My thoughts after i fractured my hip
Just when I thought everything was ticking along nicely, I slipped, flew up in the air and landed fully on my right hip. Everything changed at that moment and subsequently prompted me towards a new take on life and health. I broke my hip and, to cut a long story short, it resulted in full hip replacement surgery. I am usually the visitor in a hospital situation, running around outside getting things sorted for whoever happens to be the friend or family member I’m visiting, so this was a completely new experience for me. I could go on about my experience of temporary disability and the road to recovery, but this is intended to be linked to my work as a nutritional therapist where I often focus on healthy ageing. Up until that point I had thought I was on a pretty good track, not only with a healthy diet but I did Pilates twice a week and went running on alternate mornings. What took me by surprise was how quickly my stamina and flexibility diminished from just a short period of being out of action. I’m following exercises from an excellent physiotherapist and am determined to return to my original level of fitness, but it is taking considerable effort. I need to be better than I was before the accident and then maintain a new level of practice because if I’d been about 20 years older, I think it’s likely I’d have come off much worse and had a far greater hill to climb to get back to fitness and mobility. I’m going to take this as a wake-up call to step up my game!
I am prepared to make an effort to keep myself healthy now because independence in old age is important to me. I don’t want to be dependent on others for my basic needs, I want to be active and to go out and about, to enjoy activities that maybe I didn’t have time for previously. Of course misfortunes can befall any of us, but I want to try to avoid chronic aches and pains which are so often thought of as inevitable when we get older. These things mean a lot to me, and I firmly believe that it’s never too late to make positive changes for our health.
First of all, bone health. I already take supplements to support bone health which include calcium, vitamin D, vitamin K2 and magnesium, but exercise needs to be a big part of this too. In hospital others in my ward had multiple fractures just from falling down by tripping up at home, on a carpeted floor. I feel lucky that I didn’t do a lot more damage when I fell as it could have resulted in multiple fractures considering I fell so heavily onto a hard floor. We need to really give thought to our bones as we get older.
Ensuring we eat sufficient protein is necessary to support our muscles, so that strong muscles can support our bones and joints. Protein is vital for healing and repair which works together with regular exercise, muscle tone and balance so we are less likely to fall. It is recommended to eat 1g of protein per kilo of body weight per day, and research has shown that we may need more than this as we get older. What are your main sources of protein?
Resilience against disease is important to prevent us needing to spend time in bed. A diverse diet which includes a good variety of nutrients is the best way to support our immune systems. As I found myself, our stamina quickly reduces even when we are out of action for a short period of time. How much variety do you have in your diet? Do you eat seasonally or have the same vegetables year-round? Now may be a good time to ring the changes.
Don’t put off action to support healthy ageing, or you might not bounce back from an accident or illness as quickly as you could if you were stronger and healthier. I sometimes liken it to climate change – we need to take action now, not get to a stage where it takes a lot more effort and wish we’d done something sooner!
If any of this sounds familiar to you – if you’re recovering from a recent accident or illness, or for some other reason – maybe you’d benefit from nutritional support. If so, take a look at my nutrition support programmes as they might be just what you need!