Kat's Interview: Harris Johnson, Human with 9 Lives & Free to the Poor Advocate

 

We all know cats have nine lives. Turns out there are a few humans out there who’ve managed to dodge the reaper multiple times, too. This kat had quite a chat with one of them, long time Co-op member Harris Johnson who at 77 is still going strong, even though multiple doctors have told him he should have been pushing up daisies years ago.

Kat: You said you died on November 23, 2002. But you’re still here talking to me. How can that be?

Harris: Well, I was technically dead but I was resuscitated. I had what they call a massive myocardial infarction which in layman’s terms means a great, big, meet-your-maker type heart attack. After I was brought back, I spent three months in the hospital. Heart issues ran in my family but, frankly, I generally ignored them. I was overweight and loved junk food. Boy, was that a wake up call! Today, I’ve got a 32 inch waist, a 40 inch chest, and work out about an hour a day.

Kat: That wasn’t the first time you dodged the bullet, was it?

Harris: Nope. When I was 35 years old, I was diagnosed with stage 4 malignant melanoma. The four doctors I saw in Austin said I had, at best, 3 – 5 months to live. I went to MD Anderson Medical Center in Houston and they performed a ‘guinea pig’ program on me. The Austin doctors were absolutely surprised to find me alive a year later, much less now 43 years later.

Kat: To what do you attribute your current health and vitality?

Harris: Paying attention really. You get a wake up call like I did, and you start seriously thinking about everything you put in your body. I eat healthy now, and I take lots of supplements.

Kat: Okay, let’s talk supplements. What do you take?

Harris: It might be easier to ask me what I don’t take! Alpha Lipoic Acid, Calcium, Vitamin D, Fiber Fit, Fish Oil, Garlic and Cayenne, Heart Plus, Milk Thistle, Pancreatic Enzymes, Probiotic 16 — I could go on and on. I don’t take each one every day, but I do take most of them several times a week at least.

Kat: Let’s do the desert island thing. If you were stranded on a desert island and could bring only ONE Our Health Co-op product with you …

Harris: Co-Q 10, hands down. There’s nothing better for your heart. Did you know that beginning about a year ago all of the statins given to Canadians under their socialized medicine program now include Co-Q 10? In Germany doctors have been recommending Co-Q10 to patients over the age of fifty for years. Unfortunately, US doctors aren’t always up-to-speed on what’s happening in other countries, or on natural products that can potentially do more for you than a fistful of prescriptions.

Kat: Switching gears here. I’ve got to brag about what you did for the kids in Appalachia. Tell us the story?

Harris: Oh, it wasn’t really me. It was twenty-two amazing young people. A group from our church, including these twenty-two kids, spent a week in Appalachia recently doing missionary work. It was a real eye-opener to them, and to those of us to whom they reported. There is so much poverty and disease there due to poor nutrition. Ricketts, a medical conditional that results in softened bones and that is linked to Vitamin D deficiencies, is especially rampant. The kids came back and began asking what can we do? I wrote up a piece for our church newsletter about the kids’ trip and asking for donations. The money came pouring in. I contacted Teri at Our Health Co-op. We’re about to send off several crates of single-serve Constant Health to the folks our church met in Appalachia. It’s neat because it’s a real personal connection for the kids involved and can save their health.

Kat: That’s amazing. Thanks for organizing this, and thanks for including Our Health Co-op.

Harris: You know, there’s a box on your order form that says ‘Free to the Poor’ that lets you donate dollars to help those less fortunate than you. I check it every time, giving $3 - $5 every time. It’s not much, but it adds up. I encourage your members, the next time they place an order, to check the box, too. If we all did, even occasionally, it would make a big difference.

Kat: Thanks for that suggestion. I can’t let you go without asking you one more question. What do you think of the kat?

Harris: I love the kat! I’m jealous of all the time you get to spend hanging out with Teri—and I hope I really do get nine lives just like you felines.

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