Does the son carry the 'sins' of his father? - Epigenetics

Does the Son carry the sins of his father?

In religion, the debate whether the children carry the sins of the father is a hot debate with two schools of thought, one saying yes, and the other saying no. But as interesting as religious debates maybe, it is the scientific application in which I am interested in.

In Epigenetics, this is a known a fact, and a cause for great concern, that many ill effects occur permanently in the gene expression of the off-springs as a result of the conditions endured biologically by the parents.

Disclaimer: I am, by no means an expert on the subject, but I share what I know and read over time as someone who is fascinated by the 'magic' and inner workings of our genes.

Our Genes.

Before I indulge you with the wonderful world of epigenetics, lets get to know it a little more about our genes. We all know what are genes. DNA and RNA, code for the living. Its the the stuff that keeps information about who and what you are, from the densities of your pigments, your height, your preferences and everything physical you see and know about yourself.

But have you ever wondered how every single cell in your body contain the same genetic code, and yet, you have difference cells that form diverse tissues, that merge and form different organs. And all of em put together, form you. How does the cell know which part of the code they need to read and express, and which ones to keep coiled tightly in another corner? Amazing stuff isnt it?

Well, think of it this way. Think of your DNA as a manual about you as a whole. so you have chapter one, hair. so everything about your hair, is written in this chapter, the growth speed, the color, the length, the thickness and so on. Next chapter, the skin and so on. So epigenetics are actually bookmarks for the different cells. so hair cells only read the Hair section, the bone marrow cells read the chapter on blood production and so on. In scientific term, Epigenetics  switch genes on or off. Of course, in real life, its much more complicated than that. codes are never neatly arranged in one arm of chromosomes. they are always in several chromosomes, and in different sites. collectively they influence the cell to do what needs to be done to perform its specialized functions.

A little on how it all started...

When you poke your nose into epigenetics, a prominent study will appear. The Norbotten or Overkalix (Sweden) study by Dr. Lars Olav Bygren. Bygren was interested in the lifelong effects of nutrition and namely that of starvation. Because Overkalix was relatively isolated, had good records of birth, deaths, people and harvest, it made it a perfect choice for Bygren's study.

What he found was so astonishing that several journals rejected his study, not because they were not true, but because the results were too significant for them to believe it was true. Only when Bygren contacted Marcus Pembrey, a clinical geneticist, and together they suggested the concept of Epigenetics to be at work, did they receive the attention they deserved,

What did the study conclude?

The grandsons of men who had a season of feast just before puberty were at significantly increased risk of earlier death. But they also found that the granddaughters of women who had lived through a famine period when they were in the womb or just born were also at significantly increased risk of early death. In other words, grandfathers who were over-nourished when their sperm were forming put their grandsons at risk of early death, and grandmothers who were undernourished in the womb—when their eggs were forming—put their granddaughters at risk. But how could the non-genetic message be getting passed down? - epigenetics was suggested to be the cause.

What this means for us?

Going back to the core of the question, does the son carry the 'sins'(in this context, its gluttony/over eating) of his father? Based on the Overkalix study, Yes he does, and he passes on the 'sin' to his children as well. But it isnt just the fathers that bear the burden, mothers too can pass on their life experience to their offsprings during pregnancy, How much experience and environmental triggers are being 'remembered' and passed on is still a long way to be discussed. 

If it hasnt yet sinked in for you, let me put it in a different way for a change of perspective. Boys in prepuberty age who ate alot, (had bountiful harvest) had sons and grandsons who lived shorter lives. Imagine! That is just by overeating during prepuberty! Can you imagine what exposure to pesticides, smoking, pollutants and other modern environmental factors could do the the coming generation? It is difficult to predict and study, because humans have long lifespans. But studies in animal like rats, which have shorter lifespan, reveal interesting results.

Critical age for male and Females.

This is when trans-generational inheritance was observed in the study. 

The critical age for men (male species) is prepuberty or the slow growth phase. Age is set around 9-12 for boys. 

The critical age for females would be in-utero (in the womb). Because the eggs of the female develop when she is still in the womb. Hence, trans-generational inheritance is affected when a woman is pregnant with a daughter. Proper nutrition is advised to avoid malnourished mothers, which leads to their daughters and granddaughters to live significantly shorter lives. 

Avoid as much bad environmental influences as you can during this time.

Does this mean that only fathers affect sons, and mothers affect daughters? No, we cannot give that conclusion. The above conclusion was made by the observation of the affects of gluttony and starvation to the next generation offsprings. so maybe, in relation to diet, the affects are gender specific. There are studies that suggest increased risk of asthma in babies who has smoking fathers and so on.

Moral Obligation.

We need to understand that our responsibilities as a parent is to give the best chance of survival to our offsprings. And that being said, we need to start by preserving the quality of our genes and that of our epigenetics which can leave a big (and permanent) impact on the health of our children.

So eat right, live right, and be as informed as possible about your health.

Choose organic foods whenever possible. Exercise and keep a healthy weight. Do everything in moderation, may it be food, activities or vices. Keep stress levels low by any means most suited to your style, it can be prayer, meditation, recreational activities or just plain family and friends. Don't forget to take your supplements. With mass production of food today, the nutritional value of the same foods deteriorates over time. Pre-pregnancy vitamins are advised for women of fertile age and to those planning for pregnancy.

Remember, taking care of your health is a responsibility for the future well-being of your children.

Buns in my Oven

I am happy to be able to share some recipes here. This blog is intended to share about health and Food is a big part of being healthy. I hope that the recipes i share would inspire you to eat at home, spend more time cooking your own food and help you be on track towards a healthy lifestyle.

Cooking at home has many benefits. Most notable for me is that you know what you are eating and thats very important. to bake your own bread means you will have a fresh loaf free of preservatives and added chemicals for flavouring or coloring.

The satisfaction of creating something for your family and yourself is undeniable awesome. It helps relieve stress and it help to keep the family bond strong. But cooking doesnt have to be gruesome and long. It all depends on you and the time you have. There are recipes that requires very little prep, and there are recipes that requires days to prep. choose the right one for you according to your wants and needs.

Today I will share my secret arsenal of bread making.

lets start with the time consuming Sourdough Recipe

I have of late been into baking (breads). What a joy it is to see simple ingredients of yis water and flour turn into a symphony of texture, flavor and aroma. yumm.. just thinking about bread makes me hungry

So sourdough is the "ibu roti" or base to which you culture your yis, ferment the dough and bring flavour to the bread. Having sourdough gives your bread a different dimension. you can make bread with the simple steps skipping the making of a sourdough, but do try it if you have the time.

traditionally, sourdough is made from yis that exist in the air. so you just let your dough sit until it "catches" something. but this process is slow and the yis isn't as active as the commertial ones. flavour wise, the 'wild' yeast brings a better flavor.. but it is hard to manage. so for a novice like me, i will teach you the commercial sourdough recipe.


Sourdough:(will update pics later for a better step by step instructions)

ingredients:

1 cup water - warm, not hot or yis will die, not cold or the yis will take extra time to activate
1 sachet of yis
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon sugar

method:

1. dissolve sugar in water, then dissolve yis
2. add the yis solvent to the flour and mix well
3 make sure the items are in a sealable container.
4. cover with a dry n clean kitchen towel and leave to rest in a warm place (msia, smua pun warm place ok, jgn saja kau simpan dlm frigde).
5.leave for up to 6 hours. stir and mix occasionally.
6. you should see it bubbling, and you should start to smell the fermentation.
7. put your dough mixture in the frigde, cover (do not use airtight container, the yis needs to breathe)

creating the sponge:

1. before using your sourdough, you need to add more flour n water so you get more quantities of the good flavor.
2.so add 1-2 cups flour and equal amount of water in the sourdough mix. Add a little sugar as well. this is also called "feeding" gives more food for your little yis pets and make them thrive. when they thrive, you get more flavor.
3. when you add / feed, leave the mixture outside to let the yis get active. leave for 1- 4 hours. depending on how strong u want the flavour to be.
4. put in the frigde if not used. take out and use as the recipe require.
5. make sure u mix well and let the mixture come to room temperature before every use.
6. when you see the mix change color or smell funny.. its time to throw it out. a good kept sourdough can keep for years...


Whole meal BUNS/bread (depends on how you shape them)

ingredients

2 cups sourdough
2 cups wholemeal flour
1/2 cup plain flour for dusting and kneading
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon butter/margerine/olive oil

method

1. mix all of the above  ingredients in a bowl, with a wooden spatula except the plain flour (to prevent your fingers from becoming fish in batter... its a joke.. dont be serius
2. once everything clump together, dust your table or working board with flour and start kneading your bread
3. knead and dust with flour until the dough doesnt stick to our hands or the board. the longer you spend kneading the dough, the better the texture and rise later on. when kneading make sure u stretch the dough. u can watch you tube to see examples if unsure. I knead at least 10 minutes. sometimes more. wholemeal doesnt form as much gluten as flour so it needs longer kneading and work to get better results.
4. put the dough in a dusted or oiled bowl, cover with cling wrap, then cover with dry kitchen towel and let rise for 1-2 hours. the first proof is the flavouring part.
5. after you are happy with the rise... destroy it!! haha. i mean punch it down. you may knead lightly and shape to the size and shape you want. buns.. make em small, bread leave it whole. you can go round, oval.. anything and its  all up to you. but cooking time will vary depending on the shape and size
6. after shaping, leave to rise for second time. second proofing is to collect air in the dough. and give it that light texture. thats why you need to knead well so that air gets trapped in and not just seep away. proof for 30 min-1 1/2 hour. you can add nuts/herbs on top before baking.. or just leave it plain with some cuts (scores) to let it rise evenly

7. preheat oven at 200 (or 190 with fan), bake in preheated oven for 30-40 mins. how to know it is done? when you tap, the crust is firm and it produces a hollow sound... (dum dum dum)
8. take out when happy with the color n texture... and cool on a rack.
9. you can cut into hot buns and eat.. but bread loafs should be cooled before you cut.

enjoy!!!

My seafood passion

So yesterday I posted a couple of pics of our local crabs, fresh and alive, waiting to be cooked into delicious food. It will be the inspiration for my piece and recipe share for today.

I love the sea and everything that comes with it. Maybe not a tsunami, but you know, beaches, sailing, swimming, and all the delicious gems hidden inside the sea.

I grew up on an Island called Labuan. back in the 1980s my dad stumbled into the Island for a job and he never left it since. He said he would live his life to the fullest there and die on this unknown Island. He even told to have his ashes sprinkled in the sea so he could forever be one with the sea that he so loved. Yeah, he got every single one of his wish. - Just a short memoir for my late father who passed on this day 10 years ago.-

So, His love for the sea passed on to me. Maybe because he always brought me to the sea. At only 7 days of life, my dad took me to the sea and let me have a swim. My mom went beserk! yeah, crazy german guy! But no worries, babies have instincts to swim, so i was alright. Picnics, swims, sailing and fishing were some of our usual activities. Seafood was definitely a staple. Lobsters were abundant and cheap back then, so were shells and a variety of fish and crustaceans. I learned alot of dishes from my dad. Oh yes, he loved to cook. He was the one who thought me cooking, not my mom. From the tender age of 6, I was attending every single one of my dads kitchen sessions. He taught me stuff like sharpening your knife, peeling, baking breads, roasting and much much more. Food from the soul.

So crabs, naturally were super abundant at the time and always big, fat and fleshy. These days it is hard to find one with all those qualities.

Lucky for me, yesterday, some ambitious crab dealer came along the clinic and offered us some enticing selections of crab. I bought a Kilo, and got 6, 3 males and 3 females. The gender of the crab is important. I find that the flesh of the female is sweeter. It also has a softer shell and hence easier to work with. But males have more flesh but they are sometimes a little bit bitter.

Arent they just so cute. I find crabs super adorable and whenever I go to the beach, I would hunt for them. The small ones of course. Hubby is super scared of crabs. traumatising experience as a kid. poor dear.

Anyways, I decided to make my mom's improved recipe of Stuffed Crab Au Gratin.
Au Gratin basically means topped with crumb or cheese and then browned. I only got to know about it yesterday. We learn stuff everyday! so fun.

Ok so here is the recipe for

Stuffed Crab Au Gratin (I dunno if I pronounced it right... lol)

So in case you are wondering what is on that blue plate, I have the stuffed crab, roasted sweet potatoes purée  and leftover meat cutlet from the day before. might not have been the best combo, but the crabs arent going to be filling enough on its own, and I didnt want to waste food since we still had some leftovers.

So the ingredients- these makes 6 medium sized crab shells. should serve about 2-3 people.

So fresh live crabs 1 kg - i got 6
3 eggs- A grade, hard boiled and chopped fine. dont turn it to paste, make it like egg salad kind of shape and consistency.
condensed milk,
mayonaise- 1 table spoon
salt and pepper to taste
coriander leaves, finely chopped - about 1-2 tablespoons.
Mozzarella and strong cheddar cheese. - grated or sliced

note on the cheese, mozzarella on its own doesnt have much flavor, but I use it for its stretchy and smooth qualities. makes it visually attractive. I usually use Edam cheese, but I had some leftover strong cheddar, and that worked fine as well.

Steps:

very simple.
1. cook the crabs (whole and alive) in a pot of boiling water infused with bay leaves and a little salt. gets rid of any funky seafood smell if present and gives it a hint of aroma. does not affect the taste. in-case you do not have bay leaves, you can sub with lemon-grass or other aromatics. you can also skip it altogether.

2 let it simmer for 5 mins, drain it and cool it. once cooled enough to handle, comes the gritty part, peel them and get the flesh from the intricate shell. carefully remove the crab top (the head shell), clean and wash it, dry it one side. you need them to stuff back the filling.

3. once all the flesh has been extracted, in a bowl, combine the remaining ingredients except the cheese. use just enough evaporated milk to moist the mixture. if you have pooling of liquid in the bottom, its already too much. (agak agak la, i didnt measure)

4. once the ingredients have been mixed, taste and season well. you should get the taste of the sea, hints of coriander and sweetness from the milk. dont over do the pepper. you will hide the flavors of the crab.

5. scoop the mix into the shells. top them off with as much cheese as you like. dont put too much, they will just melt away onto the tray.(yeah ambitiously overdid the cheese).

6. broil/ bake the crabs on the top tier of your oven, close as you can get to the top heat source, max the temp (mine goes to 230 cels) and cook till u get the color you like on the cheese. its not very long. maybe 5 mins. dont lleave them. watch them closely, once the color change, they brown really fast.

Tadaa.... there you have it. delicious crab flavor accentuated by the ingredients.


Do try it, and I hope you like it as much as my crab fearing hubby. he ate 3 shells. plus the meat nugget and the purée. 

Rantings of a Broken Hearted Non-Citizen

Earlier this year I was shocked to know that my working contract was not being renewed as it was always year after year. This year they said, they needed to sit down and deliberate.

So for a month, I sat at home staring at my medical degree (Distinction? it doesnt matter if your jobless) and wonder what would my fate be.

After much hustling and pushing and begging, finally, they came to a decision to give me another year of contract. They did not even give me the grade I deserved, they kept me at UD 41. Its ok, beggars can be choosers, I thought to myself to just be thankful I can get back to work.

It was apparently a fluke, they already gave me mine this year, so thats fine, but it seems that they have no intentions to prolonged any more non citizen contracts despite them being married to locals or already having PR. I know of a Doctor, who is a non-citizen, married to a local. wife a doctor and a specialist. he just passed his exam and qualify to be a specialist, but they said NO, we only pay you as MO. (details and name have been kept to keep the confidentiality of the Doctor)

So that means, I'm sure to be jobless next year past february when my contract for this year will be terminated. How to be a productive citizen if the country doesnt allow you to work. Go private? I called MMC the other day and they said that non specialist cannot receive licence to work with private. Work abroad? then.... i just leave my husband and family here? go alone? and most countries want a minimum experience of 5 years in service.

Not to mention that the Gov still owe me money. my gratuity money from my previous contract is still being owed to me. It may not be a whole lot, but it has been a year and still i haven't received it for various reasons from various people. Miss A say call Mr B. Mr B said waiting for Mr C. Mr C said waiting for KKM. n KKM said tunggu! bagus la.

Did I mention that my husband is a local, a doctor, and working for the goverment too? yeah, but does it matter? no, not at all. Gov only want the spouses to make babies for the country. Let the husband be the only bread winner in the family. His pay? mere pennies. How to pay for 2 loans, house rent, insurance, overheads, groceries and family support? Now they put the icing on the cake - GST!

Thats not even the best part of this tragic drama. The best part is that I was born on Msian soil. in 1987 was born on an Island of labuan. I was raised on that soil till i was 18. I ate msian rice, seafood and vege. I went to local schools, aced all the local papers and only finally when it was time to go to University did i leave msia for 6 years to complete my medical degree. and after that i came back and worked in service in Sabah, a place where not many want to go with my husband who was a msian. 

Many Ask me why I'm not malaysia. why i dont have IC or at least PR? I return you the questions. Its your country. you should know!

When I ask to be citizen, they said NO, you dont qualify. (even if im born here and lived more than 18 years, just coz my parents werent locals) When i ask for PR status they told me NO, i dont qualify coz i need to have a dependant visa for 5 years. its ridiculous because i have been married for 8 Years now! and when i said, ok ok fine at least give me some leniency and give me visa 5 years. they said again NO, they said coz i got no kids!

the frustration is endless. I work in a district filled with people who are just from over the border. people who, some regarded as enermy of the country after recent breach in tawau. But these people come in at night by boat, land on some shore, and poof, within a year, sometimes less they will somehow be citizen. I dont know if its legally, via some back door, or some gov policies. all i know is, they go to the hosp, sometimes to the point were they dont even speak malay, but they have IC! best of the best!

Maybe this is my ticket to be accepted. Maybe in my resume i need to write, landed on shore by boat.

I don't hope for anything out of this, just want to rant my heart out. the frustration is killing me. But I shouldn't be selfish, I know it bothers other non citizens who are in the same boat as I am. Some have served for even longer year, suffered through greater trials and hardships. Have children and families here brought all the way from afar only to be rejected with a flick of a finger.

Go out they said, go to another country. No worries, at this rate, we wont have a choice. And we will bring our spouses with us, and our children and the whole family. and in the new country, I bet their laws to be citizen isnt as crazy as yours, like exp australia or singapore. just work there, live there for a certain time and bam, you be accepted as one of them. Is it my loss? I dont think so. I think its your loss. With the decline in your birth rates already, you can't afford to loss your citizens. But at this rate, you will loss not just your citizens, but your smart citizen with professional careers and high educations. Your loss since you are the one that paid for their education, their healthcare, and everything else till this point. 

Again, just some rather random rants. Nothing will change after this. Maybe I am unlucky, maybe I wasn't born with a silver spoon, or maybe it just fate to be this way. I learned to take it easy, because being a control freak only makes me grow white hair. I will let the boat ride the waves, I'll paddle with the waves, and I hope the waves bring me to an Island with treasures beyond. 

If I am wrong in any of my statements, i would love to be corrected. I write based on my personal experience. You could ask my husband, he would sing the same song. Maybe I should change professions. LOL. I can't think of doing anything but medicine. so not flexible.. maybe consider joining showbiz? too old sudah ba kan. sigh. 

Chow mates.. Life is a box of chocolate, some of them are poisonous :P

Its not a Hangover, its montoku flu!

First of all, I would like to wish all my Sabah Friends and readers 

Kotobian Tadau Tagazo Do Kaamatan!

This festival, and every-other one  before it is filled with joy, food, culture and ofcourse, for the natives and locals, alcohol.

Lots, and lots of alcohol, home brewed, import, canned, bottled, anything and everything that ferments into -OH (alcohol) is consumed.

I'm not jugding, its a once a year kind of thing and its their culture for many many years. who am I to advocate them to stop. so long as u are not an alcoholic (alcohol dependent), things will be back to normal by 1st June.

Anyhow, what I would like to share is the understanding of a HANGOVER. whats is a hangover, its the wonderful sensations and joyride you get the morning after your 'party' with Mr Alcohol. everyone leaves a gift after a good party, sex- gives you STD, sometimes a baby, and alcohol gives you hangovers, and sometimes the extra bonus of amnesia to forget the stupid things you did while under its influence.. its how they show their appreciation :P

So ok. we now know its alcohol that gives you hangovers.

Lets look at some of the 'fun' of getting a hangover

• Fatigue and weakness
• Thirst
• Headaches and muscle aches
• Nausea, vomiting or stomach pain
• Poor or decreased sleep
• Increased sensitivity to light and sound
• Dizziness or a sense of the room spinning
• Shakiness
• Decreased ability to concentrate
• Mood disturbances, such as depression, anxiety and irritability
• Rapid heartbeat

Ring a bell? 

Why? why do we get hangovers. simple redundant answer is well... you drank poison, you really think you would come out feeling nothing at all?

ok ok, well, alcohol is nasty when taken in excessive amounts (any amount that gets you drunk). 

some of its effects are...

• Alcohol causes your body to produce more urine. In turn, urinating more than usual can lead to dehydration — often indicated by thirst, dizziness and light-headedness.
• Alcohol triggers an inflammatory response from your immune system. Your immune system may trigger certain agents that commonly produce physical symptoms, such as an inability to concentrate, memory problems, decreased appetite and loss of interest in usual activities.
• Alcohol irritates the lining of your stomach. Alcohol increases the production of stomach acid and delays stomach emptying. Any of these factors can cause abdominal pain, nausea or vomiting.
• Alcohol can cause your blood sugar to fall. If your blood sugar dips too low, you may experience fatigue, weakness, shakiness, mood disturbances and even seizures.
• Alcohol causes your blood vessels to expand, which can lead to headaches.
• Alcohol can make you sleepy, but your quality of sleep will decrease. This may leave you groggy and tired.
• Alcoholic beverages contain ingredients called congeners,which give many types of alcoholic beverages their flavor and can contribute to hangovers. Congeners are found in larger amounts in dark liquors, such as brandy and whiskey, than in clear liquors, such as vodka and gin.

but i think the leading cause and key to the cure for hangover is dehydration.

That being said, the cure is simple. just drink lots and lots of water (ok, when i say lots, i do mean like a litre or so not 3-5 liters. water poisoning is a real and dangerous thing)

I've heard that in sarawak, when the natives consume their home brews, they wash it down with equal amounts of water. so half glass of spirit, with half glass water. they say, it prevents a bad hangover the next day. so yes, hydrate as you go.

or you can hydrate the next morning, so this is more of a cure than a prevention since you will probably be suffering from a hangover.

before you go for bed, drink at least 2-3 glasses of water. when you wake up, drink another 2-4 glasses of water.

other than water, you can go for drinks that replace electrolytes and have a little sugar in them. sport drinks are excellent. but be careful, many sports drinks use the shortcut and add lots of fructose instead of glucose. sorry, but I havent gotten around writing about fructose. its some nasty food minion. 

ok, focus. so among your other healthy choice of fluids are

• mineral water, 
• ORS, (oral rehydration salt, the name is self explanatory)
• sports drink (performance from shaklee is good),
• coconut water (a little hard to find if you are in the city, but if you aramaiti at kampung then no problem), and of course 
• nutritious soups with lots of water (soups have lots of salt, if you dont drink extra water, you can get more dehydrated)
• i think you can go for fruit juices too but they contain lots and lots of additional sugar. not good for the nausea or the waist :P

if you surf the net, there will be thousands if not millions of remedies from people around the world. some even advice to drink more alcohol (tsk tsk). whatever you choose to do, make sure to remember to correct your dehydration first, then you can go for all the egg in a stout or virgin bloody marry and stuff. 

rehydration works! how can i be sure? because i have lots of positive feedbacks from patients who try it out. And please stay away from the paracetamol, or locally known as panadol. you are just poisoning your liver further. drink plenty of fluids and the headache will go away. eating a panadol will only mask the problem.

So please, party responsibly, consume moderately, hydrate as much as possible and be safe.

Best way to prevent a hangover is.... DONT DRINK ALCOHOL! period.

signing off for now, long weekend ahead. time to relax in the jungle among my garden, ducks and a good book.

Dirt Poor

Have you heard of the expression 'dirt poor' - roughly means extremely poor.

We are not here today to rant on about money, but rather the poverty of nutrients plaguing humanity today.

Everything is on the rise,including diseases like heart disease, cancer, obesity, malnutrition and many other diseases despite us moving forward in our medical advancements. Have you ever wondered why? what is the root to all of this evil?

Health is influenced by numerous factors, thus termed multi-factorial. This means its not just about the one thing, its about the bigger picture. your pedigree, where you live, your job, what you eat, what you do daily all have a big impact on your end result.

eg, causes of acne

You are what you eat, and this is true in so many profound ways.  we are merely biological machines that need a constant uptake of nutrients for conversion into biochemical energy. energy to live and change the world. but unlike a car that uses fuel to propel it ahead, we assimilate some of our food to make new cells, for repair, and thus it becomes part of us.

But what we all fail to ask is whether or not the quality of our food is preserved over the years. when we shop at the market or the grocery store we tend to pick the biggest and prettiest fruit or veg thinking that its the best of the lot.... is it really?

I was reading a book by Dr Ross Walker - Highway to health ,antioxidants and you.I was fascinated to come across the fact that out soil today is depleted of nutrients and hence so is the fruits and veg that grow on them.

OUR SOIL TODAY!

There is an estimated over 7 billion people around the world today, and all of them, including you and me need to eat. so we cannot grow our crops the traditional slow and steady, small patches of tender love and care style.

In this modern age, crops are mostly genetically modified so they become bigger, stronger and more resistance to disease and plague. but we forget to focus on the effort to make them more nutritious. crops grow faster, and have bigger yield. rice used to take a year to grow and harvest, now we see crops that can be grown n harvested 3x per year. but all these practices are coming at a price. they are depleting our soils... and hence what we eat is just an empty fiber pod with little to trace nutrients.

Table 1. Average Yields of Major Crops in the United States, 1950-92 (Tisdale et al., 1999)
Year	Corn (bu/acre)	Wheat (bu/acre)	Soybean (bu/acre)	Alfalfa (ton/acre)
1950	37.6	14.3	21.7	2.1
1964	62.1	26.2	22.8	2.4
1972	96.9	32.7	28.0	2.9
1982	113.2	35.5	31.5	3.4
1992	128.7	41.4	37.0	3.6

A landmark study on the topic by Donald Davis and his team of researchers from the University of Texas (UT) at Austin’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry was published in December 2004 in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition. They studied U.S. Department of Agriculture nutritional data from both 1950 and 1999 for 43 different vegetables and fruits, finding “reliable declines” in the amount of protein, calcium, phosphorus, iron, riboflavin (vitamin B2) and vitamin C over the past half century. Davis and his colleagues chalk up this declining nutritional content to the preponderance of agricultural practices designed to improve traits (size, growth rate, pest resistance) other than nutrition. - taken from Scientificamerican.com

Every delicious looking carrot you eat today is less nutritious than the one you ate before it.

taken From a study by 

Dept of Soil Science, University of Wisconsin - Madison

And this is a worrying situation. because much of our health depends on what we eat. I am not even talking about the amount of pollution and junk that gets in your food like pesticides and stuff which definitely makes us more sick.

So what now?

well, we still need to eat our fruits and veg. in fact, we need to eat more. It is said that to achieve the same amount of vit c that your grandfather had in one orange, we, my friends need 8 now!!!

are you willing to go that extra mile to keep yourself properly nourished? eat 8 oranges a day, few kilos of veg, oh my, i cant imagine.

Well, luckily humans are smart and they invented this thing called vitamins and supplements. In his book, Dr Ross Walker - a cardiologist, advocated the use of supplements as a mean of prevention. He said that 50% of cardiologist take supplements but only a hand full will advice their patients to take. Why is that? Alot of Drs are evidence based and they wait and wait for research to be done and it takes years, sometimes until indefinitely. Its hard to do trials regarding the long term effects of supplements and antioxidants and thus we have little evidence despite it being around for so long.

But whatever it is, the facts are undeniably obvious. our foods are not as nutritious as they were before and they are not likely to change for the better any-time soon. we need to make modification on our health and take up supplements to fill in the gaps. What supplements you choose is equally important because companies these days are geared for profit and that could result in some shady practices like adding fillers, preservatives, dangerous compounds and so on.

Supplements are not substitutes for a healthy lifestyle!

All too often I come across people who just want a magic pill for everything. they say "oh so now i take these slimming set, That means i dont need to exercise?" seriously, this is a joke. please read up on my previous articles touching the benefits of exercise.

The point is, even with supplements, you still need your fruits, your veg, your nuts and legumes. You need to have proper sleep, put in some exercise, have a hobby to reduce stress. I told you in the beginning of this blog, health is a multi-factorial thing, you need to ensure you can change as many of the factors as you can. what you cannot, you leave to fate!

Key message, in case it wasnt already staring in your face,  - live a healthy lifestyle, take your supplements, be happy and hopefully you will die of old (very old) age and not heart disease or cancer..

Air, Air, panas, suam, sejuk, Hai! sedap rasanya!

Hai semua pembaca yang setia dan juga yang baru menaruh minat.!

Harap kamu semua sihat dan Happy hari ini.

Saya ingin berkongsi cerita, ilmu dan tips mengenai Air!

Ya, tidak salah baca, Air adalah topic kita hari ini.
kenapa saya pilih topic air? sebab ramai yang mengabaikan kepentingan air walaupun tidak kekurang an sumber. (yalah.. malaysia ni hujan cukup, kemarau jarang, bukannya gurun)

Ada berita baru baru ini, seorang pelajar mati disyaki kerana dehidrasi, atau kurang air. ada yang menyalahkan supplemen yang dia makan sebagai punca. akhirnya, punca sebenar adalah pendarahan dalam otak. kesimpulannya, kalau makan supplement pun, kalau air tidak cukup dalam tubuh, boleh membawa lebih padah dari kebaikan.

Ramai yang pernah dengar dan sudah tahu bahawa air itu memang bagus untuk tubuh,

tapi.... persoalannya adalah, kenapa ia bagus, berapa banyak itu bagus, bila ia bagus dan banyak lagi soalan soalan yang sering saya ditanya oleh pesakit/client tersayang.

Ok. satu saatu la ya.

Kenapa H2O atau air ni penting untuk manusia?

bukan saja manusia, semua makhluk hidup di dunia ini (dunia alien saya tak pasti lagi sebab belum ada org jumpa) memerlukan air. itu salah satu sebab terpenting kenapa planet kita ada hidupan dan planet lain yang kering kontang tak ada satu cengkerik pun.

so, air adalah asas kehidupan. 65% dari berat lelaki dan 55% dari berat wanita adalah dari air! itu lebih dari separuh. semua proses sel, bergantung kepada hadirnya air.

tak payah la cerita panjang lebar. kalau mau tau apa fungsi air ni... boleh la tanya Mr Google ok.
sepuluh muka surat pun tak habis kalau saya mau cerita.

cuma.. perlu tau.. air sangat penting untuk HIDUP. air harus cukup (bukan berlebihan juga) , air harus selamat (jgn minum air sungai mentah.. ni bukan cerita lord of the rings), dan air mestilah air (air merah ka, sirrap ka, air oren.. tidak termasuk dlm senarai).

barulah air boleh memberi kesan positive kepada tubuh. mengawal suhu, memastikan metabolisma lancar, membuang sisa kumuh dan banyak lagi.

Berapa banyak Air yang patut saya minum?

saya yakin 100 % mesti kamu jawab. 8 gelas la Dr.. atau 2 litre la sekurang kurangnya.

Tidak salah tapi tidak tepat :P

Kita semua pelbagai saiz dan bentuk. yang disarankan itu diambil dari anggaran purata saiz. dan saiz itu pula berdasarkan saiz orang eropah. tentu saja tak sama. lagi satu.. orang yang berada di cuaca panas, sedang berlatih sukan dan lain lain lagi... perlukan lebih banyak air dari kamu yang duduk di office dan baca article ni.

so bagaimana mau anggarkan keperluan air harian?

so ada tips

Ada caranya untuk mengira, tapi kena guna berat dalam pounds dan jumlah air pula dapat dalam ounces. tak payah lah susah susah keluar calculator, rujuk sajalah table diatas.

Faktor lain yang mempengaruhi jumlah air seharian.

Exercise - apabila kita melakukan senaman atau aktiviti sewaktu dengannya, perlu kita ingat bahawa tubuh akan kehilangan air dalam bentuk peluh. biasanya perlu ditambah jumlah air dalam 400-600 mls bergantung pada jumlah aktiviti. lebih kurang satu botol mineral yang kecil.

Menyusukan anak - recommendasi adalah sekurang kurangnya 3.5 litre sehari.

cuaca panas, kawasan pergunungan, keadaan sakit/demam - juga meningkatkan keperluan air seharian.

WARNING!

Semua yang bagus itu boleh menjadi bahaya jika diambil secara berlebihan. Begitu juga air, ia boleh menjadi racun kepada tubuh jika diambil secara berlebihan dan secara terlalu cepat.

Kenapa air berlebihan bahaya?

Tubuh manusia bergantung kepada keseimbangan garam dan elektrolit, serta air. apabila terlalu banyak air diminum pada satu satu masa, garam akan menjadi terlalu larut dan ini membahayakan. kenapa dan bagaimana... tanya la Mr Google kalau berminat. Tak cukup space mau cerita biochem sni.

ini bermaksud. kalau dalam jadual diatas.. kamu kena minum 3 litre sehari.. bukan bermaksud macam telan ubat.. semua sekali gus! salah!

itu keperluan air seharian... maksudnya.. kena bahagi bahagi supaya sama rata dalam 24 jam. dan ia juga termasuk air yang kita minum dlm bentuk lain.. contohnya sup!

so pagi dua gelas (500ml), pagi sampai tgh hari satu botol besar (1.5litre), petang dua gelas (500mls) dan malam 2 gelas (500mls).. cukupla 3 litre. Jangan teguk sekali 3 litre tu. konfirm masuk spital!

(apabila minum teh ka.. sirap ka.. atau lain lain, juga termasuk dalam pengiraaan)

Jangan minum air berlebihan tanpa nasihat doktor jika mempunyai masalah buah pinggan atau kencing tidak lancar. 

Jika anda mulakan untuk minum air yang banyak bagi tujuan kesihatan, pastikan mula dalam berperingkat. kalau sebelum ni slalu minim satu botol saja sehari... mualan dengan dua botol.. kemudian selepas beberapa hari.. 3 botol.. dan seterusnya hingga capai jumlah sasaran harian. jangan secara mengejut. takut nanti buah pinggan merajuk.

Tip Tips minum air...

kepada yang biasa minum air, tentunya tiada masalah. Tapi kepada yang biasa minum air manis, kamu mungkin rasa air ini tidak sedap!

tidak apa... mari lihat bersama tips minum air..

1. membuat Infused water- iaitu rendaman kepingan buah atau herba yang boleh memberi perisa kepada air tanpa meningkatkkan nilai kalori.
   
2. minum sports drink apabila melakukan aktiviti lasak dan intensive. apabila kamu berpeluh sangat banyak, kamu kehilangan garam dan electrolit juga. 
3. minum 500 mls air pada awal pagi sebelum mandi, cuci muka, berus gigi atau lain lain aktiviti. buka mata, first skalii minum air. ini akan melancarkan pembuangan toksin dan najis di waktu pagi.
   
4. sediakan bekas dan tandakan target jumlah air yang kamu perlu minum. supaya kamu tahu berapa banyak air kamu sudah minum... bekas yang ada sukatan lebih mudah selain mengingatkan kita jumlah yang masih perlu diminum
   
5. minum lah air .... tak kisah la air alkali ka, air rebus ka, air mineral ka, air tulen ka.. yang penting air yang tidak dicampur dengan gula atau kalori tambahan. minuman manis akan mengakibatkan obesiti, dan kemudian masalah lain seperti kencing manis.

Jadi Ingat, mulakan Hari dengan segelas dua air yang murni untuk kesihatan sepanjang hayat. Bukan saja pada waktu pagi, tetapi sepanjang hari, minumla air mengikut sasaran keperluan harian.

Exercise to Burn Calories??? You have got to be kidding me!

Welcome to another episode of fun filled facts.

This morning I was pleasantly surprised by a facebook friend who brought up the issue of Fructose and why its the mother of all evil in the fight against obesity and Metabolic syndrome.

Another day about fructose, I've only got a few minutes today to rattle down in this blog so I better make it nifty and quick.

Exercise... we all know it, we all heard of it and we know its supposedly good for you. It is.. no doubt, very good for you.

But do you know why exercise is good for you?

People always say... "wanna lose weight? go exercise". so does this mean that added activity means added calories burn... well.. yes  of course, but if you ever exercised to burn calories you would know that it takes about an hour to burn the calories of just one cookie!! pretty discouraging isnt it. Imagine how much you need to run to burn a big mac or a full serving of nasi lemak!

here are some examples on how much calories does common exercises burn off...

common food calories

You need to walk for 3 hours just to burn one roti John!

absurd!

But time and time again we still hear exercise is good for you. And especially important if you wanna lose weight. now why is that? if you follow math and the laws of thermodynamics...(what you put in equals what you burn.. and if you you dont burn you gain as fat) then the premise is flawed.

Humans are never as easy as 1+1=2... or 2-1=1... if only.

Its a whole bunch of metabolic issues that get screwed up in the first place. If you have a healthy metabolism, east balanced and live and average lifestyle.. chances are.. you wont be obese.

so lets take a look on how Exercise "fixes" your metabolic glitches and help you get that dream curves you always wanted.

Numero UNO (number one)

1. Exercise leads to improved insulin sensitivity.

Remember i wrote an article back then (why you are not losing weight despite starving). what insulin does to you. how you dont want spikes... but instead a steady ooze.. spikes, big spikes, and many spikes lead to insulin resistance.. when this happens.. you need more insulin to get the same response. it burdens your insulin factory- the pancrease. sugar starts to saturate your blood... so... TADAAA.. you got diabetes. This is what you dont want

but with exercise...you get toned muscles and that leads to better insulin sensitivity

How? dont you worry bout the biochemistry stuff. just trust me that it works. if you really wanna know, google exercise  and GLUT4

This is good news... it means that even if you have fallen down the rabbit hole and got yourself in a metabolic mess.. there is still hope yet for you and everybody. exercise reverses insulin resistance. so sugar gets uptaked and processed into energy.

Numero DOS (number 2)

Exercise leads to stress reduction. 

Exercise reduces the stress hormone cortisol that is the culprit... how... Take a look at this

The following is a typical example of how the stress response operates as its intended survival mechanism:

1. An individual is faced with a stressor.

2. A complex hormonal cascade ensues, and the adrenals secrete cortisol.

3. Cortisol prepares the body for a fight-or-flight response by flooding it with glucose, supplying an immediate energy source to large muscles.

4. Cortisol inhibits insulin production in an attempt to prevent glucose from being stored, favoring its immediate use.

5. Cortisol narrows the arteries while the epinephrine increases heart rate, both of which force blood to pump harder and faster.

6. The individual addresses and resolves the situation.

7. Hormone levels return to normal.

Imagine the tiger is your boss!

The problem is.. we live a life of chronic stress. flight or fight response is constant. We stress out to finish our assignment, then we stress out to present the assignment, then we stress out bout meeting our boss, only later to stress out after work facing the traffic jam. and the list goes on.

as you can see from the description about, flooding of glucose and blocking our insulin is not favourable conditions. its suppose to be temporary..but it isnt.

so chronic stress leads to chronic elevated cortisol levels.. which leads to 

- insulin and sugar imbalance - diabetes, and increased appetite

-weight gain and obesity - mobilising fat from storage to under the muscles and into your abs.

-immune suppression

-gastrointestinal problems

-cardiovascular problems 

-fertility problems

But the good news, exercise can help tackle this problem.

Amazing, this shows that exercise cuts cortisol levels in half!

and last but not least TRES (three)

The one we like alot about exercise is that it increases our metabolism!

If you ever studied physiology or biochemistry, you know we get energy from the krebs cycle or.. known also as the citric acid cycle. 

in our cells we have alot of power plants called mitochondria. They produce ATP. the substance of life.

Mitochondria is a wonderful subject to talk about on its own.. but I will save it for another day.

anyways.. execise make mitochondria more effficient and work faster. so, you can burn off your energy before you need to store them as fat. how awesome is that!

Take Home message:

Exercise. Take the time to do some moderate to high intensity exercise to get this wonderful benefits of exercise.

when you are able to tackle the glitches in your metabolism, your body will sort the rest out. 

if you go on diets after diets, starve yourself, and binge. yo yo your diet. you will do more harm than good. because you are not fixing the problem. Its like when there is a leak in the pipe, stopping the water is temporary measures.. eventually you need to resume the use and when you switch on the water.. it will leak. better is to off the water, fix the pipe.. and life goes on smoothly.

but remember, just like my article - Exercise not key to losing weight by BBC, If you plan to lose weight.. you need to fix your diet! 

Good Luck! 

HOT is just an exercise away :)