SOURCE: MAZWIN NIK ANIS (THE STAR ONLINE)
PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia reported six more deaths related to Influenza A (H1N1), taking the total number of fatalities to 32.
Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said that only one death occurred on Sunday. Two of the victims had succumbed to the disease on Aug 5 and three patients died on Aug 8.
He said it was only confirmed that the five victims had died due to A (H1N1) following post-mortems. The deaths were officially reported to health authorities on Sunday.
“Four of the victims had underlying risk factors. In the last 24 hours, 203 new cases were reported, of which 15 were being treated in intensive care units and 67 patients are in isolation wards,” he said Monday.
The total number of reported cases in the country stood at 1,982 to date. Globally, 208,155 people have been infected by the virus and 1,688 people from 174 countries have died.
Dr Ismail advised those who show symptoms and are in a high-risk group to immediately seek medical attention, adding that the anti-viral treatment had proven effective on patients who began treatment within 48 hours of showing symptoms.
High-risk groups include children who are below five years; senior citizens 65 years and above; children and youths under 19 who have been taking aspirin on a long-term basis; pregnant women; those who suffer from asthma, chronic lung disease, organ failure, cardiovascular, liver and blood system diseases; diabetics; obese people; and those with a low immunity.
“Those who show light symptoms should be given symptomatic treatment, stay at home and limit their interaction with others.
“One should should also look for warning signs such as difficulty in breathing, fever, continuous chest pains, cough and diarrhea,” he said.
Dr Ismail also advised the public to lead a healthy lifestyle by consuming sufficient amounts of water, eating healthy and not smoking.
In MALACCA, the Education Ministry said it will propose a uniform and consistent set of guidelines for school closures, reports MARTIN CARVALHO.
Its Deputy Minister Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong said the proposal would be tabled before the National Security Council as soon as possible.
He said these guidelines would help avoid inconsistent decisions by state health authorities.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Baby among three new A(H1N1) deaths
Source: The Star Online
KUALA LUMPUR: Three more people including a baby and a child died of Influenza A (H1N1), bringing the death toll to 18.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the 16-month-old baby girl had fever, cough and runny nose for a week before she was admitted to hospital last Sunday.
He said the baby died of severe pneumonia with underlying A (H1N1) infection at Sultanah Aminah Hospital in Johor Baru on Friday.
A five-year-old boy with upper respiratory tract infection, died of encephalitis secondary to A (H1N1) at Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital in Kuantan on Friday, said Liow.
He said the other flu-hit victim was a 63-year-old asthmatic patient who died of severe pneumonia and underlying pulmonary tuberculosis.
“He had fever, runny nose and cough for five days before being admitted to Selayang Hospital last Sunday.’’
Liow said the country also recorded 53 new cases, bringing the total to 1,578.
“There are still 64 people warded at the hospital including two babies, two obese persons and a post-delivery mother in the high-risk group.’’
Liow has urged the public to practise good hygiene, avoid crowded places and shun big events.
However, he said the Merdeka celebrations at Bukit Jalil National Stadium this month would be held as planned for now.
“We will screen everyone including participants of the parade and the public before they enter the stadium,’’ he said.
He also called for private medical practitioners to give out masks to flu and cough patients as part of their treatment.
“The vaccine will only arrive by the end of the year. For now, we must prevent the flu from spreading,’’ he told a press conference after opening the Japan Clinic at HSC Medical Centre here Saturday.
Liow also urged local doctors to be more competitive following healthcare liberalisation.
The liberalisation, which is taking place in stages, enables foreign companies to open hospitals and foreign doctors to work in the country.
Liow said the ministry has so far opened up five sectors.
Friday, August 7, 2009
The Idiot is Richer
Source: KCLAU.COM
One evening, the bar was unusually crowded. People started patronizing the place before dinner time and soon the place was full of middle-age adults who know each other for a long time. It was a reunion party and they were all friends graduated from the same school at the same time.
The obvious way to find out how a person is doing financially is to look at what car he/she drives. David, a senior engineer in a multi-national-corporation who used to be the top student, drives a Japanese car (middle range type). Frank, who persistently failed English language test, drives a Europe-made luxurious sedan. It is an S-Class Mercedes Benz to be specific. Apparently, Frank has the money, earns the big bucks from his businesses. He is the director of several companies.
I bet that you will find someone like Frank and also David during your reunion party. Is there a correlation between academic success and financial well-being?
Book worms are nerds
Academic success may guarantee you a higher-basic-pay-job. But thereafter, your certificates are practically useless. To advance in a career or business, we require a different set of skills. Beside hard works, you’ll need communication skill, selling skill, leadership skill….you name it. Technical skill can only bring you so far.
Graduates has ego
A degree holder has an inflated feeling of pride in his/her superiority. That’s an inevitable ego boost. When you have high ego, it stops you from doing the necessary things that may secure financial success.
Were you at the top, or at the bottom?
If you used to be among the best in school, look at where you are now? Is there someone who did worse academically is richer than you now?
I know quite a few classmates who are doing great now, definitely better than me. The fact is that I was the top three students in school last time.
One evening, the bar was unusually crowded. People started patronizing the place before dinner time and soon the place was full of middle-age adults who know each other for a long time. It was a reunion party and they were all friends graduated from the same school at the same time.
The obvious way to find out how a person is doing financially is to look at what car he/she drives. David, a senior engineer in a multi-national-corporation who used to be the top student, drives a Japanese car (middle range type). Frank, who persistently failed English language test, drives a Europe-made luxurious sedan. It is an S-Class Mercedes Benz to be specific. Apparently, Frank has the money, earns the big bucks from his businesses. He is the director of several companies.
I bet that you will find someone like Frank and also David during your reunion party. Is there a correlation between academic success and financial well-being?
Book worms are nerds
Academic success may guarantee you a higher-basic-pay-job. But thereafter, your certificates are practically useless. To advance in a career or business, we require a different set of skills. Beside hard works, you’ll need communication skill, selling skill, leadership skill….you name it. Technical skill can only bring you so far.
Graduates has ego
A degree holder has an inflated feeling of pride in his/her superiority. That’s an inevitable ego boost. When you have high ego, it stops you from doing the necessary things that may secure financial success.
Were you at the top, or at the bottom?
If you used to be among the best in school, look at where you are now? Is there someone who did worse academically is richer than you now?
I know quite a few classmates who are doing great now, definitely better than me. The fact is that I was the top three students in school last time.
123456789
Source: The Star Online
Today, (Friday) the 7th of August 2009, you lived through two unique moments of the Gregorian calendar.
Today afternoon at 12:34:56pm and at 12:34:56am the figures come up as 123456.
The figures 789 are for the date 7th, the month of August 8 and the year 2009.
Run in sequence it becomes 123456789.
You can live through it again if you live for a 1,000 years from now when it will be 3009, with the same time and date.
Today, (Friday) the 7th of August 2009, you lived through two unique moments of the Gregorian calendar.
Today afternoon at 12:34:56pm and at 12:34:56am the figures come up as 123456.
The figures 789 are for the date 7th, the month of August 8 and the year 2009.
Run in sequence it becomes 123456789.
You can live through it again if you live for a 1,000 years from now when it will be 3009, with the same time and date.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Some suggetions on everyone's dilemma - To save or to spend?
Source: Pankaj Kumar (The Star Online)
OUR parents do it, our grandparents and forefathers did it, our siblings do it, as do some of our friends and colleagues. All for the rainy days, so we were told. Yes, savings.
We have to save for our future to ensure that we have something to meet unexpected expenses that may occur in our lives or to make the down-payment for the dream home or car or to pay for our once-in-a-lifetime event, where we become king and queen for a day.
When we are in a family with children, we also save for their future education needs as well as preparing ourselves for retirement.
Some say we do too much of it while others say there’s no such thing as enough. Our parents told us that we have to start young and we should build it up over the years so that by the time we retire we have enough to enjoy and live until we are called by Him.
Some say we have to save 10% of our monthly income as a benchmark while others try for more if they can afford it while some find it tough just to make ends meet, simply because of the higher cost of living
One thing without doubt is that we have this inherent habit of saving for the future and, to the extent, we save so much that we do not know what to do with it.
My argument is simple as if we look at the current banking system in the country and capturing data related to savings, fixed deposits and demand deposits, individual savings amount to about RM388bil against the total of RM695bil as at June 30, 2009, representing about 56% of the banking system.
If we were to measure the above data in terms of per capita deposit and based on our total population of 28.3 million, per capita individual deposits in the banking system is about RM13,700.
In any society, savings is the pillar of economic expansion as the savings mobilised can be utilised to fund investments. This is indeed very different in Western society, particularly the US where it was only recently that the US found reasons to save due to the on-going economic fallout.
For years the rest of the world has been funding US consumption as the US has been running current account deficits for years and now ranks as the worst country in the world with the highest amount of current account deficit of US$862.3bil.
Malaysia proudly ranks number 17 with a current account surplus of US$17.86bil.
What is the irony of the Americans and us in Asia? It seems that much of Asia’s savings are channelled towards America’s consumption.
We save and the US spends, but it is Asia’s economy that is said to be weak while Uncle Sam is who the world looks up to as without the US spending power, the rest of the world could collapse, starting with significant decline in trade between the rest of the world and the US.
Based on a recent article by Dr Jagdish Bhagwati, a famous Indian-born economist in the US, the US had taken over US$5 trillion from the world and, today, to keep the US spending habits, the rest of the world has to invest US$2bil per day.
Today, almost US$1.3 trillion of US treasuries are held by the Chinese and Japanese. With more US papers flooding the market and to ensure that the dollar doesn’t collapse, the rest of the world has no choice but to buy these papers.
It is indeed a vicious cycle that we are in now as the world is too dependent on US consumption for its own growth.
Bhagwati further commented in his recent article that a nation cannot grow unless the people spend, not save. Not just spend, but borrow and spend. Saving is sin and spending is virtue.
I must say that the above argument has its merits in the American context but we Asians believe in our own values.
Hence, savings will remain a virtue and we will continue to embrace this belief in us and our children as it is our savings habit that has brought us to where we are today while our spending habits are slowly but surely rising.
It may not come as a surprise that one day, we in Asia too will increase our desire for goods and services to the extent it undermines our ability to save and, at the same time, our ability to be a source of funds for the nation’s economic growth.
OUR parents do it, our grandparents and forefathers did it, our siblings do it, as do some of our friends and colleagues. All for the rainy days, so we were told. Yes, savings.
We have to save for our future to ensure that we have something to meet unexpected expenses that may occur in our lives or to make the down-payment for the dream home or car or to pay for our once-in-a-lifetime event, where we become king and queen for a day.
When we are in a family with children, we also save for their future education needs as well as preparing ourselves for retirement.
Some say we do too much of it while others say there’s no such thing as enough. Our parents told us that we have to start young and we should build it up over the years so that by the time we retire we have enough to enjoy and live until we are called by Him.
Some say we have to save 10% of our monthly income as a benchmark while others try for more if they can afford it while some find it tough just to make ends meet, simply because of the higher cost of living
One thing without doubt is that we have this inherent habit of saving for the future and, to the extent, we save so much that we do not know what to do with it.
My argument is simple as if we look at the current banking system in the country and capturing data related to savings, fixed deposits and demand deposits, individual savings amount to about RM388bil against the total of RM695bil as at June 30, 2009, representing about 56% of the banking system.
If we were to measure the above data in terms of per capita deposit and based on our total population of 28.3 million, per capita individual deposits in the banking system is about RM13,700.
In any society, savings is the pillar of economic expansion as the savings mobilised can be utilised to fund investments. This is indeed very different in Western society, particularly the US where it was only recently that the US found reasons to save due to the on-going economic fallout.
For years the rest of the world has been funding US consumption as the US has been running current account deficits for years and now ranks as the worst country in the world with the highest amount of current account deficit of US$862.3bil.
Malaysia proudly ranks number 17 with a current account surplus of US$17.86bil.
What is the irony of the Americans and us in Asia? It seems that much of Asia’s savings are channelled towards America’s consumption.
We save and the US spends, but it is Asia’s economy that is said to be weak while Uncle Sam is who the world looks up to as without the US spending power, the rest of the world could collapse, starting with significant decline in trade between the rest of the world and the US.
Based on a recent article by Dr Jagdish Bhagwati, a famous Indian-born economist in the US, the US had taken over US$5 trillion from the world and, today, to keep the US spending habits, the rest of the world has to invest US$2bil per day.
Today, almost US$1.3 trillion of US treasuries are held by the Chinese and Japanese. With more US papers flooding the market and to ensure that the dollar doesn’t collapse, the rest of the world has no choice but to buy these papers.
It is indeed a vicious cycle that we are in now as the world is too dependent on US consumption for its own growth.
Bhagwati further commented in his recent article that a nation cannot grow unless the people spend, not save. Not just spend, but borrow and spend. Saving is sin and spending is virtue.
I must say that the above argument has its merits in the American context but we Asians believe in our own values.
Hence, savings will remain a virtue and we will continue to embrace this belief in us and our children as it is our savings habit that has brought us to where we are today while our spending habits are slowly but surely rising.
It may not come as a surprise that one day, we in Asia too will increase our desire for goods and services to the extent it undermines our ability to save and, at the same time, our ability to be a source of funds for the nation’s economic growth.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Drug Recall
Source: Dato’ Dr Jemilah Mahmood, Gleneagles Hospital
Dear all,
Please take the time to send this message to your loved ones, family and friends. Print it out and put it up in your office for public reading!
URGENT!!! PLEASE READ CAREFULLY FOR THE SAKE OF YOUR CHILDREN AND OTHERS!
______________________________
All drugs containing PHENYLPROPANOLAMINE are being recalled. You may want to try calling the 800 number listed on most drug boxes and inquire about a REFUND. Please read this CAREFULLY, as I know that some of you may USE some of these drugs (Alka Seltzer Plus for one). Also, please pass this on to everyone you know. STOP TAKING anything containing this ingredient. It has been linked to increased hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in brain) among women ages 18-49 in the three days after starting use of medication. Problems were not found in men, but the FDA recommended that everyone (even children) seek alternative medicine.
The following medications contain Phenylpropanolamine:
Acutrim Diet Gum Appetite Suppressant Plus Dietary Supplements
Acutrim Maximum Strength Appetite Control Alka-Seltzer Plus
Children's Cold Medicine Effervescent
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold medicine (cherry or orange)
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold ! Medicine Original
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Cough Medicine Effervescent
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Flu Medicine Effervescent
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Sinus Effervescent
Alka Seltzer Plus Night-Time Cold Medicine Effervescent
BC Allergy Sinus Cold Powder
BC Sinus Cold Powder
Comtrex Deep Chest Cold & Congestion Relief
Comtrex Flu Therapy & Fever Relief
Day & Night Contac 12-Hour Cold Capsules
Contac 12 Hour Caplets
Coricidin D Cold, Flu & Sinus
Dexatrim Caffeine Free
Dexatrim Extended Duration
Dexatrim Gelcaps
Dexatrim Vitamin C/Caffeine Free
Dimetapp Cold & Allergy Chewable Tablets
Dimetapp Cold & Cough Liqui-Gels
Dimetapp DM Cold & Cough Elixir
Dimetapp Elixir
Dimetapp 4 Hour Liquid Gels
Dimetapp 4 Hour Tablets
Dimetapp 12 Hour Extentabs Tablets
Naldecon DX Pediatric Drops
Tavist-D 12 Hour Relief of Sinus & Nasal Congestion
Triaminic DM Cough Relief
Triaminic Expectorant Chest & Head Congestion
Triaminic Syrup Cold & Allergy
Triaminic Triaminicol Cold & Cough
I just found out and called the 800# on the container for Triaminic and they informed me that they are voluntarily recalling the following medicines because of a certain ingredient that is causing strokes and seizures in children:
Orange 3D Cold & Allergy Cherry (Pink)
3D Cold & Cough Berry
3D Cough Relief
Yellow 3D Expectorant
They are asking you to call them at 1800-548-3708 with the lot number on the box so they can send you postage for you to send it back to them, and they will also issue you a refund. If you know of anyone else with small children, PLEASE PASS THIS ON. THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF. DO PASS ALONG TO ALL ON YOUR MAILING LIST so people are informed. They can then pass it along to their families. To confirm these findings please take time to check the following URL:
Thursday, July 30, 2009
The Citadel: The World's First Floating Apartment Complex
Since Holland is mostly under sea level, keeping houses from flooding is a constant problem. This concept fixes that problem by just having an apartment complex that floats.
The Citadel is the residential part of the "New Water" complex, which tries to embrace Holland's waterworld-ness instead of fighting it. It'll have a floating road to the mainland as well as plenty of boat docks for its 60 units. Apparently it'll also be 25% more energy-efficient than an equivalent complex on land by using the surrounding water for cooling. It looks kind of crazy, but the sort of crazy that could actually work.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Malaysians consume 26 teaspoons of sugar every day, says CAP
Source: Winnie Yeoh (The Star Online)
GEORGE TOWN: Malaysians consume an average of 26 teaspoons of sugar per person daily, revealed a 2005 survey. And early this year, the country was ranked the world’s eighth highest sugar user.
In the 70s, Malaysians only consumed 17 teaspoons of sugar per person per day. Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) president S.M. Mohamed Idris said the consumption might have increased further by now, as the last research was done in 2005.
He said Malaysians consumed sugar in the form of, among others, soft drinks, condensed milk, flavoured drinks, junk food and even breakfast cereals. A CAP survey revealed that some drinks and food contained 10 teaspoons of sugar in one serving.
Idris said a brand of orange juice contained 40.8 teaspoons of sugar in a two-litre pack while a brand of cordial syrup had 200 teaspoons in a two-litre bottle.
He also said former Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad revealed earlier this year that Malaysia was the eighth highest sugar users in the world.
He said the International Diabetes Institute recorded Malaysia as having the fourth highest number of diabetics in Asia with 800,000 cases in 2007, which was expected to increase to 1.3 million in 2010.
“Sugar is linked to over 60 ailments such as cancer, diabetes, obesity, heart problems, osteoporosis, kidney problems, asthma and allergies.
“According to the Health Ministry’s statistics, 11.6 million of the 16 million adults nationwide are sick with a non-communicable disease like diabetes, hypertension or cancer.
“Malaysia has the most overweight and obese people in Asia with 54% of the adult population either being obese or overweight,” Idris told a press conference at CAP office yesterday.
“Thus, CAP calls on the Government to work with food manufacturers to avoid sugar in their products,” he added.
He also urged the Government to make it a requirement for manufacturers to graphically display the sugar content in their products by the number of teaspoons as well as colour labelling with red, orange and green indicating the sugar level as high, medium or low respectively.
“The Government should also stop advertisements of highly-sugared drinks and food during children’s television viewing hours, and educate schoolchildren and the public on the dangers of excessive sugar intake,” Idris said.
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