How Bad Is It To Eat Chicken Skin?

Today I steamed bone-in chicken thighs and blanched Siew Bok Choy for dinner.  The chicken thighs were kampung (village) chicken, with thick yellow skin.  I marinated the chicken with some salt, oyster sauce, and Chinese cooking wine. I also threw in some ginger slices and wolfberries.  Sherilyn loved the chicken thighs so much that she ate two whole thighs!  

I later found out that this girl even devoured the greasy chicken skin from both the chicken thighs. All of them! And this is something that I've always disapproved of. I've always advised the girls to discard chicken skin when they eat chicken as it's greasy, high in calories, and unhealthy. 

This made me wonder - is chicken skin really that bad for your health? 

Let's explore the pros and cons of eating chicken skin.

Chicken skin is a delicious and often irresistible part of a chicken dish, but there are mixed opinions about how healthy it is to eat. Some people avoid eating chicken skin altogether, while others relish it as the best part of a chicken meal.

According to Insider, most of the fat in chicken skin is the healthy, unsaturated kind, beneficial to your heart.  According to the Harvard School of Public Health, unsaturated fat can be associated with lowering your cholesterol and blood pressure.  

Tonight's dinner of steamed village chicken

Pros of Eating Chicken Skin

Flavor: Chicken skin is a rich source of flavor and can make a chicken dish more enjoyable to eat. The skin adds a crispy texture to the dish, and when seasoned and cooked properly, it can add a depth of flavor that is difficult to replicate.

Nutrition: Chicken skin is a good source of protein and healthy fats. It contains vitamin E, which is an antioxidant that can help protect your body from damage caused by free radicals. Chicken skin also contains niacin, which is important for maintaining healthy skin, nerves, and digestion.

Cons of Eating Chicken Skin

High in Calories: Chicken skin is high in calories and saturated fat. A 3.5-ounce serving of chicken skin contains approximately 475 calories and 44 grams of fat, with 14 grams being saturated fat. Eating too much saturated fat can increase your cholesterol levels and increase your risk of heart disease.

May Contain Harmful Substances: Chicken skin may contain harmful substances such as antibiotics, hormones, and pesticides. These substances are used in commercial chicken farming to promote growth and prevent diseases, and they can accumulate in the chicken skin. Consuming these substances can lead to health problems, including antibiotic resistance and hormonal imbalances.

How Bad Is It To Eat Chicken Skin?

Eating chicken skin in moderation is generally not bad for your health. If you are watching your calorie and fat intake, it is best to remove the skin before cooking. However, if you enjoy the taste and texture of chicken skin, you can eat it in moderation as part of a healthy diet. The key is to balance your intake of chicken skin with other healthy foods that are low in calories and fat. Don't forget to include lots of colorful vegetables and fruits in your daily diet.

In conclusion, eating chicken skin can add flavor and nutrition to your meal, but it is also high in calories and saturated fat. If you are trying to maintain a healthy diet, it is best to limit your intake of chicken skin and remove it before cooking. However, if you enjoy the taste and texture of chicken skin, you can eat it in moderation as part of a balanced diet. Remember to always choose high-quality chicken from reputable sources to avoid harmful substances and promote good health.

 

Beating The Haze

The perennial crazy hazy dizzy days are back in Malaysia. Thank God I don't have any asthmatic patient in the house though we all have rather sensitive upper respiratory tract.  Everyone's been downing coconut water, chrysanthemum tea, honey, hydrogen water and popping supplements. And my diffusers are working hard in my bedroom and in the dining area where my work place is.





There's no way we can completely escape the haze. I can even smell the smog inside the house.  However, there are ways to reduce your discomfort and alleviate your symptoms. Here are some of them:

1) Avoid exposure.
Avoid exercising in the open. Aerobic activities make you breathe deeply, hence you suck in pollutants deep into your lungs. If possible, try to reduce being outdoors as much as you can.

2) Stay indoors and keep the air clean
Stay indoors as much as possible and keep the doors and windows closed. If you have an air conditioner, switch it on and ensure the air filter is clean. The use of suitable particulate air filters (air filters which remove solid particles from the air) within an enclosed area can also help. When the outdoor air quality appears to be worsening, close doors and windows. This will help to reduce the rate of haze particles entering the home. Portable air purifiers and HEPA filters may reduce the number of irritating fine particles in indoor air.

3) Protect Yourself Outdoors
If you are sensitive to the smog, it is best to wear a mask when you are out and about to act as a filtration. While this is not a foolproof method, but every little action counts when it comes to keeping as much pollutants out as possible. When you have to be outdoors for several hours, an N95 mask can help filter out haze particles, including PM2.5 particles.

4) Stay hydrated.
Drink lots of plain water but you can opt for unsweetened green tea, herbal tea and Chinese tea to help you detox.  Keeping hydrated reduces the amount of smoke that can travel deep into your lungs. A minimum of 2 liters a day is what the doctor ordered. However, the more the better as it will help to flush out the toxins naturally.

5) Diffuse with essential oils
Diffusing is simply the process of dispersing essential oils into the air. The aromas from the essential oils fill your room or an area with natural fragrance, thus removing the burnt scent from the haze. Use only therapeutic-grade essential oils as you don’t want to breathe in toxic fumes diffused from synthetic oils.

Taken from the 5th floor of our condo at 7-ish a.m. on a public holiday on Monday, 9 Sept 2019:



While everyone was still in lala land enjoying their public holiday sleep in, I got up early as usual to get chores done and made everyone a cup of chrysanthemum tea with goji berries. Mine is with red dates for the added boost of iron.

Diabetes

Today the hubs Whatsapped me a photo of his staff who's warded in the hospital. He had one of his legs amputated yesterday from the knee down as a result of complications from diabetes.  Now I can't seem to shake off the image of his staff with just one and a half leg from my mind. 🤦‍♀️

This morning I bought a punnet of onde-onde from the supermarket. There are 6 bite-size pieces in a punnet. I took two pieces and the other four pieces will be shared among the 3 girls. That's how little sweet stuff we eat. Most times during cafe happy hours, a slice of cake will be shared by the six of us in the family. Each one gets a mouthful or two. I don't really suppress my cravings for sinful food but will satiate them with a bite or two. The girls are much more sweet toothed than us adults but they are well informed of the consequences of having too much sugar in their body.

Today after I'd shoved the second piece of onde-onde into my mouth, the image of the staff's pre and post-surgery leg flashed momentarily in my mind and  I almost spat out the kuih! 🤮 I know a mouthful or two of kuih won't hurt but I may have the predisposition of developing diabetes (though my blood sugar is still pretty good now) if I eat without caution as my maternal grandmother had diabetes and this disorder tends to run in the family. Imagine  waking up from your sleep one day only to realize that you now only have one leg and the bad dream that you thought you had has now become your lifelong nightmare! Scary! 😱

Risks Of Eating Raw Sprouts

Raw sprouts were once my favorite kind of rawsome vegetables to feast on. I loved all types of sprouts. Sprouts are nutritional powerhouses. For starters, they’re rich in many nutrients. They’re also said to improve your digestion and blood sugar levels, and possibly even fend off heart disease. But after I read from the newspapers recently on the health risks associated with raw sprouts, I decided that I should not take the risk.





Like any fresh produce that is consumed raw or lightly cooked, sprouts carry a risk of food-borne illness. Unlike other fresh produce, seeds and beans need warm and humid conditions in standing water to sprout and grow. These conditions are also ideal for the growth of bacteria, including Salmonella, Listeria, and E. coli.



What is the source of the bacteria? 
In outbreaks associated with sprouts, the seed is typically the source of the bacteria. There are a number of approved techniques to kill harmful bacteria that may be present on seeds and even tests for seeds during sprouting. But, no treatment is guaranteed to eliminate all harmful bacteria.

Are homegrown sprouts safer? 
Not necessarily. If just a few harmful bacteria are present in or on the seed, the bacteria can grow to high levels during sprouting, even under sanitary conditions at home.

What can consumers do to reduce the risk of illness? 
* Children, the elderly, pregnant women, and persons with weakened immune systems should avoid eating raw sprouts of any kind (including alfalfa, clover, radish, and mung bean sprouts).
*  Cook sprouts thoroughly to reduce the risk of illness. Cooking kills the harmful bacteria.
*  Request that raw sprouts not be added to your food. If you purchase a sandwich or salad at a restaurant or delicatessen, check to make sure that raw sprouts have not been added.

Homegrown Herbs

What do you do when your herb plants grow so tall that they could almost touch the ceiling?  This is what's happening to our Cuban Oregano  (Indian Borage / Mexican Mint / 'Por Ho Yip') plant. We had trimmed the plant and it re-grew at an amazing speed. I didn't know that this herb grows so well in a pot, using organic soil and watered with washed rice water and regular tap water.

Below - picture on the left shows our Cuban Oregano plant, sprouting high and mighty.  Cass calls it the "Jack And The Beanstalk" plant coz of its unusual height in comparison with other plants in our garden.  Next to Cuban Oregano  is kafir lime leaves and on kafir's left is an herb that boasts many medicinal properties. I don't know the name of the plant though. The mil recently bought it from a nursery.  There's also a 'stinky grass' herb plant in our balcony garden that the mil loves boiling mung beans with, which is touted to be a good detox herb.




It's such a waste to see the Cuban Oregano plant growing so tall and unutilized.  So I have been plucking a few leaves once a week to chew on them, treating them like salad leaves. The leaves are minty and has a pleasant taste.

Health Benefits of Cuban Oregano:
If you are suffering from a cold, a sore throat, congestion, a stuffy nose, or painful sinuses, you can chew on the leaves of Cuban Oregano or brew a tea from the leaves. The compounds contained in the herb act as a powerful expectorant to eliminate mucus and phlegm from your respiratory tracts and clear out your sinuses. This can also help to boost your immune system by preventing bacteria or other pathogens from lodging and developing in your tracts.





Below: there's also a sand ginger plant (Galangal) in our little garden (in elongated pot, picture partly hidden below left). We got it from my parents' garden in Ipoh but it's not growing very well here. It grew so freely like weeds at my parents' garden in Ipoh but sadly not when it's replanted here. Guess it misses its home ground. My dad can whip up a very delish chicken dish using the leaves and root of sand ginger.



I love my parents' garden in Ipoh the most. The garden has a thousand and one types of herbs and spices growing in it that have medicinal properties to treat almost all types of ailments. Well, on the healing claim, I am not sure whether these herbs can indeed heal diseases and ailments.  I guess one would have to eat a lot of herbs to see a significant improvement.

If we ever move to a landed property, I'll fill my garden with lots of pandan leaves, herbs, spices, vegetables, fruits trees and flowers.  And definitely a dog too! ;)

Eating Clean

Do you realize that as we age, we become more mindful about what we put into our mouths? I am not sure about you but it sure is the case for me as I age.

When I was a young girl, I couldn't be bothered with what went into my body. I was addicted to chocolates, candies, white flour products, chips, packet snacks, ham, sausages, bacon, burgers, fast food, deep fried food and fizzy drinks.   I hated to drink plain water and being a kid, I didn't know the dangers of stuffing my body with junk. In those days in the 1970s through 1990s, no one was really bothered. Cancer was hardly heard of. People just had fewer diseases. My brothers and I played outdoors a lot, every single day.

When I was a young working adult, I was still not concerned about eating clean. Well, I was not aware yet of the importance of eating clean. I had an endless stash of junk food in my office drawer. I was the junk food 'supplier' to my beloved colleagues.  I had candies, sweets, biscuits, chips and a whole load of rubbish in the drawer, perpetually. Gawd, why did I even do that?  It would take years to get rid of  the remnants of these junk and gunk from my body. I am glad that I have found Izumio to help  zap away all the toxins and free radicals from my system.

It was only when I was diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) in late 2000 which caused me unexplainable weight gain, acne and the most significant of all, infertility, that my whole life made an about turn, for the better. It was only then that I did a lot of research on PCOS. What I gathered from the internet propelled me to make a 360 degree change in my lifestyle. I incorporated exercise in my daily life and went on a low-carb diet. Junk food was almost totally eliminated from my life.

Now that I am in my 40s and have genetic high cholesterol, I made a decision to be a flexitarian, i.e. my diet is mostly vegetarian and I eat very little meat. I try to eat clean on most days but there will be cheat days where I allow myself to indulge in my favorite sinful food, moderately.

Thankfully I have a very health conscious MIL who stays with us. She whips up only healthy food, consisting mainly of vegetables.

Below is one of our regular dinners at home, with vegetables-centered dishes.





Braised organic Japanese pumpkin with chicken slices, blanched lady fingers, French bean omelette and steamed fish with ginger, soy sauce and fried garlic.





All these are simple dishes yet I thoroughly enjoy them. We hardly have deep fried food and keep processed food to the minimal in our larder :)

What To Expect From In Home Care

When you begin to make decisions about the long term care of your elderly family members, one of the options to consider is home health care. There are numerous advantages, and there are some expectations that you should be prepared to discuss with the provider before someone enters the home.

Home care is often less expensive than someone going to an assisted living facility or a nursing home. The person can remain at home, in his surroundings, so that he feels comfortable. The only thing that will be different is that someone will enter the home to provide basic care and help if there is a medical necessity. You can hire someone to come every day or once a week. The flexibility of when someone can provide care is often up to the family unless the care is ordered by a doctor.

Most home care workers are nursing assistants or have some kind of medical training. This is beneficial if your loved one needs help with walking, bathing, eating or other daily activities. The worker can assist with making sure the person eats and takes any prescriptions as needed. Some workers will help with preparing meals for the week so that the person doesn't have to cook. Cleaning the home is also one of the things that a worker can help with. These tasks can take some of thee stress for the family in providing care.

Before hiring a home care worker, you need to sit down and make a list of the expectations from the worker and what the worker expects of the family. In order for home health to be successful, both parties have to put forth the effort. If there is any sign that in home care is not the best solution, then other options can be put into place.

Questions To Ask Before A Surgery

Before you have any kind of surgery done, you need to give your doctor a detailed medical history. This is especially true for those who are considering gastric bypass. The doctor will probably schedule a consultation so that he can determine whether you are qualified for the surgery as some people think that they are morbidly obese when they don't meet the requirements.

When you meet with the doctor, you need to tell him of all of the surgeries that you have had done and any complications that you have had. This will give the doctor an idea on how to proceed with the procedure. There are also some questions that you need to ask the doctor. Find out how much weight you can expect to lose and how fast it will take to lose the weight. Do the benefits outweigh the risks? This is one of the most important things that you should think about if you have had complications before. If you have any medical conditions, then you might need to get them under control before the surgery is performed. If something goes wrong with the surgery, are there any other plans to consider? These are all questions that you can ask your doctor before making a decision about having the surgery done after you give your doctor your personal information. Learn more today about what the surgery entails before going to the doctor.

Do You Take Vitamins and Minerals?

If you google search on whether you really need to consume vitamins and minerals, you will get contrasting and contradicting information from the internet. Some websites will extol the benefits of consuming vitamins and minerals while some website will say that vitamin and supplement consumption is unnecessary, and many products could be a waste of money and potentially harmful. How do you make a decision then?

I think that if you eat a well-balanced diet everyday consisting of fruits, vegetables, fiber, protein, calcium and good carbs and stay away from junk food, you do not really need supplements. Including exercise in your daily regimen and exposing your skin to the morning sun to get your daily dosage of Vitamin D is beneficial too. But the truth is the majority of us are unable to follow this healthy regimen on a daily basis due to a variety of reasons, including myself.   I do consume calcium supplement and a good brand of multi-vitamin and minerals supplement everyday. I remember I used to suffer from pain in my heels and ankles as well as on my knees a few months after giving birth to Cass. After switching to a good brand of calcium supplement, the pain was contained and up until today, I have no more pain on my legs.

If you are suffering from certain disorders, you may need to consume a higher dosage of the required vitamin and mineral to counter the problem. My former colleague was prescribed by her doctor with a high dosage of Vitamin E to counter the outbreak of severe acne on her face. Another friend was prescribed with magnesium oxide as she had some kind of muscles and nerves disorder.

If you are in doubt and need clarification on whether you or your children need a supplement in their daily diet, you can always consult your physician.

Unhealthy Guts

My mum has been suffering from stomach pains for the past few years. She finally went for a ‘scope’ procedure at a private hospital yesterday. She was under GA. The gastroenterologist found many polyps in her colon – over 50 of them, gosh! He removed several polyps yesterday and the remaining polyps would have to be removed at a later date. Removing all the polyps at once would cause heavy bleeding. I wonder what causes the polyps to grow in the guts. Is it because her colon is not cleansed? I must ask my mum to ask her doctor what causes the polyps. Meanwhile, I am going to read up on some colon cleanse reviews and why polyps develop in our colon.

Mesothelioma Cancer

Have you heard of the disease Mesothelioma? It’s a rare and serious form of cancer in which cancerous cells are found in the mesothelium, a protective sac that covers most of the body's internal organs. The majority of mesothelioma patients have worked on jobs where they had inhaled asbestos particles. If you know of anyone who is suffering from mesothelioma, please let them know that they can get answers pertaining to mesothelioma from the Mesothelioma lawyers and will be guided accordingly.

Plantar Fasciitis Pain Relief

Lately I have been feeling pain on my feet, especially on the heel whenever I get up from my bed to walk in the wee hours of the morning. Sometimes I feel like an old woman because I will stagger and can’t walk at my normal pace. Nonetheless, the pain, known as Plantar Fasciitis is only momentarily and will subside after I have warmed up my feet. I heard that a night splint can gently flex the foot and toes overnight to provide pain relief in the mornings. I think the pain that I am suffering on my feet is caused by too much running.

Chelation Therapy To Rid Your Body Of Excessive Heavy Metals

Every evening as I feed Baby C her daily dose of antibiotics, I would say a prayer. I would ask God to spare her from having to take the antibiotics for several years, that her kidney reflux would resolve spontaneously soonest possible, that she will not get another attack of Urinary Tract Infection, that she will be spared from having to go under the knife and spared from other invasive treatments and that the antibiotics will not cause her any negative side effects like mental retardation. My heart aches seeing her struggle to eat those meds. I wonder if she needs to go for a chelation (pronounced as key-la-tion) therapy to rid her body of the excess heavy metal elements and toxins resulting from having to consume so much antibiotics. The next time we see the pediatric nephrologist, I have to remember to ask her if it’s necessary for Baby C to have an oral chelation or an oral EDTA chelation.

For your information, chelation therapy helps to rejuvenate the cardiovascular system, reduce toxic lead and metal deposits and abnormal calcium deposits, reduce blood pressure and blood cholesterol, improve circulation, improve vision and hearing, improve liver function, improve skin texture and tone and much more. If you are interested in chelating your body system to restore your health, you can pop over to cardiorenew.com to read more and to purchase their range of chelation products.

Chelation Therapy To Restore Your Health

All of us have some metals found in our body and these metals are essential to human health. For example, iron prevents anemia and zinc is a cofactor in over 100 enzyme reactions. They usually occur at low concentrations and are known as trace metals. In high doses, they may be toxic to the body or produce deficiencies in other trace metals.

Heavy or toxic metals are trace metals with a density at least five times that of water. These include mercury, nickel, lead, arsenic, cadmium, aluminum, platinum, and copper. Heavy metals have no function in the body and can be very toxic to our body. Heavy metals are absorbed into the body via inhalation, ingestion, and skin absorption. Studies have confirmed that heavy metals can directly influence a person’s behavior by impairing mental and neurological function, influencing neurotransmitter production and utilization and altering numerous metabolic body processes. Systems in which toxic metal elements can induce impairment and dysfunction include the blood and cardiovascular, detoxification pathways (colon, liver, kidneys, skin), endocrine (hormonal), energy production pathways, enzymatic, gastrointestinal, immune, nervous (central and peripheral), reproductive and urinary.

If heavy metals enter and accumulate in body tissues at a rate faster than the body’s detoxification pathways can dispose of them, a gradual buildup of these toxins will occur. That is when chelation (pronounced as key-la-tion) therapy like oral chelation and oral EDTA chelation are needed to remove the heavy metals and toxins from the body. A friend of mine has a 3-year old son who had problems with his speech. After going through a chelation therapy, his speech as well as concentration level improved significantly.

Chelation therapy helps to rejuvenate your cardiovascular system, reduce toxic lead and metal deposits and abnormal calcium deposits, reduce blood pressure and blood cholesterol, improve circulation, improve vision and hearing, improve liver function, improve skin texture and tone and much more.

If you would like to find out more about chelation and purchase chelation products, do check out cardiorestore.com. Cardio Restore offers a risk free 100% satisfaction guarantee to its customers.

Neck Pillow That Stops Stiff Neck

I used to suffer from stiff neck quite frequently but ever since I started to sleep on special concave neck pillows, I rarely have stiff neck anymore. I find that soft pillows are normally the culprit for stiff necks and I have since ditched them or put them downstairs for my cat nap in the afternoon. So if you suffer from neck pain and stiff necks, it's time you swap your pillows with special concave neck pillows. They are not very expensive and you can buy one from as cheap as RM20-30 each. They are really a good investment for a good night's sleep!

Go Easy On Your Sugar

When I was carrying Alycia, my gynae ordered me to do a Glucose Tolerance Test (GTT) and I really hated it. First, I had to fast overnight and the next morning, I had to drink a few glasses of yucky ultra sweet glucose solution before my urine was taken and tested over a period of a few hours. I passed the test but when I was 34 weeks pregnant, there were traces of sugar in my urine during one of the routine urine tests. For my subsequent pregnancies, I begged my gynae not to have this test done. The day that my gynae told me I had mild gestational diabetes (luckily only for a short while) till today, I have been really very watchful over what I eat. Since my late maternal grandmother had diabetes, I am also at risk of having diabetes if I don’t watch what goes into my mouth. Diabetes is really a dreaded hard-to-treat disease and if anyone has it, they really need to get a high risk life insurance from wholesaleinsurance.net to safeguard themselves. So the easiest way out is to watch our diet and go easy on sweet stuff.

Seven Dont's After A Meal

Folks, I got this email from my cousin. Just some food for thought but don't know how far the truth is .....

7 dont's after a meal :

1) Don't smoke-Experiment from experts proves that smoking a cigarette after meal is comparable to smoking 10 cigarettes (chances of cancer is higher).

2) Don't eat fruits immediately - Immediately eating fruits after meals will cause stomach to be bloated with air and food to ferment. Therefore take fruit 1-2 hr after meal or 1hr before meal.

3) Don't drink tea - Because tea leaves contain a high content of acid. This substance will cause the Protein content in the food we consume to be hardened thus difficult to digest.

4) Don't loosen your belt - Loosening the belt after a meal will easily cause the intestine to be twisted &blocked.

5) Don't bathe - Bathing will cause the increase of blood flow to the hands, legs & body thus the amount of blood around the stomach will therefore decrease. This will weaken the digestive system in our stomach. (I thought this is an old wives' tale!)

6) Don't walk about - People always say that after a meal walk a hundred steps and you will live till 99. In actual fact this is not true. Walking will cause the digestive system to be unable to absorb the nutrition from the food we intake.

7) Don't sleep immediately - The food we intake will not be able to digest properly. Thus will lead to gastric & infection in our intestine.

Hubby Needs To Detoxify His Body

I am a health freak but sadly my healthy regimen does not seem to rub off on hubby who does not seem to care much about his health. He eats whatever he fancies though some of the food are really unhealthy and he doesn’t drink enough plain water. That’s why he falls sick easily, always feels bloated and has joint pains on his legs. I think he has lots of toxins accumulated in his body and what he really needs is a good colon cleanse to detoxify his body. Knowing that he will not take the trouble to find out about colon cleansing, I have done some reading for him and I’ll be buying a colon cleansing kit for him too.

Drug-Free Relief For Constipation

Every now and then, I'd suffer from constipation. I've got a handful of real handy tips from my 'Alternative Cures' book by Reader's Digest which I'd like to share. Here're a few drug-free alternatives, as recommended in the book, tried & tested by myself:

1. Mixing 1 tbs of psyllium husk in a glass of water on an empty stomach. I do that on most mornings. You can easily get psyllium husk from pharmacies or organic shops, they are not very expensive.

2. Getting a daily minimum of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables, 3 servings of whole-grain foods and 1 serving of beans. I normally eat almonds, pumpkin & sunflower seeds, lots of fruits and vege. I also make my own multi-grain and seeds bread every week.

3. Drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of plain water a day. I drink way more than that.

4. Squeeze the juice of lemon into an 8-ounce glass of warm or hot water and drinking it first thing in the morning to help stimulate a bowel movement.

5. At least 30 mins of exercise daily.

6. Maintaining a regular routine & consistent time for elimination.

7. Break up the jam with colon massage. This is one new found method which really works for me. I do it almost everyday to break up the jam.
Method:
Lie on your back with your feet flat on the floor and your knees bent.

Beginning in the abdominal area on the right side just above your hip, use the fingertips of both hands to press as deeply as is comfy, then move your fingertips in a circular, massaging motion.

Continue upward just below your ribs. Then using the same pressing, circular motion, move across your abcomen just above your belly button. Continue to massage down to your left hip.

The book recommends doing the massage for 5 - 20 mins a day.

If there is bowel in your intestines, you can actually feel something hard inside while doing the massage. Normally when I can already feel them, within 5 - 10 mins, the bowel will get eliminated smoothly,without any pain or discomfort.

The Benefits of Green Tea

What is my favourite beverage? It has got to be green tea. Not a day goes by without me drinking my cuppa decaffeinated coffee in the morning and.... green tea of course, after my lunch. After I weaned Sherilyn off breastfeeding, I drank green tea to shed some pounds. It is known to help in curbing appetite.

The Chinese have known about the medicinal benefits of green tea since ancient times, using it to treat everything from headaches to depression. Today, scientific research in both Asia and the west is providing hard evidence for the health benefits long associated with drinking green tea. For example, in 1994 the Journal of the National Cancer Institute published the results of an epidemiological study indicating that drinking green tea reduced the risk of esophageal cancer in Chinese men and women by nearly sixty percent. University of Purdue researchers recently concluded that a compound in green tea inhibits the growth of cancer cells. There is also research indicating that drinking green tea lowers total cholesterol levels, as well as improving the ratio of good (HDL) cholesterol to bad (LDL) cholesterol.

To sum up, here are just a few medical conditions in which drinking green tea is reputed to be helpful:

cancer
rheumatoid arthritis
high cholesterol levels
cariovascular disease
infection
impaired immune function

So instead of heading for another cuppa cappuchino or kopi-o, why not try green tea, a much healthier altrnative.