When the Gene Pool Lets You Down

Getting older is inevitable. Having health issues as you get older is likely. You can try to outrun bad genes, but sometimes you just are stuck with them. I found out on Friday that I have high blood pressure -- this runs on both sides of my family, so it isn't a huge surprise. I guess I figured being active and eating fairly healthy would help me outrun the bad-news gene pool. On top of that, I have depression and had to have my thyroid removed. All of this means daily medication to keep everything in check. I found out a couple of my running buddies -- fit ladies who have run multiple 50-and-100-milers -- have high blood pressure. It made me feel less alone. Still, I'm going to try and incorporate a few new things in the diet and subtract some of the problematic ones (bye, frozen meals, so long, tacos and burgers...) and see if this can be put under control. The moral of the story is no matter how healthy you may seem, your ancestors may thwart some of that.