28 thoughts on “Eat to Good Health”

  1. Hi Wong KT/others,

    KT, your post came in timely and I would like to SHARE with ALL of you of my NEW discovery by accident.

    Took a dragon fruit( NATURAL fruit ) daily, after a few days I found it helps a lot.

    I am less sleepy now as compared with last time.

    I believe there is a high concentration of the carotenes and Vitamin A and and other trace elements that helps in my eye nourishment.

    Before have been taking two Omega 3 capsules daily
    ( PROCESSED food ) for health for many months but it is NOT as effective as a dragon fruit a day.

    My only problem is when the dragon fruit runs out of seasonal supplies. Grow a dragon fruit in my corridor ???

  4. Here’s the extract from
    http://www.parade.com/food/0807/foods-to-keep-you-healthy

    Artificial Sweeteners – No.
    “…noncaloric sugar substitutes, whether “natural” or artificial, may contribute to weight gain”

    Coffee – Yes, but
    “…coffee may reduce the risk of diabetes, heart attack, gallstones, Parkinson’s disease, kidney stones, and cirrhosis. One caveat is that black coffee may lead to thinner bones, especially in women, but the simple solution is to add milk to your coffee. One caveat is that black coffee may lead to thinner bones, especially in women, but the simple solution is to add milk to your coffee. ”

    Chocolate – Yes
    “Dark chocolate, which contains at least 70% cocoa, has proven health benefits. It contains less sugar than white or milk chocolate and is a rich source of health-promoting compounds such as polyphenols and flavonoid antioxidants (similar to those found in green tea). Studies show that even a small intake of dark chocolate may reduce the risk of the blood clots that cause heart attack or stroke and may lower blood pressure. And, as many people know from experience, chocolate also can lift your mood and give you a boost of energy. Of course, chocolate is high in calories and contains saturated fat, so enjoy it in moderation—no more than 2 ounces a day.”

    Soda – Still No

    Oatmeal – Not so good.

    Pizza – OK, if
    “Tomato sauce is rich in lycopene, a powerful antioxidant. Recent studies suggest that lycopene may have a range of benefits, including reducing the risk of cancer and lowering cholesterol and blood pressure. Adding veggies to pizza further improves its health benefits. But stay away from sausage, pepperoni, and other toppings rich in saturated fat”

    Eggs – Yes
    “no association between egg intake and the risk of coronary heart disease or stroke over an eight-year period, except among those with diabetes. Women who ate more than one egg a day actually had the lowest risk of coronary heart disease. Eggs also are a great source of protein, and many organic eggs are now rich in omega-3 fatty acids, thanks to a change in chicken feed.”

    Fish – Yes
    “Eating fish twice a week may cut your risk of heart attack, stroke, and sudden cardiovascular death. Fish are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which may reduce the risk of diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and inflammation. The best for your health are oily and small fish such as sardines, herring, anchovies, salmon (organic or wild), and mackerel (except king mackerel). Large fish such as swordfish, tuna, tilefish, and shark live at the top of the marine food chain and accumulate many contaminants. In general, canned chunk light tuna lower in such contaminants as mercury than albacore or sushi tuna is also a good choice.”

  5. Bottom line is have more fish and eggs with your meals. Have a mixed breakfast of eggs and fruits, not only cereals. Take lots of coffee. Black for men (to cut your sugar and you are already too fat for milk) and white for women (prevent brittle bones). Have a lot of chocolates.

    Question is where to find lots of cheap but good chocolates. Any clues.

    Surprisingly nuts were not covered. Same question. Where to find value, wholesale nuts. If chocolates and nuts are to be incorporated into our diet it must be affordable.

  6. We have to be careful with our money. We may be forced to live a long, long time. Die now also cannot.

    I thought that there could be a chance to see my CPF in the next reincarnation. That was before today’s announcement that they have decided to buy further into the black hole and average down on losses.
    “TH confirms S$1.2b investment in Merrill Lynch …”

    In the pits when a trader breaks his nerve, we withdraw him. In a casino, when a “cheng kay” has a bad run, we change him. With our CPF, we “die, die” they also must play.

    Now, we will have to leave it to our great -great – grandchildren’s time to collect. Either that or live & eat well. Live a long, long time to collect back from your annuity for life.

  7. Wong; what you mentioned about cofi are only true if it is gourmet/specialty cofi. The 3-in-1 and instant types doesn’t help……..maybe makes things worst. I am a cofi addict. You know the cofi that we take at all heartland cofi shops are at least containing 40% maize/corn plus butter some more during the roasting process….and dark roast as well….like carbon/blackgold.

  8. Well, my overseas buddies always comment that Singaporean are “rich” but I replied that most Singaporean are asset rich but cash poor. We are “rich” only if we sell off every asset AND clean out our CPF acct, go to a third world outlet/places…..to live like a king….but that’s just a dream…..a growing old dream.:(

  9. Ivan @ #7

    I take my imported Viennese coffee black. Doesn’t everybody take gourmet coffee ….

    Now I am wondering whether I can afford dated 3-in-1’s.

    hee-hee

    Anyway, don’t be affected by brands or special blends. Blends is basically putting in cheap stuff for padding and call it a fancy name with a matching fancy price.

    Buy the cheapest roasted coffee beans and grind yourself. Bean is bean. Nature does not lie.

  10. KT at #5
    Walnuts are considered superfood. Good for the brain, reduces cholesterol and reduces risk of diabetes. My family eats them raw.

    Almonds are rich in Vit E and a rich source of protein. I usually roast the almonds skin on on low heat because it burns easily. No need to add salt, sugar or butter. Taste very good on its on. Snack on this rather than keropok or potato chips.

    These nuts could be bought from the medical shops on Waterloo Street (sell practically everything)at at least 20 to 30% cheaper than those sold at supermarkets.

    Ivan at #7.
    Thanks for the info on heartland kopi shop’s kopi. No wonder it turns sour if you leave it out for too long. Good thing I usually take tea at these shops. I enjoy my gourmet coffee in the office where we have a specialty coffee machine that uses coffee beans. Also a milk steamer to froth up the milk so that we can make latte or cappucinno :)

    KT at #9
    There are different grades of coffee. Thats what my kopi beans lady in the market tells me.
    She said the more expensive ones got less fillers so they taste better.

  11. Carol @ #10

    Tks for the tip.

    Have you compared Waterloo St with Victoria Wholesale Centre, Victoria Street opposite Opposite Golden Landmark. Or Pasir Panjang Wolesale Center?

    I don’t understand about the filler part. I am referring to beans not to grinded beans. Problem with pre-grinded powder is that you do not know what they put in. There are some who will grind it on the spot but then you pay a premium.

    Long term it is well worth your while to buy a coffee bean machine. (You can actually use a grinder and do it in two phases too). A bit more expensive but you are guaranteed the real thing.

    Nobody can really change the taste of natural beans. The flavour variations come with addictives added during the process.

    Take the world’s most expensive civet cat coffee. The cat shit is suppose to add a little bitter and tangy to it. Save your sanity and add a little lemon twist to your coffee. You can adjust the amount of lemon but you can’t adjust cat shit. There is no rule to say you can’t. And you have created another out-of-this-world taste for the price of half a lemon.

    It is very subjective. And you pay a lot more if the barista or manufacturer does it for you. Why don’t you do it yourself, save yourself lots of money and have a great signature cuppa coffee.

  12. On the theme of #11, you don’t have to be sugar to be sweet. The way and the amount of sugar we take is very harmful to health. Here’s how to cut processed sugars and yet stay as sweet as before.

    Take your sugars naturally from fruits. Learn from the example of the traditonal complement of applesauce with boiled pork. Or pineapple with rice. Or raisin with bread.

    Or you need is a blender. Fruits can be cheap. Since you are using it for dishes, looks is not important. Buy clearance fruits. Don’t worry if it is a bit bruised. (I rather eat a cooked apple with a worm than a perfect apple with the risk of having enough pesticides to kill an elephant.)

    Select cheap local clearance fruits like bananas, pineapples, guavas etc.

    Be creative. Experiment with herb additions eg pepper, chives, cloves, garlic, ginger to set it off.

    Don’t cook it with the meal. You will break down the fruit sugars. Just warm the blended sauce in the microwave (1 min max) and serve it piping hot with all its natural goodness and sweetness.

    Last tip. If you are good at making jams try making jams without processed sugars. Use it to cook in place of Ajinomoto, artificial seasoning and processed sugar. The advantage is that you can store out-of-season fruits the whole year for flavouring.

  13. KT @ #11

    Thanks KT.

    Nothing like a cup of freshly brewed coffee.

    I have been to Victoria St wholesale market and bought walnuts and sultanas from the Pasir Panjang wholesale market and found that Waterloos St shops’ prices are cheaper.

    Yes, I think if the fruits are not rotten but a little bruised, its ok to use them for juices and smoothies. KT, since you make your own yoghurt, you can make smoothies too at lower cost. The shop that I buy smoothies from uses bananas and fruits that are already “bokok”.

    Now I make my own smoothies at home and it costs a fraction of what I pay for at the shops.

  14. Hi folks,

    Anybody knows what I can take to ‘cure’ my frequent headaches. I don’t want to be dependent on painkillers.

    Thanks

    Norhayati

  15. Nor,

    I read somewhere that mixing half cup of water and half cup of 100+ or any isotonic drink and drink this up. Its suppose to cure headache. But I dont know whether it works for you but I have heard from some friends that it works for them.

    Warmest Regards
    Caroline Gee

  16. Hi Caroline,

    Thanks for that information. I will try this drink today! I’m willing to try anything, even standing on my head if it helps.

    Regards

    Norhayati

  17. Nor @ #14

    First check your blood pressure. Best have a general health check. Treat this first.

    If its normal, diet (all natural – yoghurt, fruits, nuts, salads; avoid hawker and processed fruits) and exercise frequently. You may be poisoning yourself slowly with your diet. And drink a lot of water to detox.

    Get rid of all other supplements. Unless it is prescribed, drop all medication, oral or external, including oils, rubs, aromatics etc.

    If you have less than 8 hours of sleep, plan to increase your sleep by half an hour at a time to 8. But don’t overdo it. Do what relaxes you most (no supper) before you sleep eg meditation, massage, watch TV, exercise/bath – 15 mins will do.

    Your system is unbalanced, physical and/or mental. Bring it back to baseline or normality. Do it naturally and you have it long term for life.

  18. Nor

    you are welcome. Haha I know what you mean about being desperate. When the headache comes, if pulling out all our hair helps, I think we would do it right?

    I get terrible headaches due to an accident I got on the head when I was young. Comatose for a few days. Doctor thought I was a goner. The pain was just unbearable. Its like a knife is being driven into the head. Then pain was an everyday affair. Lasted for many years. I still get this pain, fortunately, once in a while. So I can imagine you wanting to do a headstand if it can alleviate the pain.

    What KT @ #17 says is logical. Maybe you should try that too. His is long term remedy.

    Take care

    Warmest Regards
    Caroline

  19. Hi Nor and all other headache sufferers!

    I’ve got the instant cure for headaches: Take two Tylenols 650mg Time Release formula. I believe you can buy them from some pharmacies but I got mine from Thailand (made in Korea). I found this cheap, effective and with no side effects.

    I must say that I rarely take Tylenol or any other paracetamols like Panadol. If you have a recurrent or persistent headache, try to ascertain what causes it. It might be missing your morning coffee, or taking it; it might be lack of sleep, water intake, or some unrelated cause like gallstones (in my case).

    I can give you some Tylenols if you think you’d like to try them. Just call me.

    KT @11

    Hahaha!! Try feeding your cat coffee beans and retrieve them later for a home-brewed (kopi luak) cat-coffee!!

  21. Thank you all for the advices to ‘cure’ my headache.

    Wong Kong Thean

    Thanks for the advice. My blood pressure is normal. Although I’m not a fan of hawker food or processed fruits, I do admit my diet does not have sufficient vegetable, fruits and plenty of plain water. Plus my infrequent exercises and less than 8 hours of sleep daily.

    Caroline

    I’m sorry to hear about the accident. You’re right about pulling our hair out if it helps. Sometimes I feel like banging my head against the wall but then the thought of having a BIG ‘buah duku’ on my head stopped me, hehehe.
    Anyway, I tried the 100+ and water concoction yesterday afternoon and I had to visit the toilet several times in an hour! It didn’t relieve me of my headache though. Didn’t expect it to be a miracle cure. No harm trying. Maybe I should heed KT’s advice.

    YoonChin

    Yes, I’ve had headache since young too. Your headache left you when you gave up coffee and chocolates? Really? I love chocolates, be it biscuits, cakes, ice cream etc but then I only take them once in several months. Give up my cuppa in the morning? Hmmm…..I will try for a few days to see if it works. Thanks!

    Kenneth

    Tylenols. It sounds scary. Anyway, I try as much as possible until cannot ‘tahan’ before I take panadol. If that doesn’t help, I will then take ESP (extra strong panadol). If that also tak jalan, I will take Ponstan.

    With warmest regards

    Norhayati

  22. Dear Nor

    Tylenol is common in the U.S. but here in Singapore, Malaysia and, some say, Batam we have Panadol. They both use paracetemol and are not controlled drugs. I find Tylenol more effective and (to me) with less side effects. Two tablets of Tylenol would give up to 8 hours relief and I don’t need another dose.

    Now, Ponstan is a strong analgesic usually prescribed after operations, and may have side effects and addictive.

    My offer still stands and i think you should try Telenol. Just last month I gave a couple to my friend and she fould it extremely good compared to the panadols she was taking without much effect.

    By the way, I was at People’s Park Complex yesterday and there was this stall in the open mall which had a health check (for $5.00) where they used an electrical acupuncture-based device on the hand to determine your state of health. I found it quite accurate in acertaining my general health… no cholesterol problem, good liver and lung function, some heart fluctuation but “high” acid level, some pain/stiffness in the shoulders and legs.

    Of course, they want to sell you some of their remedies and I bought a chlorophyll liquid drink mix for $29.00, health-sucker that I am.

    So, next time you go shopping, drop by and see how you check out!

  23. Hi Nor,

    I do suggest a visit to Dr. Seah. His remedies are just natural, enjoyable and relaxing. A 15 min treatment costs $9.

    Treatment involves getting you to sit on a short stool. You get to start and end with the head. First, you get 3 mins of hair scratching with the finger tips. Of course, this process is carefully done, without any signs of blood, but this is enough for the blood to rise all the way to the scalp. The second stage is 4 mins, and is more violent, and this entails the palm of the hands to rub over every inch of the scalp.

    Come to the best part, 3rd stage, and this involves Dr Seah holding on to lumps of your hair, with both hands, and going through the action of pulling them out, with all his might. This action is repeated 20 times, over 5 minutes. Believe me, close your eyes, and you will see this process is truly relaxing.

    Stage 4 takes 3 minutes, and aims to slowly de-stress the head, after having gone through tugs, rubs, scratches and knocks. Here, you get slow chopping actions with both hands, especially at the front, top and back of the head.

    Dr Seah learnt this art of healing from his barber, whom he used to have some 30 years ago.

    Nor and all SHCians, try this ancient art of clearing headaches. If your headache does not go away within 5 mins of leaving Dr Seah’s shop, you get full refund.

    By the way, there are other related services like ear digging and twisting, ear twisting and pulling off of Silver hairs (optional $4 per session).

    Terence Seah

  24. Hi Norhayati.

    …..I do admit my diet does not have sufficient vegetable, fruits and plenty of plain water. Plus my infrequent exercises and less than 8 hours of sleep daily.

    NOW , I KNOW what is the cause of your PERSISTENT Headache.
    EXERCISE MORE, sleep at least 8 hrs,sleep before 11pm,
    drink plenty of plain water at least 7 glasses of water a day,eat more fruits and veggies to wash away the toxins from the body.

    When your blood circulation improves through exercise, your headache will also be gone instantaneously.

    Do NOT rely too much of those Tylenol, Ponstian , panadols, GOT side effects in the long run. May be able to cure your headache for a short while but it returns.

    Therefore, the BEST REMEDY is still to EXERCISE!
    Start with brisk walking around your neighbourhood with family members or by yourself

    and do join us for our Monthly Walk hosted by
    Christina Chan and Charles Wee.

    Do join us this Sat 2/8 for our rambo walk pipeline walk.

  25. Ter @ #24

    Have you heard of the Taiwanese barber massage?

    Strictly for men. They don’t even have to touch your head. You will still have your headache. But all your worries and feelings would have flew south for the winter by the time the treatment completes. You forget all the pain.

    Seriously, the science in this is the blood flow. When blood don’t flow normally or when flow is constricted, you can get the mother-of-all headaches. Massage or similar techniques stimulate blood flow or pain transference.

    But there is a proviso. Make sure that you don’t have a blood pressure problem first. If you have, solve this first. You don’t want to be massaging and pop an over-pressured thin-wall blood vessel.

    For ladies, do it in the privacy of your room. Below are two automatic head massagers you may want to consider. Only USD20+. Buy it. Try it. Bring it along to SHC meet-up. Don’t like? Return for refund. Perphaps Ter can buy it for SHC and put on rent for members.

    http://www.overstock.com/Health-Wellness/Happy-Head-Trip-Scalp-Massager/2900271/product.html?cid=128264&fp=F&srccode=cii_10043468&cpncode=12-60136599-2#moreinfo

    http://www.massager-machines-and-more.com/eyes-friend.htm

    Better health through exercise and diet is a better long term solution. But physical massage is still a better solution to taking dugs, IMO. I would avoid pills unless it is temporary and under prescription. Don’t ever be addicted to supplements or over-the-counter drugs.

    PS Don’t suggest this for a Christmas present to your spouse. She might decide that you are responsible for her pain and getting rid of you is cheaper.

    Hee-hee.

  26. Hi Terence,

    Where is this Dr Seah’s clinic located? It is possible to give me his telephone number? Thanks

    Steven

    I do my morning brisk walking on weekends only. And then I would come home with a very bad headache. I would love to join the monthly walk with other SHC members. Unfortunately however, the walk is always held in the afternoon. For personal reasons, I’m unable to attend most activities that are held in the afternoons. Thanks for your advice.

    Regards

    Norhayati

  28. Hi Norhayati,
    Home made chrysanthemum tea works
    for me.
    Just pour hot boiling water to
    dried chrysanthemums (a small handful)
    and simmered for 10 mins & drink while
    it’s still warm.
    I drink without sugar but you may add
    a bit of sugar or honey if preferred.
    Even on hot days, chrysanthemum tea is good
    to cool oneself.
    Cheers!

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