4 April 2011
A Weekly Wellness Note

Rice and Sugar?

I hear strangest things in my clinic, from my patients, almost everyday.

Here’re typical exchanges:

Patients tell me: “don’t eat rice, it’s fattening”; “no banana, it makes you fat”; “no watermelon, it’s too sweet”.

When asked why, here’s what I hear: “I need to lose weight”, “I’m fat”; “I’m diabetic”.

Shocked; and then I’d attempt to explain to them the following:

“Eating rice alone does not make you fat”. Really?

Yes, because what causes weight gain is excess calories. And it does not matter where the excess calories come from: fat, protein, carbohydrate or sugar.

“Sugar does not cause diabetes”. Really?

Yes, because the biggest risk factors for diabetes are overweight/obesity and physical inactivity.

And what’s so wrong with eating sweet fruits? It is not a sin to eat or love to eat something sweet, especially when they are as natural as a piece of fresh fruit. Really.

Enjoy all tropical fruits—banana, mango, watermelon, jackfruit, manggis. Eat them fresh, as they are. No juicing, no blending.

Come on, we are Malaysians. If we don’t eat rice, what do we eat?

So enjoy your rice—I mean steamed brown rice. It’s full of vitamins, minerals, fibre, and it is low calories.

Really.

Yours in wellness,

Dr Yen Ang DrPH( USA), MSc(S'pore), MPH (USA), RD, ACSM Lifestyle Intervention Consultant

7 March 2011

A Weekly Wellness Note

Eat Fat to Lower Body Fat?

No, this is not a typo error. You can eat fat to lower your body fat“---but the right kind of fat

All of us store fat. The kind of fat stored in our body is called triglycerides. When your triglycerides are high, your risk of getting diabetes and heart disease increases.

To reduce this storage fat (triglycerides), first and foremost, lose some weight.

Next, watch your diet. Eat the right type of fat, and cut down on the wrong type of fat.

Numerous research and clinical experience have provided evidence that one class of dietary fat—namely omega 3 helps reduce our body fat storage called triglycerides.

Eat your fish 2 to 3 times a week Eat nuts, all kinds, especially walnuts, everyday Put some flaxseed in your bread or cereal Enjoy your tofu the way your grandma cooks and eats Go for some Japanese seaweed Don’t forget your greens such as broccoli, kang-kong, cooked with a dash of olive oil

Stay away from palm oil, coconut oil, and animal fat.

All our Weight Matters participants lost weight. One gal lost 6.3kg in just 14 days. Did they eat fat? You bet.

Eat fat—the right kind—to lose fat; and to keep yourself healthy, and happy.

The next time some one—including dietician and doctor, tells you “fat is bad for you,” or “fat causes hear attack”—ask again, what kind of fat.

I wish you well.

Yours in wellness,

Dr Yen Ang DrPH( USA), MSc(S'pore), MPH (USA), RD, ACSM Lifestyle Intervention Consultant

Don’t pinch, it’s real
By Dr Yen Ang

In April 2010, Mr Lim (not his real name) received his most dreaded news in the doctor’s clinic. He must be on insulin pump right away, at 100 units a day. That’s $18,000RM (for the pump), plus $1000RM (for insulin etc) every month.

You see, Mr Lim has been diabetic for 14 years. All oral medications and even injections had failed him; his blood sugar was totally out of whack.

At over 40 kg overweight, and constantly short of breath, Mr Lim thought he was going to die, literally.

In Oct 6, 2010, he came to my clinic. Right way, he enrolled in our 10-week Weight Matters Program—a non-pharmacological intervention that focuses on lifestyle factors that contribute to disease development.

In Oct 24 (exactly 2 weeks after the program), he discontinued his insulin pump—with a little trepidation. People have been telling him he might get into a coma if he did so. Nevertheless he decided to try: he unplugged the machine that he carried 24/7. He passed the day with no signs of trouble. Second day and third day passed with no problem. Then a week passed, he was perfectly FINE without insulin pump.

How did he do it—normalised blood sugar, lowered blood cholesterol, lowered uric acid, lost weight, all without medication? Eating food the way our body is designed to eat, moving the body it is supposed to move. A diet and exercise regime based on research evidence, not hocus pocus.

The 5-foot-9-inch big man walked into my clinic.

Almost jumping, “I am off insulin pump” came the declaration.

For the first time in 14 years, Mr Lim experiences no more shortness of breathe, his blood sugar is beautifully normal. What’s more, he is 18 Kgs (40 lbs) lighter, in just 10 weeks!

Mr Lim has to constantly pinch himself to make sure he is not in a dream.

“Don’t pinch, this is real,” I assure him.

Yours in wellness,
Dr Yen Ang
DrPH( USA), MSc(S'pore), MPH (USA), RD, ACSM
Lifestyle Intervention Consultant

About Dr Yen Ang

Yen Ang has two master degrees: one in nutrition (from United States), one in Exercise Science (from Nanyang Technological University Singapore), and a doctorate training in Preventive Care from Loma Linda University, USA—the one and only university in the world offering a graduate program that studies diseases at their root, namely: lifestyle.

She is also a registered dietitian (RD) from the United States and a certified fitness specialist from the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).

She is currently practicing as a Lifestyle Intervention Consultant in a private hospital in Penang where she created a whole new series of lifestyle intervention programs targeting at chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and obesity.

In addition to her clinical practice, Yen is an adjunct professor and fellow researcher with the School of Public Health, Loma Linda University—the university that engages in one of the world’s largest and most renowned epidemiological studies that examined the association between nutrition and disease patterns, namely the Adventist Health Study.

Some of the research work she is currently working on are: soy and breast cancer, omega 3, vitamin D and depression and mental health.