TRT related to Osteoarthritis? Is there life after a Osteoarthritis diagnosis?

[Yanksy]

I have a ton of hand issues right now that I can link to about the same time as myself getting on trt. Didn’t really think about it until seeing this. I’d love to hear from others on this too

My issues are you with my muscles and ligaments. I have trigger finger in both thumbs and have the near issues (thumb/palm pad). Tbh around that time I was going a little too hard in the gym trying in my natural T boost approach. I’ve assumed it was that more than likely but this is interesting to think about.

 

[Melody68]

I have a ton of hand issues right now that I can link to about the same time as myself getting on trt. Didn’t really think about it until seeing this. I’d love to hear from others on this too

My issues are you with my muscles and ligaments. I have trigger finger in both thumbs and have the near issues (thumb/palm pad). Tbh around that time I was going a little too hard in the gym trying in my natural T boost approach. I’ve assumed it was that more than likely but this is interesting to think about.

Yansky, I sympathize with the hand issues; it takes one to know one. Of course it could be a total coincidence that I developed the hand problems around the same time of TRT (at age 68 it's certainly possible), but it's always an uncomfortable thought. I went to see a rheumatologist of some reknown, and while I didn't directly mention my concerns on a possible causal relationship between the two, I did tell him that I was on TRT. He didn't mention any connection.

He tells me my sore hands have osteoarthritis and that I should just live with that and the trigger fingers (thanks). I told him that I thought there was an operation whereby they could "release" the tendon that locks the trigger finger (in my case both ring fingers). He told me that I'm a "long way from needing that". Normally when the finger locks down, I can straighten it out by just forcefully straightening my hand. But last night (while I was dozing to sleep), for the first time, it snapped down and stayed there . . . it hurt LIKE HELL until I used the other hand to pry the finger up.

Just amazes me the horrible stuff that can happen as you age . . .

 

[Yanksy]

Yansky, I sympathize with the hand issues; it takes one to know one. Of course it could be a total coincidence that I developed the hand problems around the same time of TRT (at age 68 it's certainly possible), but it's always an uncomfortable thought. I went to see a rheumatologist of some reknown, and while I didn't directly mention my concerns on a possible causal relationship between the two, I did tell him that I was on TRT. He didn't mention any connection.

He tells me my sore hands have osteoarthritis and that I should just live with that and the trigger fingers (thanks). I told him that I thought there was an operation whereby they could "release" the tendon that locks the trigger finger (in my case both ring fingers). He told me that I'm a "long way from needing that". Normally when the finger locks down, I can straighten it out by just forcefully straightening my hand. But last night (while I was dozing to sleep), for the first time, it snapped down and stayed there . . . it hurt LIKE HELL until I used the other hand to pry the finger up.

Just amazes me the horrible stuff that can happen as you age . . .

Ya they are doing pretty well now and I am eying to take extreme care - moderate exercises/stretching. I think one of my major issues, that you may consider, is an extreme imbalance between contraction and extension strength. I do a ton of things that lead to strong grip strengths but almost nothing to get extension strength.

The triggering was long and I ended up giving up on physical therapy based treatments. I got a steroid shot in the sheath and it is good now fortunately. If it does happen to go back I will probably get the surgery and if I was your age I certainly would if after a couple months I wasn’t able to fix it. There is no harm in taking your time and trying alternatives.

One common thing I see that you should look into is P5P supplementation. A lot of great reports with that and trigger finger.

Good luck!

 

[Nelson Vergel]

From my AI agent.

There is a notable relationship between testosterone levels and osteoarthritis (OA). Research indicates that lower serum testosterone levels are associated with an increased risk of developing osteoarthritis, although the relationship is complex and not fully understood.

Key Findings​

1. Inverse Relationship: Several studies have found an inverse relationship between serum testosterone levels and the risk of osteoarthritis. For instance, lower testosterone levels have been linked to a higher prevalence of arthritis, including osteoarthritis, particularly in women and individuals with higher body mass index (BMI) .
2. Hormonal Influence: Testosterone and other sex hormones like estradiol are believed to play a role in cartilage metabolism and joint health. Testosterone can be converted to estradiol, which binds to estrogen receptors and may influence bone and cartilage physiology. This hormonal interplay suggests that testosterone might have protective effects against cartilage degradation and inflammation .
3. Sex and Site-Specific Effects: The impact of testosterone on osteoarthritis can vary based on sex and the specific joint affected. For example, higher testosterone levels have been associated with a reduced risk of hip osteoarthritis and better joint function, particularly in men .
4. Mechanisms: Testosterone is thought to influence osteoarthritis through several mechanisms:
   • Anti-inflammatory Effects: Testosterone has immunosuppressive properties that may reduce inflammation, a key factor in osteoarthritis progression.
   • Cartilage Protection: Testosterone may help protect cartilage by regulating the apoptosis (programmed cell death) of osteoblasts and osteoclasts, cells involved in bone remodeling .
   • Physical Activity and Muscle Mass: Higher testosterone levels are associated with greater muscle mass and physical activity, which can help maintain joint health and reduce the risk of osteoarthritis .

Conclusion​

While lower testosterone levels are associated with an increased risk of osteoarthritis, the relationship is multifaceted and influenced by various factors, including sex, BMI, and the specific joints involved. Further research is needed to fully understand the mechanisms by which testosterone affects osteoarthritis and to explore potential therapeutic implications.Overall, maintaining healthy testosterone levels may be beneficial for joint health and could potentially reduce the risk of developing osteoarthritis.

There is a notable relationship between testosterone levels and osteoarthritis (OA). Research indicates that lower serum testosterone levels are associated with an increased risk of developing osteoarthritis, although the relationship is complex and not fully understood.


Citations:
[1] Lower serum testosterone is associated with increased likelihood of arthritis - Scientific Reports
[2] Lower testosterone correlated to higher rates of osteoarthritis in a non-dose–dependent way
[3] Sex Steroids and Osteoarthritis: A Mendelian Randomization Study
[4] Study links lower testosterone levels with increased arthritis risk
[5] Hormone replacement therapy and osteoarthritis - degenerative joint disease -
[6] Role of Sex Hormones in the Development of Osteoarthritis
[7] Protection against Osteoarthritis Symptoms by Aerobic Exercise with a High-Protein Diet by Reducing Inflammation in a Testosterone-Deficient Animal Model
[8] The Connection Between Arthritic Joint Pain and Low T

 

[Melody68]

Ya they are doing pretty well now and I am eying to take extreme care - moderate exercises/stretching. I think one of my major issues, that you may consider, is an extreme imbalance between contraction and extension strength. I do a ton of things that lead to strong grip strengths but almost nothing to get extension strength.

The triggering was long and I ended up giving up on physical therapy based treatments. I got a steroid shot in the sheath and it is good now fortunately. If it does happen to go back I will probably get the surgery and if I was your age I certainly would if after a couple months I wasn’t able to fix it. There is no harm in taking your time and trying alternatives.

One common thing I see that you should look into is P5P supplementation. A lot of great reports with that and trigger finger.

Good luck!

Wow, I'd never heard of P5P, but I've spent the last hour reading about it, and am going to give it a try! Many thanks for the suggestion . . .

 

[FunkOdyssey]

To be honest, I'm a bit on edge that almost every thread ends up in debates of carnivore proponents vs the mostly silent rest.
I love nutritional insights, I tried several forms of diets.
I made my point in previous post.

I hope I'm not contributing to your on edge feeling. I try not to be pushy about it and only talk about the carnivore stuff when it's relevant. It's enough that you know I'm over here eating 2-3 lbs of beef a day, and have been for the last five years, and will be five years from now. Every useful or interesting post I've ever contributed to this forum was powered by beef. Hopefully that speaks for itself.

Back on topic, testosterone has only benefited the health of my joints and connective tissue. The improvement from pre-TRT is noticeable and significant. I just returned from a trip to the White Mountains of New Hampshire where I was hiking almost every day, up and down mountains, sometimes carrying my 40 lb niece in a backpack, with my knees, ankles and hips absorbing all kinds of impact and abuse. Zero pain during or after at almost 44 years old.

 

[Melody68]

I hope I'm not contributing to your on edge feeling. I try not to be pushy about it and only talk about the carnivore stuff when it's relevant. It's enough that you know I'm over here eating 2-3 lbs of beef a day, and have been for the last five years, and will be five years from now. Every useful or interesting post I've ever contributed to this forum was powered by beef. Hopefully that speaks for itself.

Back on topic, testosterone has only benefited the health of my joints and connective tissue. The improvement from pre-TRT is noticeable and significant. I just returned from a trip to the White Mountains of New Hampshire where I was hiking almost every day, up and down mountains, sometimes carrying my 40 lb niece in a backpack, with my knees, ankles and hips absorbing all kinds of impact and abuse. Zero pain during or after at almost 44 years old.

It's enough that you know I'm over here eating 2-3 lbs of beef a day . . .

Wow, you must have won the lottery! I'm still getting most of my protein from eggs . . . but I'm just a Canadian retiree where a buck buys nothing

 

[FunkOdyssey]

Wow, you must have won the lottery! I'm still getting most of my protein from eggs . . . but I'm just a Canadian retiree where a buck buys nothing

You can do it inexpensively if you lean on ground beef and cheaper cuts. I've gone through periods where I was eating two 1.5 lb ribeyes per day which was quite expensive. Currently I'm eating 1.5 lbs ground beef for brunch/lunch and 1 lb ribeye steak for dinner, for about $21 per day of beef. Add maybe $2-3 of fruit also.

I could maybe drive a nicer car if I ate a cheap SAD diet, or save a bit more towards retirement, but then I'd be miserable and chronically ill, and probably too sick or dead to enjoy the money later.

 

[Melody68]

Some interesting discussion topics here (which we don't have to delve into if we don't want to . . .). I don't know how much food costs because I never buy it, or anything really, my wife does it. Once in a while I get the gist that things are very expensive - tonight I was watching TV and I asked her for some Orville Redenbacher popcorn, and she said she can't make it because she won't spend $37 on 2 liters (or US quarts) of extra virgin olive oil. Ha! So you drink some ice water instead . . .

It's not as bad as it sounds; we always made a point of living well below our means, and I like it that way. Even if I was willing to eat beef all day, I couldn't do it - I think that as you age your digestion system craves easily digested food, which to me doesn't include much meat. The eggs really are much more comfortable. I wonder if that would be true for all carnivores?

 

[Seagal]

I hope I'm not contributing to your on edge feeling. I try not to be pushy about it and only talk about the carnivore stuff when it's relevant. It's enough that you know I'm over here eating 2-3 lbs of beef a day, and have been for the last five years, and will be five years from now. Every useful or interesting post I've ever contributed to this forum was powered by beef. Hopefully that speaks for itself.

Back on topic, testosterone has only benefited the health of my joints and connective tissue. The improvement from pre-TRT is noticeable and significant. I just returned from a trip to the White Mountains of New Hampshire where I was hiking almost every day, up and down mountains, sometimes carrying my 40 lb niece in a backpack, with my knees, ankles and hips absorbing all kinds of impact and abuse. Zero pain during or after at almost 44 years old.

I wish TRT would be less of an enigma and we could talk more in depth about nutrition and general health. Comparing e.g. diet experience openly similar to TRT where we state personal issues (GI, ED, mental etc) and how a particular diet impacted it.

 

[Gman86]

I hope I'm not contributing to your on edge feeling. I try not to be pushy about it and only talk about the carnivore stuff when it's relevant. It's enough that you know I'm over here eating 2-3 lbs of beef a day, and have been for the last five years, and will be five years from now. Every useful or interesting post I've ever contributed to this forum was powered by beef. Hopefully that speaks for itself.

Back on topic, testosterone has only benefited the health of my joints and connective tissue. The improvement from pre-TRT is noticeable and significant. I just returned from a trip to the White Mountains of New Hampshire where I was hiking almost every day, up and down mountains, sometimes carrying my 40 lb niece in a backpack, with my knees, ankles and hips absorbing all kinds of impact and abuse. Zero pain during or after at almost 44 years old.

That’s the thing with carnivore, the results simply speak for themselves, in every aspect of someone’s health/ life. So I probably don’t need to bring it up/ talk about it nearly as much as I do lol. It’s definitely really hard tho, when u’ve been researching health/ nutrition religiously every day for the past 30+ years, and have basically found a cheat code to optimal health. Very hard not to share that cheat code with everyone else. I’m constantly trying to work on that last part, but again, it’s not easy lol

And love the white mountains! Went up there every year as a kid. And still go from time to time. Only been up to North Conway this year. Love that area as well

 

[Gman86]

You can do it inexpensively if you lean on ground beef and cheaper cuts. I've gone through periods where I was eating two 1.5 lb ribeyes per day which was quite expensive. Currently I'm eating 1.5 lbs ground beef for brunch/lunch and 1 lb ribeye steak for dinner, for about $21 per day of beef. Add maybe $2-3 of fruit also.

I could maybe drive a nicer car if I ate a cheap SAD diet, or save a bit more towards retirement, but then I'd be miserable and chronically ill, and probably too sick or dead to enjoy the money later.

I try to be frugal in certain areas, so that I don’t have to sacrifice in the areas I really care about. For example, I’ve been shopping at Savers (second hand store) for all my clothes for quite a few years now, and actually love it. Get stuff u see at the mall for 1/10 the price, most of the time even less than that. But I’ll never sacrifice when it comes to the food I put in my body. And I also drive a Tesla. Pretty funny actually when I pull up to Savers in it lol. Always been into cars. Gives me a lot of joy to have the car I want, since I’m in it every day. That’s pretty much it tho. Oh, and I get the new iPhone every year lol. I’ll never sacrifice on nutrition tho, as long as I live. What I put in my body is one of the most important things I do in life. U only get one body. No way I would ever put in things I don’t want to put in it, simply because of the price. What I fuel my body with just means too much to me. But life is still all about balance. So I unfortunately stick to grass fed ground beef, London broil, and NY petite sirloin (when it’s on sale). So good for u for splurging on a rib eye per day. I’m jealous! Lol. I did get chuck eye recently tho. They call it the poor man’s ribeye. Was really good actually. Little tip for anyone craving ribeye, but just can’t pull the trigger cuz of the price

 

[Gman86]

Some interesting discussion topics here (which we don't have to delve into if we don't want to . . .). I don't know how much food costs because I never buy it, or anything really, my wife does it. Once in a while I get the gist that things are very expensive - tonight I was watching TV and I asked her for some Orville Redenbacher popcorn, and she said she can't make it because she won't spend $37 on 2 liters (or US quarts) of extra virgin olive oil. Ha! So you drink some ice water instead . . .

It's not as bad as it sounds; we always made a point of living well below our means, and I like it that way. Even if I was willing to eat beef all day, I couldn't do it - I think that as you age your digestion system craves easily digested food, which to me doesn't include much meat. The eggs really are much more comfortable. I wonder if that would be true for all carnivores?

Not trying to start anything here, but the body not being able to digest meat as it gets older is nonsense. Again, not trying to sh*t on what u said, or start anything, or be offensive. Ruminant animal meat is the most ideal food for the human body. Animal meat, in general, is what our ancestors ate the most of throughout our evolution. Up until agriculture was introduced, around 12,000 years ago. However, that’s not enough time for evolution to do its thing and change how our bodies function/ what it prefers as far as food sources go.

Plus, ruminant animal meat is one of the most easily digested foods on the planet. There’s zero fiber in it. Fiber is one of the main things that make certain foods harder to digest, compared to others. Ruminant animal meat is the go to food when trying to cure/ resolve any gut issues, like Crohn’s disease, IBS, and/ or leaky gut syndrome, for a few examples.

Saying that the human body doesn’t digest meat as good when it’s older/ craves “easily digested foods” as u age, is as silly as people saying that elderly people require less sleep, than when they were younger, simply because elderly people do seem to have more sleep issues/ sleep less, than younger people. But older people require just as much sleep as anyone else, if not slightly more to allow their body to do more repairing, while they’re sleeping. But anyways, I promise u that as u age the body doesn’t crave meat less. That’s simply not a thing lol. Tell that to 82 year old Maggie White that’s been doing carnivore since she was around 16. This is literally her at 82 years old btw. Not a pic of her when she was much younger

 

[Gman86]

I wish TRT would be less of an enigma and we could talk more in depth about nutrition and general health. Comparing e.g. diet experience openly similar to TRT where we state personal issues (GI, ED, mental etc) and how a particular diet impacted it.

Couldn’t agree more. That’s mainly what I try to stress. How a protocol works on someone, is completely dependent on the state of health that the person’s body is in, at the time, imo/ ime. The overall state of health a person’s body is in, makes way more of a difference, in how successful, or not successful, that persons protocol is going to be, again imo/ ime. It’s an extremely underrated/ overlooked aspect of the dialing in process, for most guys, imo.

 

[FunkOdyssey]

Plus, ruminant animal meat is one of the most easily digested foods on the planet. There’s zero fiber in it. Fiber is one of the main things that make certain foods harder to digest, compared to others. Ruminant animal meat is the go to food when trying to cure/ resolve any gut issues, like Crohn’s disease, IBS, and/ or leaky gut syndrome, for a few examples.

I have to agree: the idea that red meat is difficult to digest is a common misconception. Maybe if you haven't eaten any for years, there could be an adjustment period while production of enzymes and bile are adapting.

What was shocking to me and really drove the point home was my experience taking high doses of PPI for a couple weeks to treat H. pylori. I was taking 80 mg of esomeprazole per day which would have totally obliterated my stomach acid production, and expected my digestion to grind to a halt as I continued the 2-3 lbs of red meat diet. Nothing changed at all. I'm sure if I continued on the PPI long-term, I would start developing all the associated nutrient deficiencies with B12, minerals, etc. In the short-term though, it had zero impact on my capacity to digest huge quantities of beef.

This is an important revelation for the elderly I think, as stomach acid production drops with age, and makes digestion of foods that are actually difficult to digest (like unprocessed plant foods) more challenging.

 

[Gman86]

I have to agree: the idea that red meat is difficult to digest is a common misconception. Maybe if you haven't eaten any for years, there could be an adjustment period while production of enzymes and bile are adapting.

What was shocking to me and really drove the point home was my experience taking high doses of PPI for several weeks to treat H. pylori. I was taking 80 mg of esomeprazole per day which would have totally obliterated my stomach acid production, and expected my digestion to grind to a halt as I continued the 2-3 lbs of red meat diet. Nothing changed at all. I'm sure if I continued on the PPI long-term, I would start developing all the associated nutrient deficiencies with B12, minerals, etc. In the short-term though, it had zero impact on my capacity to digest huge quantities of beef.

This is an important revelation for the elderly I think, as stomach acid production drops with age, and makes digestion of foods that are actually difficult to digest (like unprocessed plant foods) more challenging.

Great and helpful anecdote. And good point about stomach acid production usually decreasing as we get older. This point actually reinforces the importance of eating closer to carnivore, as we age, due to ruminant animal meat being one of the most easily digested whole foods on the planet, at least by humans. Since stomach acid production does seem to decrease, as some people age, its grains, vegetables/ plants, nuts, seeds, and legumes, for some examples, that a person would want to consume less of as they age, along with any other high fiber foods out there.

It’s so funny to me, especially as a nurse, that people still think fiber aids in/ improves digestion. It’s literally the complete opposite. The best diets/ foods for optimal gut motility/ health/ bowel movement health, is a diet that is completely void of fiber. So having to prescribe medications/ supplements to patients that contain fiber, when they’re having constipation issues, makes me cringe every time. It’s comical, in a very sad and frustrating way. Comical in the sense that doctors are ignorant enough to prescribe/ people are willing to
take, something that does the complete opposite of its intended goal

As far as someone needing to adjust to a carnivore diet, or more of a carnivore based diet, u would theoretically think that there could be an adjustment period, where like u said, enzymes and bile production might need to adapt for a period of time, but idk if that’s what we see in real life. U clearly didn’t seem to have as much of an adjustment period as u had probably intended to see, when u first started, plus there are endless anecdotes online to read, and anecdotes to watch on YouTube, of people going from diets like vegan/ vegetarian, where they consumed no meat, to going carnivore, and seemed to do great right from the start. Apart from some of the loose stools that occur for some people when they go from a certain diet, to a diet full of much more fats than they’re used to. The period of loose stools are completely normal, and nothing to be concerned about. But again, every person I’ve seen go from say a vegan/ vegetarian diet, to carnivore, seemed to do great, and didn’t have a period where enzymes/ bile production needed to catch up/ adjust, in order to accommodate all the protein and fats coming in. Maybe the body is much smarter and more efficient than this. There is a reason why throughout evolution 99% of all species have died off, and we’re still here. It’s because our bodies are extremely fine tuned machines that are able to adapt way better than we probably could ever imagine. So again, in theory, I can see there being an issue drastically changing a persons diet up, and putting them on carnivore, but it just doesn’t seem to be an issue when we look at real world results/ anecdotes

 

[FunkOdyssey]

So having to prescribe medications/ supplements to patients that contain fiber, when they’re having constipation issues, makes me cringe every time. It’s comical, in a very sad and frustrating way.

Lol I know. It's tragicomedy:

"Your gut isn't working well? Let's stuff it full of indigestible material that are basically small pieces of wood! It will dilute and absorb your digestive secretions, block the interaction between your digestive enzymes and food, and interfere with absorption of micronutrients. Glad we could help!"

Someday everyone will look back on this like bloodletting with leeches to treat fevers. I think we're just a bit ahead of the curve.

 

[Gman86]

Lol I know. It's tragicomedy:

"Your gut isn't working well? Let's stuff it full of indigestible material that are basically small pieces of wood! It will dilute and absorb your digestive secretions, block the interaction between your digestive enzymes and food, and interfere with absorption of micronutrients. Glad we could help!"

Someday everyone will look back on this like bloodletting with leeches to treat fevers. I think we're just a bit ahead of the curve.

This will absolutely be looked upon in a similar light to that in the near future 100%. It will actually probably be looked upon as being much dumber tho, I would imagine. There’s actually benefits to bloodletting with leeches, as gross as the process is. There is absolutely no benefit to filling a persons digestive tract with material that literally cannot be digested, and just creates more bulk, and puts more stress on the digestive tract, along with the negative consequences u mentioned above, from having people consume fiber supplements.

 

[Melody68]

Not trying to start anything here, but the body not being able to digest meat as it gets older is nonsense. Again, not trying to sh*t on what u said, or start anything, or be offensive. Ruminant animal meat is the most ideal food for the human body. Animal meat, in general, is what our ancestors ate the most of throughout our evolution. Up until agriculture was introduced, around 12,000 years ago. However, that’s not enough time for evolution to do its thing and change how our bodies function/ what it prefers as far as food sources go.

Plus, ruminant animal meat is one of the most easily digested foods on the planet. There’s zero fiber in it. Fiber is one of the main things that make certain foods harder to digest, compared to others. Ruminant animal meat is the go to food when trying to cure/ resolve any gut issues, like Crohn’s disease, IBS, and/ or leaky gut syndrome, for a few examples.

Saying that the human body doesn’t digest meat as good when it’s older/ craves “easily digested foods” as u age, is as silly as people saying that elderly people require less sleep, than when they were younger, simply because elderly people do seem to have more sleep issues/ sleep less, than younger people. But older people require just as much sleep as anyone else, if not slightly more to allow their body to do more repairing, while they’re sleeping. But anyways, I promise u that as u age the body doesn’t crave meat less. That’s simply not a thing lol. Tell that to 82 year old Maggie White that’s been doing carnivore since she was around 16. This is literally her at 82 years old btw. Not a pic of her when she was much younger

Ahhh Gman, truly one of the nicest fellows on the website, always very polite. I get the impression you're a younger man (relative to my 68 at least)? You remind me of all the Youtube videos where a 25 year old films an active 75 year old bodybuilder, proudly displaying the message that "age is only a number!". I'd love to have him check back with me in 50 years (if only) and tell me again that "age is only a number". Digest a steak the same at 68 as at 38? Respectfully (I am Canadian . . .), I don't think so. And in my own case, as is much the case with my older friends, I find I need much less sleep than when I was young, usually about 6 hours a night . . .

 

[Guided_by_Voices]

Ahhh Gman, truly one of the nicest fellows on the website, always very polite. I get the impression you're a younger man (relative to my 68 at least)? You remind me of all the Youtube videos where a 25 year old films an active 75 year old bodybuilder, proudly displaying the message that "age is only a number!". I'd love to have him check back with me in 50 years (if only) and tell me again that "age is only a number". Digest a steak the same at 68 as at 38? Respectfully (I am Canadian . . .), I don't think so. And in my own case, as is much the case with my older friends, I find I need much less sleep than when I was young, usually about 6 hours a night . . .

If you're noticing digestive issues they are probably something that you need to address, possibly via digestive enzymes, something that promotes the creation of stomach acid, or some sort of microbiome improvement. I think Paul Chek may be a good source of information on this. This could happen at any age and may be somewhat correlated with age or aggravated by aging, but it sounds like something that needs to be fixed since it will likely cause other problems down the road (e.g. poor nutrient absorption.) Properly digesting quality protein likely becomes more important with age, not something that can be worked around.