I had another hectic morning. I indulged in toaster strudel for breakfast, coffee, and a massive pile of prescriptions and nutritional supplements. I am surprised that I can eat anything after I swallow the colorful and expensive batch of beneficial probiotics, herbs, mushroom extracts, vitamins, and medicines prescribed to control things that have gotten out of control.
I remember, as a youngster, I was forced to swallow cod liver oil by the spoonful, every morning, to keep me healthy. I thought it was a form of punishment for something I was bound to do wrong that day. The manufacturers knew it was awful and came out with a “Mint” flavored version. Trust me, no amount of “Mint” can mask the flavor of cod liver oil. I also wondered how they extracted it? I had a vision of some fisherman cleaning the fish by hand and taking the coveted cod liver by his fingers and putting it on a conveyer belt, repeating this process over and over.
Then on one of the science channels, I saw an educational show on how they manufacture cod liver oil. They just dump a few thousand codfish in a big strainer, and squish it making a primordial fish extract (yes really) and then have a method of separating the liver oil in a large vat. I’m sure that there is some cod liver oil in what’s left, but it’s mixed in with other fish oil byproducts.
This could be why the taste is so awful. For those that have never indulged, imagine taking what is leftover from cleaning a mess of bluegills, leaving it out in the sun for a few days, placing it in a blender, like the “Bass-O-Matic” from “Saturday Night Live,” and turning it on. After refrigerating overnight, take a spoonful and swallow it. (Do not try this at home!) Yep, every morning, I was told to hold my nose and swallow down a spoonful. Even Mary Poppin’s spoonful of sugar could not help! Eating healthy things can be delicious, Blueberry’s, Strawberry’s, mixed nuts, a fresh salad with vegetables, but for me, not cod liver oil.
All of this in the name of keeping me healthy! Well I am still at it! The modern world has developed fish oil capsules, Krill oil capsules, and garlic capsules that smell and taste like nothing. Most of the stuff I take does not have any taste, some you taste later, and then all day. It seems that every decade of growing older includes more prescription drugs to take. I take some medications prescribed by my Doctor that I cannot pronounce, I take some supplements that are supposed to prevent the need to take more medications prescribed by my doctor, that I also cannot pronounce. It seems that there are more medications on the market than there are illnesses.
As bad as it tasted, I wish I could just go back to taking only one “Lovin’ Spoonful” Every morning.
“Remember, every day is a gift! Some are just a little more fun to open than others. – © Joel M. Vernier 10/7/2019 Author of: “The Guinea Pig In The Freezer.” joelmvernier@aol.com
