brokeback pelagius

Two days to go before our trip to Milan, and, as has happened so often in the past in the days leading up to a holiday, something has gone wrong. This morning I was putting on my socks when my back suddenly tweaked; moments later my lower left back locked up. This time it it is not particularly severe (or not yet at least); I can walk relatively pain free, and when sitting the discomfort almost disappears. But a sudden movement, getting out of a chair, into a car and so on brings about an unpleasant little spasm of pain.

Sometimes these episodes last only a few days; sometimes it can last for several weeks. I am reluctant to call my magic masseuse as I am fearful of using up too many favours, but we shall see. If it is worse tomorrow (and this could happen), I might ring her.

Yesterday at work I found myself giving the same little lecture to about five separate patients. These are people who have had their cholesterol measured, and are found to have raised levels. Nearly always when the global figure is raised a breakdown reveals that in addition the level of LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, is also raised, while the level of HDL, or "good" cholesterol is depressed, except in occasional cases where the patient favours oily fish such as mackerel, when the HDL level is also elevated. So I explain this, and suggest tactics for bringing their levels down without the recourse to cholesterol lowering drugs. In brief, I suggest that the main offenders in western diets are red meat (of ALL kinds) and dairy products, most notably cheese. I can see their hearts sinking as I pronounce this last titbit. Nearly everybody in the west loves cheese (don't you? I certainly do) though interestingly, the Chinese and Japanese do not share our fondness. They hate the stuff, right down to its smell; indeed, they think Europeans stink of the stuff permanently.
So I hand this wisdom out to my patients who go away to see if they can make changes to their diets which will result in a lower reading the next time they are tested, say in 6 months. But habits are hard to change. Many will record little difference even after what they tell me are the most titanic efforts. In reality I suspect people love cheese so much they can't bring themselves to say good-bye to it. I know I can't...