Category Archives: Health
Tea is the most popular and widely consumed drink in the world second to water. Tea was discovered by Chinese more than 5000 years ago. It was popularized and commercialized by the English. But did they popularize the healthiest tea? There are three types of tea depending on the level of processing; unfermented, partially fermented and fermented tea. Actually, the correct term for the process that tea undergoes is oxidation rather than fermentation. Based on these three processes, there is white tea, green tea, Oolong and black tea. White tea, as the name suggests is… Continue reading →
I’m slightly disturbed after reading an article about the growing popularity of cosmetic surgery among Nairobi’s upper middle class. The article was full of horror stories of procedures gone awry which was bad enough, but one quote gave me pause. “And the most common procedure among Kenyan men was lip reduction— making lips thinner.” Whaaat? Before I jump to conclusions, how does this compare the most popular surgeries elsewhere? According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, in 2010, the top 5 cosmetic surgeries for women were breast augmentation, nose reshaping, liposuction, eyelid surgery and tummy tucks. This lines… Continue reading →
Well, you are probably reading this post asking ‘what does weight have to do with my job?’ The reality is, that weight has everything to do with your job. Lets be very frank most times we really do not pay much attention to our health unless we fall ill and our doctor says so or our clothes become are too tight for comfort and soon can’t zip up anymore. I am one of those people who has been overweight for a part of my life, until i one day woke up and realised that i… Continue reading →
White colour has always been used to symbolise, new, pure, unadulterated, clean etc. On the other hand, brown colour has always been used to signify, dirt, contamination, unclean etc. This is no longer the case. Brown as opposed to white is the new colour of health cereal products. Name them; brown bread, brown rice, brown ugali etc. Why are brown cereal products healthier than white counterparts? Most cereal products are made from flour. The determinant of the health quality of the final product is the milling process. For example, during the processing of the flour… Continue reading →
It is regarded as the cheapest thing in the world. It is an all-time additive in food. It is used world-wide. If it is missing in food, food is rejected. Unfortunately, it is a killer. What is it? Sodium derived from salt (sodium chloride), which was once a darling has turned out to be a jilted lover, incapacitating, killing and killing mercilessly. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for Sodium intake per day is not more than 2.4g. The Food Standard Agency, UK (FSA) recommends 6g of salt per day. … Continue reading →
There are claims and counter-claims that cooking vegetables in a microwave oven zaps all the nutrients and renders vegetables worthless. Does microwave oven really kill nutrients? What causes loss of nutrients during cooking? There are three key factors that contribute to the loss of nutrients during cooking of vegetables whether over open fire, by hot plate, gas cooker or microwave oven. If these critical factors are well controlled, losses are minimised and the cooked vegetables deliver high levels of nutrients. Long cooking periods using slow methods leads to high losses while fast, short cooking periods… Continue reading →
I was born in the early 70’s (I know quite shocking!). The privileged first born child I was fed like a prize calf. Happy, healthy and chubby I was the apple of my parent’s eye. Fast forward to present time – still an apple. The apple shape is top heavy … you know the generous boobs, equally generous midriff, slender hips and legs and pseudo waistline. I wistfully look at my pear friends – their voluptuous curves, their waistlines and wonder if I should get a butt job. Shift the belly fat to my butt…. Continue reading →
I’ve been trying to get my hair coloured for a while, and I finally gave up after four tries and three thousand shillings. I didn’t want to pour more money down the sink. Plus, I was afraid my hair would fall off. Hair colour can do that sometimes. The saga began with a mix of two colours – ultraviolet black and aubergine. This was followed by some food colour, more aubergine, and some wailing with mirrors. The first time I dyed it, the hairdresser said it was coloured, but my baby girl said otherwise. I… Continue reading →
Do you enjoy word games? There are many to pick from : crossword puzzles, letter jumbles, word searches, etc. Word games are a fun way to pass the time, and many of us play word games regularly as a way to keep the brain sharp. Does doing the daily crossword puzzle really improve your memory? The answer is: not was much as you might think. Word games tend to be stimulating for the brain when you first start doing them. Crossword puzzles, for example, help to improve your vocabulary and challenge your brain to think… Continue reading →
So … I haven’t been to the gym in two weeks. I have a perfectly legitimate excuse. The first week, I had workshops, so I had to leave the house earlier. The second week, my cheques hadn’t cleared and the gym subscription had run out. I bumped into the gym instructor three days into the ‘wallet-fast’ and he told me I could come in anyway. I didn’t take him up on it. It was partly guilty conscience, but mostly oversleeping. Somewhere amid my hiatus, I had to go to a clinic for a routine tune-up…. Continue reading →