Diabetics and mangoes, a winning combination? (Part 2)
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- Category: Dear Andrea
- Published on Thursday, 16 May 2013 16:40
- Written by Dwayne Blair
- Hits: 3
Diabetics, like others, enjoy fruit because it helps to satisfy their sweet tooth. The nutritional benefits are just an added bonus. But which fruits are okay? Look past the sweet effect and consider what else is in them.
The diabetic’s best friend – fibre. Foods with high to medium levels of fibre also rate low on the glycaemic index (GI), which means they release sugar slowly and do not spike blood sugar levels. Mangoes meet these criteria without creating additional problems. To top this off, although research is at an early stage, mangoes, especially the skin, have been recently identified as particularly useful in the fight against Type 2 diabetes mellitus. While more research is needed, eating a mango a day could protect people against high levels of cholesterol as well as diabetes. A 2005 study by the Australian Health and Medical Research Congress in Melbourne found that components of mangoes operate similar to certain diabetes drugs. They do this by targeting the same pathways the drugs target.
This is NOT a wholesale invitation to eat mangoes in abundance. Just like all other foods, there are safe limits depending on your weight, other eating patterns, blood sugar levels and exercise habits. Consult your doctor or dietician to determine what would be an adequate amount of mangoes for you to eat without overdoing it and raising your blood sugar level.
Should diabetics exclude mangoes, from their diet? Thank heavens no! Just have them with the skin for extra fibre and anti-diabetic properties, and seriously, in moderation. Enjoy the mango season.
Contributed by: Kerene Walker who lectures in the Department of Medical Technology, Northern Caribbean University
HEALTH HINTS: Tissue contamination, UTI’s, tissue or rags
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- Category: Dear Andrea
- Published on Thursday, 02 May 2013 17:38
- Written by Dwayne Blair
- Hits: 32
With the recent revelations about contaminated toilet papers found by the Bureau of Standards Jamaica, many women are contemplating and some have decided to forego tissue completely and use rags instead. But, is this a safe or practical decision?
The vagina is a sensitive organ that is equipped to clean and take care of itself. Healthy vaginal secretions maintain an acidic pH and promote the growth of beneficial bacterial which in turn prevent the growth of pathogens “germs” that may cause urinary tract infections (UTI’s), like yeast. Using toilet paper is a fairly safe and convenient way of removing residual urine, sweat and secretions.
So what will using a rag do? It depends on how the vagina is cleansed. Some important rules to follow when cleaning the vagina are: ensure your hands are clean; focus on cleaning the outside of the vagina, called the labia or “lips”; remember to wipe from front to back to avoid introducing bacteria from the anus causing urinary tract infections “UTI’s.”; a rag is fine, but, ALWAYS ensure it is clean and soft to prevent bruising of the sensitive areas. It will be a bit tedious to carry rags to last through the day. If washed between uses, ensure rags are dry before reuse; use unscented feminine wipes if preferred.
Tissue or rags? Clean rags are perfectly safe, but impractical. I recommend sticking with the safe tissue brands listed on the BSJ’s website.
Contributed by: Kerene Walker who lectures in the Department of Medical Technology, Northern Caribbean University.
Worried Mom
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- Category: Dear Andrea
- Published on Friday, 22 March 2013 18:35
- Written by Dwayne Blair
- Hits: 80
I am the mother of two boys, the first started college this year and the other is in high school. My boys are adorable, but I am having serious issues with the second one, he thinks he is overweight and is trying too hard to lose weight.
When he was younger he did not like physical activity and would spend his free time sleeping or playing video games and would eat a lot of sweets and junk food even though I warned him against it.
Now he has lost so much weight and really looks better, but sometimes he starves himself and seems to be developing health problems. All this is because he thinks it is the way to go to be healthy and to be able to wear the latest fashion. I do not know what to do with him. When I tell him that he is hurting himself, he tells me that slim people are healthier and happier with themselves.
Worried Mom
Dear Worried Mom,
You need to sit your son down and let him know that you understand what he is going through as no one wants to be overweight, but his body needs some fat to be healthy and grow, especially during his teen years. It is not safe to lose weight at a rapid pace, but since he is bent on doing it, visit your doctor to do a proper health check and put him on a programme that will help him achieve his goals in a healthy way.
Your son should also understand that his health is more important than fashion. Someone whose weight gets too low will start having health problems. If this goes on for too long, those problems may be severe and very dangerous. Not eating right can make people sick.
Need A High
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- Category: Dear Andrea
- Published on Monday, 29 April 2013 17:59
- Written by Dwayne Blair
- Hits: 26
Dear Andrea,
I have been dating this guy for about six months and he expects me to give him oral sex at least once a day and every time before we have sex, he says I have to “get it ready,” but not once has he reciprocated.
My exes have had no objections and I keep myself very clean, so I don’t know what the issue is. I brought it up on one occasion and he said he doesn’t do that. On another occasion we were talking about the things that we would like to do together and I mentioned it again, this time he wasn’t as negative, but it’s been three weeks and still nothing.
I don’t know what to do, I hate that he expects me to give in and do everything he wants sexually, but he won’t do the one thing I want.
Need A High
Dear Need A High,
You should not have to engage in oral sex to enjoy each other. But your boyfriend sounds very selfish, he should not ask you to do what he is not willing to do.
That is something that both of you need to be very comfortable with doing and you both must be able to trust each other.
Be reminded that you can contract STDs by doing oral sex and so precautions should be taken.
Andrea
NDX Query
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- Category: Dear Andrea
- Published on Friday, 08 March 2013 18:25
- Written by Dwayne Blair
- Hits: 140
Dear Andrea,
I have been hearing about the Government of Jamaica Debt Exchange Programme and need to understand what it is and how it will affect me.
Please help me to understand it.
NDX Query
