Why is it acceptable that...

Jeff7181

Lifer
Aug 21, 2002
18,368
11
81
Why is it acceptable that as you grow older you can't eat or do things you used to be able to? My dad commented that he can't eat spicey food like he used to because it gives him a stomach ache. I told him he should go to a GI and he asked why. I told him there's obviously something wrong now if he's been able to eat spicey food for 40 years and now he can't. He seems to think it's perfectly acceptable that he can't eat spicey food anymore... just like my mom thinks it's no big deal that even mildly sugary things give her an upset stomach so she avoids sugary things.

Thinking about it even more, I hear a lot of people that make the same type of comments. Especially stuff like, "my joints don't bend that way anymore." Why is this acceptable? Neither of my parents are even 60 years old yet, even if they were, why is it considered acceptable that they can't eat things they used to be able to without "paying for it later?" I realize the body changes as it gets older, but it seems to me it's an issue of becoming unhealthy... not just getting old.
 

xanis

Lifer
Sep 11, 2005
17,571
8
0
If your dad and mom don't eat things that they used to because it causes them phsyical pain, then it makes perfect sense why they're not eating those foods anymore.
 

Scarpozzi

Lifer
Jun 13, 2000
26,392
1,780
126
Originally posted by: K1052
When you get old, sh!t wears out.
FTW!!! I'm 25 and the part of my brain that cares about this thread has already started to wear out!
 

MichaelD

Lifer
Jan 16, 2001
31,528
3
76
Patient: Doctor, it hurts when I do this (moves leg around).
Doctor: So, stop doing that. Please pay the receptionist. Have a good day.
 

loic2003

Diamond Member
Sep 14, 2003
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Because you're at your peak around18 -> 25. After that you wear out. People used to live until they were 30 or 40, you know. We're living artificially long lives, essentially.

Imagine any other machine that you can keep running for ~80 years... A few gripes at 60 is nothing really. The human body is freaking awesome.
 

Mermaidman

Diamond Member
Sep 4, 2003
7,987
93
91
Originally posted by: K1052
When you get old, sh!t wears out.

Bingo.

Also, for allergies or sensitivity to certain things (foods), continued exposure triggers the problem.
 

GuitarDaddy

Lifer
Nov 9, 2004
11,465
1
0
Originally posted by: K1052
When you get old, sh!t wears out.

:thumbsup:

And much faster than anyone is prepared for. Plus the sins of your youth come back to haunt you. In your dad's case for example; his love of spicy food for so many years has no doubt caused some damage to his GI tract and is the reason he can't eat spicy food now.

I have the same problem, I've spent most of my life eating waaay too much spicey food and now I really pay the price when I do.
 

Zysoclaplem

Diamond Member
Sep 26, 2003
8,799
0
0
People are like cars. And as cars get older, they just cannot do some of the things they used to do without having things replaced or rebuilt.
After you reach your peak, it's all downhill. Just have to try to avoid the bumps along the way.
 

GasX

Lifer
Feb 8, 2001
29,033
6
81
When you are twenty, you can live on fast food and 2 hours of sleep, and a bad hangover lasts a few hours.

By the time you hit 40, a handful of drinks can crush you for days and having a Big Mac more than occasionally is going to wreak havoc on your digestive tract. It is not about seing a doctor, it is just a reality. I know every college kid tells himself he will never get old and boring, but when more than a few hours of drinking can fvck up your life for a week, it just doesn't seem fun anymore.
 

DaShen

Lifer
Dec 1, 2000
10,710
1
0
You should save this thread, and in 20 years when you are 30, you will get a huge laugh at what you just posted.
 

iwantanewcomputer

Diamond Member
Apr 4, 2004
5,045
0
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my joints have been aching since i was 15...and spicy food has always given me an upset stomach.

incidentally, i play sports all the time and eat a lot of spicy food
 

Jeff7181

Lifer
Aug 21, 2002
18,368
11
81
Originally posted by: GuitarDaddy
Originally posted by: K1052
When you get old, sh!t wears out.

:thumbsup:

And much faster than anyone is prepared for. Plus the sins of your youth come back to haunt you. In your dad's case for example; his love of spicy food for so many years has no doubt caused some damage to his GI tract and is the reason he can't eat spicy food now.

I have the same problem, I've spent most of my life eating waaay too much spicey food and now I really pay the price when I do.

Excuse my racial profiling... but I've seen many elderly Indians eating regular Indian food that's loaded with curri alongside their younger family members. I've seen elderly Indian people use multiple packets of Taco Bell's fire sauce on a little burrito or taco.

(and yes, I've put a lot of thought into this, and not just this morning)
 

Jeff7181

Lifer
Aug 21, 2002
18,368
11
81
Originally posted by: DaShen
You should save this thread, and in 20 years when you are 30, you will get a huge laugh at what you just posted.

You should save this thread and look at it every day to remind yourself to work on your reading comprehension skills.
 

MichaelD

Lifer
Jan 16, 2001
31,528
3
76
Originally posted by: Mwilding
When you are twenty, you can live on fast food and 2 hours of sleep, and a bad hangover lasts a few hours.

By the time you hit 40, a handful of drinks can crush you for days and having a Big Mac more than occasionally is going to wreak havoc on your digestive tract. It is not about seing a doctor, it is just a reality. I know every college kid tells himself he will never get old and boring, but when more than a few hours of drinking can fvck up your life for a week, it just doesn't seem fun anymore.

Very well said; truer words have never been spoken.

When I was 25, I could drink until 2:00AM, get totally plastered, eat a frozen pizza at 3:00AM, get up for work at 6:00AM have a cup of coffee and I was dandy.

Fast forward 10+ years: I have one beer at 6:00PM, a piece of chicken and some brocolli at 8:00PM, get up at 6:00AM and I'm hurting. :(
 

CPA

Elite Member
Nov 19, 2001
30,322
4
0
Originally posted by: loic2003
Because you're at your peak around18 -> 25. After that you wear out. People used to live until they were 30 or 40, you know. We're living artificially long lives, essentially.

Imagine any other machine that you can keep running for ~80 years... A few gripes at 60 is nothing really. The human body is freaking awesome.

I agree, but we are not living artificially long lives. To be artificial we would have to be adding something to our bodies to allow it to grow older. We don't do that, we add things that mitigate those things that break down our body faster. If anything, humans used to live artificially shorter lives. The human body is meant to last 120 to 140 years.
 

Jeff7181

Lifer
Aug 21, 2002
18,368
11
81
Originally posted by: Mwilding
When you are twenty, you can live on fast food and 2 hours of sleep, and a bad hangover lasts a few hours.

By the time you hit 40, a handful of drinks can crush you for days and having a Big Mac more than occasionally is going to wreak havoc on your digestive tract. It is not about seing a doctor, it is just a reality. I know every college kid tells himself he will never get old and boring, but when more than a few hours of drinking can fvck up your life for a week, it just doesn't seem fun anymore.

This is what I'm saying... why is this just accepted? Why does getting old automatically mean getting decrepit? There's pleanty of healthy elderly people... so one could come to the conclusion that if you're old and decrepit, it's because you're unhealthy, not because you're old. The reason I'm making the distinction is because it's possible to improve one's health, but people don't, they just accept that they can't do what they used to.
 

GuitarDaddy

Lifer
Nov 9, 2004
11,465
1
0
Originally posted by: Jeff7181
Originally posted by: GuitarDaddy
Originally posted by: K1052
When you get old, sh!t wears out.

:thumbsup:

And much faster than anyone is prepared for. Plus the sins of your youth come back to haunt you. In your dad's case for example; his love of spicy food for so many years has no doubt caused some damage to his GI tract and is the reason he can't eat spicy food now.

I have the same problem, I've spent most of my life eating waaay too much spicey food and now I really pay the price when I do.

Excuse my racial profiling... but I've seen many elderly Indians eating regular Indian food that's loaded with curri alongside their younger family members. I've seen elderly Indian people use multiple packets of Taco Bell's fire sauce on a little burrito or taco.

(and yes, I've put a lot of thought into this, and not just this morning)

Yep, but do you know how it makes them feel? I bet not!

I,m 49 and the original pepper belly. I'm pretty sure we could sit down at a table and I could still double your consumption of screaming hot food and appear to be un-phased, but I would be miserable within a few hours and be poping zantac and tums for a week to get over it.

Another attribute of getting old is the acceptance of pain, you learn to expect and accept levels of pain that would have 20 somethings in the ER

 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
26,066
4,712
126
You are as old as you let yourself be.

I know plenty of people that by the time they hit 40, they were basically useless lumps of mass. They are "too old" to go out and have fun, they "have bad backs" and can't go to events even if their kids are in them because the stadium seats are hard, they "have flat feet" so they can't walk around downtown doing fun activities. They basically let age be their excuse to be lazy. What a horrible boring life.

Then I know a few people who are in their upper 80s, who are quite active. Those who get up and dance at dances, socialize at bars, are active in the community, etc. Sure they have aches and pains, sure they have bad backs, sure they have sore feet, sure they have no balance. But they don't let those minor things stop them. Deal with them and enjoy the little life they have left.

You can bet I'll be the latter type of person. It is a waste to let aging problems slow you down.

For once, I agree with you Jeff7181. It should not be acceptable to let these minor problems run your life. Instead, run your life the way you want, enjoy it fully, and let those problems be the minor problems they are.
 

Mermaidman

Diamond Member
Sep 4, 2003
7,987
93
91
Originally posted by: Jeff7181
Originally posted by: Mwilding
When you are twenty, you can live on fast food and 2 hours of sleep, and a bad hangover lasts a few hours.

By the time you hit 40, a handful of drinks can crush you for days and having a Big Mac more than occasionally is going to wreak havoc on your digestive tract. It is not about seing a doctor, it is just a reality. I know every college kid tells himself he will never get old and boring, but when more than a few hours of drinking can fvck up your life for a week, it just doesn't seem fun anymore.

This is what I'm saying... why is this just accepted? Why does getting old automatically mean getting decrepit? There's pleanty of healthy elderly people... so one could come to the conclusion that if you're old and decrepit, it's because you're unhealthy, not because you're old. The reason I'm making the distinction is because it's possible to improve one's health, but people don't, they just accept that they can't do what they used to.
Some conditions and diseases are unavoidable. e.g. Arthritis
 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
26,066
4,712
126
Originally posted by: Mermaidman
Some conditions and diseases are unavoidable. e.g. Arthritis
It hurts initially to move your joints with arthritis. But if you don't use them, the arthritis will be far, far worse. Jeff7181 is perfectly right in the case of arthritis. Get over it. Enjoy life, be active, and your arthritis will be minimial. If you baby it instead, it'll become much, much worse to the point where you can't live an active life even if you wanted to have an active life.