow the rate of infection of the Covid-19 viral infection. It’s better to be prepared for the worst and be happy if it eases up sooner. You’d call me a pessimist. That’s OK with me.

To make it through this challenging time, I have to learn to think a bit differently. I am especially interested in immunity for good reason.

Below is what I made from the “Forks Over Knives” App after I searched for my main ingredient, bok choy. It had the high immunity ingredients of garlic, fresh fresh ginger, Shitaki mushrooms, leeks, onions, celery, bok choy, broccoli, edamame, jalapeño peppers and Chinese Five Spice powder and was delicious.

I wish I had changed my lifestyle and eaten plants consistently years ago. I could have skipped the knee and hip replacement, high blood pressure and depression.  I eat plants now. I avoid all animal products. I have since learned that my body functions much better when avoiding all animal products and alcohol ( a Class 1 carcinogen). I am much healthier now! And so will the planet Earth be too! 

Wild Mushroom Pho

As you can tell, I dive into all the information that I can find from the websites that I follow. I feel like a sieve filtering out all the junk and saving the valuable information for you and me.

After watching the movie which is available on Netflix, “Forks Over Knives,” I started following the people that I’ve mentioned in previous posts and on other areas of this blog. Here are a few people to check in on and even sign up for their newsletters to stay healthy. Please do! Especially important at this time. 

Dr. John McDougall is a favorite. Check out his YouTube videos for dealing with the Coronavirus. Very interesting! I’ve gone to his “Advanced Nutrition Weekends” and even a week of nutrition study and travel to Kauai. From there I met others such as Drs. Esselstyn, Greger, Fuhrman, Ornish, Goldhamer,  and many more reputable physicians. I am totally convinced that this will serve me well through this difficult time of Covid-19.

The reason that I’m so convinced and am working so hard is that I’m in the high risk age category, 77, but since I have no chronic diseases of aging (obesity, diabetes, heart condition, cancer, etc.) I plan to be  around for a long time. No reason not to put in my best effort! I expect you will too!

Until the next sketch, Heather