Diabetes - Are You At Risk?

Diabetes Mellitus is a chronic disease where the body is unable to produce insulin or incapable of utilizing the insulin well. Insulin is a substance in the body which helps to regulate the amount of sugar (glucose) in your blood. If insulin does not work well, it will lead to high sugar level in your blood which is detrimental to your health.  Consequently it would result in blindness, kidney failure, cardiovascular diseases, foot and leg disorders.


There are two types of diabetes. 


Type 1 diabetes: Patient's body is unable to produce insulin required to convert excess sugar to glycogen. Insulin injection is needed to control blood sugar level. 


Type 2 diabetes: Patient's body is able to produce insulin. However their insulin does not function as well as normal insulin therefore causing high blood sugar. Type 2 diabetes can be controlled by a low sugar diet, exercise and medication. Insulin is only required in serious cases.


Symptoms of Diabetes

1. Blurred vision
2. Increased thirst or hunger
3. More urine
4. Fatigue
5. Rapid weight loss
6. Dry or itchy skin
7. Loss of feeling in the hands and feet
8. Cuts that takes a long time to heal

If you experience most of the symptoms listed, please do a health screening and consult your doctor to verify if you have diabetes.

You are at risk of diabetes if you belong to the following group:

1. Family history of diabetes
2. Obese
3. More than 40 years old
4. Pregnant

Prevention is better than cure

Moderate exercise daily is recommended as it improves your body metabolism and burns up the sugar you have consumed. Do not over consume as you would unknowingly add a lot of sugar to your body. Therefore you might also want to avoid eating too much chocolate, biscuits and sweets.

Should you have any questions, please email Jin's Health Tips at tanjinlin@gmail.com

Cranberry - The Fruit Everyone Loves

Although very small in size, Cranberry has a lot to give. Not only is cranberry a very delicious fruit or a dish on your dining table, but it also has many health benefits associated with it.

picture taken from uscranberries.com

Heart: Cranberry contains flavanoid and polyphenolic compounds which are proven to be good for the heart. These are antioxidants which prevent the oxidation of low density lipoprotein(LDL), which are your bad cholesterol. This would in turn reduce the risk of getting atherosclerosis, blocked arteries, which is due to the accumulation of the LDLs.

Gastric Ulcer: The presence the bacteria Helicobacter pylori is the main cause of many gastric ulcer. It neutralises the pH of the gastric lining which allows itself to the stomach wall and hence proliferates. However, Cranberry contains proanthocyanidins which undermines the bacteria's ability to stick on our stomach wall and hence preventing gastric ulcer.

Urinary Tract Infection: Similar to that of gastric ulcer, proanthocyanidins prevents the bacteria E. coli from clinging on the lining of the urinary tract. Since the E. coli cannot stay on the urinary tract, it gets flushed away and therefore less chance for an infection to occur.

Anti-inflammatory benefits: An infection on the gum may cause peridontal diseases which might damage the support for the teeth. However cranberry contains phytonutrients which has anti-inflammatory properties that is capable of combating such and infection. It also prevents inflammation along the gastro-intestinal tracts.

Choosing your cranberry is just as important as knowing the benefits of it. Jin's Health Tips suggests that you choose cranberries which are plump, deep red and firm. The firmness indicates the freshness of the fruit. The more red it is, the more nutritious it is.

Live well, Eat Well!

Should you have any questions, please email Jin's Health Tips at tanjinlin@gmail.com

DHA - The Health Formula

Over the past few years, there has been a hype about DHA in terms of its health benefits. It is widely advertised with products such as baby powder and supplements. DHA, Docosahexaenoic acid, is a very important omega-3 fatty acids required by our body. It is essential especially for pregnant women and for the development of the fetal's brain and eye. In addition, research has shown that DHA is also good for people with cardiovascular diseases, depression.

picture taken from www.nu-mega.com

DHA is very important for the development of the brain and retina especially for the fetus. Since the only source of DHA comes from the mother, pregnant women require a higher intake of DHA to meet her body's needs. After birth, the baby still requires a high amount of DHA for brain development. Even in adult hood, a good intake of DHA ensures a good mental health. This means that you are less prone to dementia, depression and other mental diseases.

Studies have also shown that DHA may also benefit your heart and prevent you from getting cardiovascular diseases. However, if you already have a heart disease, DHA reduces the chances of another attack. For patients who have undergone bypass surgery, it prevents the blood vessel from closing up again.

DHA can be obtained from fish oil which also contains EPA, eicosapentaenoic acid, yet another form of omega-3 fatty acids. The combination of DHA and EPA is believed to have a greater health benefit to our body. If you are a vegetarian, do not worry because there are other sources of omega-3 such as soya bean, brussel sprouts, flax seeds etc.

Jin Health tips recommends two servings of fatty fish per week to supplement your body with sufficient DHA.

Shea Butter - Skin Health

Shea butter, although a relatively new cosmetic product in the market, has been widely used by African for hundreds of years. It is the yellowish fats obtained from the Shea tree's nut and contain many vitamins such as Vitamin A, B and F which are excellent for your skin.

Picture taken from bellaearth.net

Vitamin A is essential for the rejuvenation of the skin. It also is a very strong antioxidant which combats the free radicals in your skin which helps improve wrinkles and lines on the skin. In addition, it can prevent acne by reducing sebum production.

Vitamin E is another very strong antioxidant which has similar properties to that of vitamin A. In addition, Vitamin E also contains anti-inflammatory, anti-UV, moisturizing properties. Therefore you tend to find it in many sunscreen lotions, cosmetics, moisturizing products etc.

Vitamin F is basically your omega 3 and 6. Its main role in this context is to repair your skin cells and generate new ones. People with Vitamin F deficiency often find themselves having dry skin or eczema.

For people with Eczema, Jin's Health tips recommend that you try Shea butter as your body wash. It moisturizes your skin well and hence prevents irritation of your skin. It also penetrates deep into your skin to keep your skin moisturized for a longer period of time.

Just a tip on choosing your Shea butter. Generally it comes in two kinds: raw or processed. The raw ones are the best but it has a natural smell which might be unpleasant to some. Most people are actually fine with the smell actually. Otherwise you could still try the processed one which is a tad whitish in color. However the more processed it is, the less vitamins you will get.

If you have any queries, please feel free to email Jin's Health tips at tanjinlin@gmail.com

Pinhole Glasses and Its Magical "Powers"

Whether you are myopic(short-sighted) or hyperopic(long-sighted), there is something new in the market which might just be right for you and that is the pinhole glasses. These glasses are made of plastic and contain hundreds of pin holes which allow light rays to enter and fall accurately on your retina so that you will be able to see without your spectacle. Now you should be wondering how does the pinhole glasses works?

If you are a photographer, you would know that an object will be more focused by reducing the aperture of the lens. People with myopia or hyperopia always have blurred vision because the light which enters their eyes do not fall on their retina. It either ends up before the retina for the myopic or after for the latter. This is the cause of their blurred vision. However, pinhole glasses is able to correct these problems. As light passes through the pinhole, it is not refracted by the lens of your eye and travels straight to the wall of your retina. Therefore, you will be able to have a clearer vision.

Picture taken from natures-energies.com

If you have to use the computer very often, you might want to try using the pinhole glasses. Long usage of computer will often cause Computer Vision Syndrome. Users will hence experience eye strain, headache, blurry vision, double vision, eye fatigue and dry eyes. Wearing pinhole glasses will reduce the glare from your monitor, increase the depth of your vision and most importantly helps your eyes to relax.

Even though there are no medical studies that prove that pinhole glasses can have permanent improvement on the vision, there have been many reports that wearing such glasses daily for at least 15mins can improve your vision. However, do not wear these glasses when driving because your peripherals are being blocked and will therefore be very dangerous.

Lastly, pinhole glasses are very affordable and could be purchased easily over the counter. There are no side effects to this product so if you are interested, there is no harm trying.

If you have any queries, do feel free to email Jin's Health tips at tanjinlin@gmail.com