Vacuum frying has come in the province

There is excitement in new things, a challenge, a welcome respite from boredom. Especially if that thing is food, I mean, healthier food. 

When I was in Ormoc this weekend, an acquaintance introduced me a new food product from Baybay, Leyte: Vacuum Fried Jackfruit (Langka). And I fell in love with it.

Photo from web.evis.net.ph

Vacuum frying has been the trend nowadays since most consumers prefer healthier lifestyles. I am not that familiar with vacuum frying, but as I understood it the technology enables fruits or vegetables to be immersed in a vegetable oil at a controlled temperature to optimize the quality of the products fried.

In ordinary frying, the product is subjected to extreme heat thus scorching (burning) and darkening occurs. In vacuum frying or others call the process as atmospheric frying, the product is subjected to gradual reduction of moisture, like slow frying in extreme heat but not enough heat to boil water. This way, the fruit or vegetable undergoing the process retains most of its original color, taste, aroma and nutritional content.

Here in the Philippines, the technology is quite young and many entrepreneurs find it hard to acquire the machine since it is quite costly, thus, products undergoing vacuum frying technology are not for the masa (common people). Not yet.

But with Leyte State University's Department of Food Science and Technology introducing this vacuum frying technology in the provincial areas, healthy snack products will soon carve a niche in the Philippine market. Perhaps, no more oily snacks in the future?

(Leyte State University is formerly known as Visayas State College of Agriculture or ViSCA. A 50g pack of Vacuum-Fried Jackfruit costs about 45-55 pesos.)

Filipino resilience and the E. Coli

Lately, Germany is attacked by Escherichea Coli bacteria popularly known as E.coli. E.coli is mostly found in raw food like vegetable salad and beef.

Strangely, this bacteria lives in our intestines without us knowing and surprisingly help us in our digestive processes within. But some strain, the term used for viruses and bacteria that has acquired superpowers so to speak, gets into our blood and cause serious infections.

From Germanu, the bacteria attack has spread in Spain and throughout Europe and several deaths have been reported.

But poverty in the Philippines has shunned E.Coli bacteria from its vocabulary. Mostly. Only those in the upper strata have actually blamed the bacteria for some diarrhea attacks.

When a fruit has started to get brown, because they were displayed first before being eaten, the affected areas were pruned and given to pigs to eat. Ok pa to. This is still okay. When vegetables started to rot, the rotten area were pinched and carved while the rest goes to cooking pots. Wala pa yan. When bread has accumulated molds, the greenish part were taken and the rest toasted or given to domestic helps to be eaten right away. Pwede pa. There is no E.Coli in the Philippines!

And then kidney problems started to become a trend in this part of the world.

Before cooking up something, wash your vegetables first, thoroughly I should say, and pause to read the following articles. These are worth a read:

Washington Post: Germany presses to find cause of E.Coli outbreak that killed 18
CNN: E.coli: Is my salad safe?
VOA News: E.coli: Good Bacteria Gone Bad

Again, beer is good!

Moderate drinking of beer, like a pint a day, keeps the doctors away, according to Spanish researchers. In case you want to justify your drunkenness- Moderate means once or twice a day, Pint means 2 cups of that liquid only.

But- yes, there is a BUT. Read on-

A pint of beer a day keeps the doctor away by Richard Alleyne, The Telegraph 

Moderate drinking of ale and lager can cut the risk of diabetes and high blood pressure and even help people lose weight, doctors say.

The Spanish researchers suggest combining beer with exercise and a healthy Mediterranean diet high in fish, fruit and vegetables and olive oil.

Beer contains folic acid, vitamins, iron and calcium and has the same health benefits already attributed to moderate wine drinking, researchers found.

And they blamed fatty foods like chips, a lack of exercise and binge drinking for beer bellies in Britain.

Dr Ramon Estruch, the lead researcher, said: “Moderate beer consumption is associated with nutritional and health benefits.

Picture grabbed from TriBeCa

The way to energize yourself is simply by staying healthy and fit

"Why should people be afraid that we use a few small pellets of uranium at the nuclear power plant in Bataan? Don't they know that we're surrounded by uranium? We have the world's fourth largest deposits of uranium. Yes, we're all radioactive -- must be the reason why we have so many faith healers!" ~Imelda R. Marcos

Long before someone asked me to buy this Quantum Scalar blah-blah, I've read in one of the blogs of The Coconuter that this pyramiding scheme of Quantum Scalar Pendants (in his case, the Fusion Excel) is a fake, a scam. The Coconuter has a long standing case still ongoing between them because of his writeup.

These pendants promised a good life, never mind paying a hefty sum, but good life it is, they say. Imagine yourself being freed from stress and fatigue, or arthritis, diabetes, hair loss, or worst, low sexual drive. Think of any illness you can name and the scalar pendant promised it will relieve them because of their scientific breakthrough called quantum scalar energy.

Now I hate when people speak alien to me. It’s one way of deception. To confuse the enemy. Or the client. You will be forced to buy because you are impressed with the way they use unknown terms just like expert doctors. And majority of us are usually misled of sweet talks.

But here is a more effective way to get rid of illness, the natural way. No amount of fused energies, be it coming from stones or quack doctors, can ever question them-

Eat more fruits and vegetables. Let’s admit that these are the last things you have in mind when you think of food. They are the best source of vitamins and minerals that will aid us as we age.

Avoid junk foods. Yes, I love eating burgers and chips. And who is not? Being bombarded daily with their ads, our mind is set to buy them. I say, eat them once a while but not always. Need I say more?

Exercise, exercise, exercise! You don’t have to go to the gym to achieve that. You can walk instead of taking a jeep in going home. Or take the stairs instead of the elevators. Or clean your house. The clue there is to sweat the toxins out.

Drink lots of water. Our body is 80% water so it’s only understandable that we replenish them. But wait, have you checked your water source?

Relax and de-stress. When you have a sedentary job, watching TV is not relaxing. Go out and get some fresh air. If you have the budget, travel. Have a good massage.

Sleep or take naps. It’s not a hard thing to do. Our body needs rest. Recent studies even confirmed that sleeping reduces weight compared to those who have less.

Be religious but not a fanatic. When all of our friends turn their backs on us, we need someone or somebody to turn to even if that somebody could not be seen.

Source: Cheftonio's Blog

Healthy Tip 101: Do something active every day

For us working most of our time in front of the computer, something active is needed so we won't just slump in our favorite chair and dream of a life built on TV. By active I mean that we should do something productive other than slouching in your chair and waiting for the porn to download.

We should remember that our body also adapts negatively to a lack of activity. 

Ever noticed those one-pack ab you have been harboring (and hiding it by wearing the obligatory mournful black shirts) is getting bigger because you've been sitting down the whole day and even towards the evening? 

Although it is a fact that our body responds only to intense activities like gym exercises, still we need to get up and move around, that is on daily basis, so our body won't languish and rot in complete indolence. Going for a walk, or doing house chores are simple solutions to get rid of our body's inactivity. The key point there is to perspire and get rid of the toxins in a simple way.

So now that you know, get the hell out of there and start walking.

From Askmen.com-

Recent research suggests that constantly being bombarded with stimulation in the form of e-mails, tweets and the like can take its toll on your brain, leaving you fatigued, impeding the learning of new skills and consolidation of new information. To reset your mind, unplug completely at lunchtime. Yes, that means turning off your phone, too. If you're able to, head to a park or any place with greenery to feel calmer and you'll return to work with more energy.

Run

"The only reason I would take up jogging is
so that I could hear heavy breathing again." - Erma Bombeck

"Avoid touching, kissing, and hugging." - DOH

As if it were not enough, Mexico, already threatened by a deadly swine flu virus, was rattled by a 6.0 magnitude earthquake on Monday, 27 April.

Meanwhile the Philippine government stepped up its efforts to get rid of any possible contamination in the country. Health officials asked Filipinos to refrain from hugging, kissing or even touching other people.

That means I have to wrap myself up in a bubble world starting today until the virus is contained. Sorry guys, you will miss my hugging and kissing for the time being.

TAKE NOTE:

..the “proper way” of coughing, say health authorities, is to cough into one’s shirt, holding the neckline over one’s face to prevent the spread of germs – carried in the air through droplets expelled by your mouth or nose – to other people.

Washing one’s hands frequently, or using alcohol hand cleansers, are also practices we can adopt to prevent spreading not just swine flu virus but other germs as well.

Swine Flu Etiquette/Rina Jimenez-David

(Pic grabbed from latimes.com)

"Health is wealth"

[Goodbye Mariana Bridi da Costa!]

My mother would always remind me- Health is wealth. She would admonish us when we seemed to forget that our bodies were so fragile.

A healthy body is our only hope, she would tell us. For how can you earn money when you are always sick? Indeed she was right- once again.

When I read the news about a Brazilian model who got her arms and legs amputated because of severe infection, I was sad. I didn't know her of course. But earning money from a modelling job and suddenly your arms and feet are amputated doesn't make sense anymore. When can she recover from that? If she could.

Or I am just a pessimist!

DUE TO SEVERE URINARY INFECTION
Brazilian model’s hands, feet amputated 

Agence France-Presse
First Posted 09:39:00 01/22/2009

Filed Under: Health treatment, Diseases

SAO PAULO -- A 20-year-old model who was a finalist to represent Brazil in the Miss World contest has had her hands and feet amputated after contracting a severe urinary infection, media reported Wednesday.

Mariana Bridi da Costa was sedated in a hospital in Serra, in Brazil's state of Espirito Santo, and on artificial respiration following the procedures, according to several dailies.

Bridi was diagnosed with infection by the Pseudomonas aeroginosa bacterium, which can often prove fatal. Septicemia set in in her limbs, cutting off circulation and forcing doctors to amputate.

Her boyfriend, Thiago Simoes, told the G1 news website that Bridi fell ill on December 30, but was initially misdiagnosed with kidney stones.

The infection quickly spread, causing her to go back to hospital for tests that revealed her condition. Surgeons had to act to remove her damaged hands and feet.

Her father, Agnaldo da Costa, told the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper that "the concern is over her life."

Bridi twice made it into the national finals for the Miss World contest, and last year traveled to China to participate in the Miss Bikini International pageant, G1 said.

News from Inquirer.net/ Photo from oglobo.oglobo.com

Sick and Tired

That was how I felt. Sick and tired.  

I had this massive headache five days ago and I literally suffered in silence. Just the mere sight of the sun's brilliance was like that sun was boring a hole in my head. The lights from the bulbs would likewise drill me to death. The minutest sound would remain in my head like forever. Good gracious, like it was never enough, I also had a nagging cough and a running nose. And since I lived alone for now, I also suffered alone. I could not go out to buy medicines. I could not go out to buy food. All I had was coffee and water. I didn't even have the energy to make coffee. I was sick, tired and hungry all the time.  

I am more than glad now that I am basically well. Although the cough is still here. The colds gone. But the headache is not that massive anymore. And the lights are not turning me freaky now. I can listen to classical music again. And so I am back with my blogs. Welcome back myself!

Picture from my friend Paul of Baguio City

SECRETS REVEALED

I found this article interesting enough for me to think twice. Hmmm sounds true.

Dave Zinczenko is a writer on Mysteries of the Sexes Explained at Men's Health and explains to us Men's Secret Fears.

The article goes-

A lot of guys try to give the impression that they're calm and cool, that they can handle the pressure, that they think worrying is for wimps.

And the sad part is, the women in their lives sometimes buy this act, or even encourage it. Heck, if he isn't worried, they can feel calmer, too. Maybe you buy the act because the only time you see emotion in your man is when he's watching the first round of March Madness, and his bracket is about to go down in flames.

Or maybe it's because the only time you've seen him sweat was when he had to wear a suit to an August wedding. Or maybe it's because the last time you asked him, "Aren't you worried?" he responded with a dismissive, "Nah."

While men pretend that they're wired with steel cable, not nerves, they have their shakedown moments, too. Here are some of the biggest worries that can weigh on a guy's mind.

That He's Going to Lose His Hair

Yes, I know it seems surface-level to worry about such a vanity issue as baldness, but lots of guys equate follicle failure as a failure in masculinity, as well. Oh, we know it's not true - that hair loss has nothing to do with how funny, smart, or good a guy is. But knowing is a heck of a lot different than feeling. Pluck a lion's mane sometime, and see if he purrs.

That He's Going Broke

Economic shocks (like the one we're in right now) worry guys for lots of reasons: Your man probably feels like one of his largest charges in life is to be able to provide comfortably for his family. While money and job problems have their own tangible effects, they can also undermine the way he sees himself as a man. So if he's a little freaky around the checkbook, it's because his bank balance is closely tied to his emotional balance. A simple four-step plan for your savings like this one can ease his fears.

That He'll Have One Cheeseburger Too Many

Millions and millions of guys worry about their health - more, of course, as they get older. The one killer that really makes us think: the heart attack. One minute you're watching Simpson reruns; the next minute you're staring at the ceiling of an ambulance. Because we've read too many stories or known too many people who checked out earlier than they should have, the threat is always lingering - in our bodies as well as our minds.

That He'll be Called Out in Public

Some of us are thick-skinned when it comes to taking criticism from bosses, spouses, and every other kind of critic. And some of us have skin thinner than a Spring Break T-shirt. But none of us like getting called out or picked on in front of a crowd. It's not that we can't take the criticism, or can't think of a comeback, or can't accept the fact that we're imperfect. It's that public attack forces us to counter-attack or retreat - both of which have their downsides.

That His Kid Won't Make the Free Throw

Granted, a guy is going to worry a heck of a lot more about the big things when it comes to parenting - that junior wears a helmet when he rides his skateboard, that he does well in school, and that he thinks drugs are for losers.

But want to see a guy's heart pump? Put his kid on the field, court, or dance floor. He's pulling hard for his gene-carrier to do well - not because he wants to live vicariously through them (as most people assume), but because he wants to see their smiles and their fist pumps. It's because happiness is directly correlated to theirs.

That He'll Fail to Perform in the Clutch

When a man can't rise to the occasion he feels about as useful as a '63 Oldsmobile with rusted spark plugs. But before you put him up on blocks, reassure him that more than one in ten will have trouble with erectile dysfunction at some point in their lives, and the other 9 guys out of 10 have good reason to be concerned as well.

As part of our research for the new book "Eat This, Not That!," my coauthor Matt Goulding and I undercovered evidence that the American diet is slowing our sex lives (for both men and women) to a crawl. You can find out why that's happening and discover the best and worst sex foods by clicking here.

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