Posts Tagged ‘health’
An Ode for Mr. Ishaq Dar, the World Bank and the IMF
July 12th, 2013 | 
Author: Attention Mr. Ishaq Dar, the IMF and the World Bank.
we paid $37.2 billion as debt-servicing alone in the last eight years. This is many times more than the principal amount that we borrowed during this period.
An Eye Opener by Mr. Naeem Sadiq
Dear Bank
Naeem Sadiq
TheNews
Friday, July 12, 2013
Many thanks for the $5.3 billion loan. One small step for a bank, a giant leap for a chronic borrower. I can proudly claim that my debt, steadily rising every year, has now reached $66.17 billion. This would mean that every member of my family must cough out $366 to repay this loan. This can only happen if we all stop eating, drinking – in fact living – for the next 10 months. Is that what they also call collective suicide? I made sure not to consult my unenthusiastic family, on whose behalf these loans were taken. They never seem to agree with my lifesaving – or should I say death-delaying? – initiatives. You too must be equally ecstatic. After all you end up gaining the most. You will retain most of this amount as repayment of the earlier loan, while my unflinching yearly debt-servicing will keep you charmed for a long time to come.
You had raised a number of questions before you approved the loans. Why is it that despite such massive borrowing, my family shows no signs of getting any better? Why are 50 percent of the family members illiterate and 60 percent below poverty level? Why are half the children out of school? Why is there no electricity half the time? Why does no one in the family have access to clean tap water?
You also wanted to know the reasons for the striking disparity in the lifestyle of some other members of our family. They move about with armed guards in obscenely large vehicles (often smuggled), live in luxury homes, have properties and cash stacked in foreign lands and drink corporate soda or water only from those neat-looking plastic bottles. It is only this segment of the family that is forever pushing for more loans. They are the ones who justify the bank’s slogan of ‘poverty alleviation’ – since this is the only group whose poverty gets truly alleviated.
My sixth sense tells me that you already know the answers to all these questions. You were merely going through the motions, filling forms, giving an impression of officious formality and appropriateness. The fact that I earn little, waste a lot and pilfer the most, makes me an ideal customer for the sort of business you are in. I have learnt to plead my case by closely studying beggars who flock the streets of Karachi during the holy month of Ramazan every year. I use exactly the same techniques with only three minor variations – dress, language and location.
Now, some bad news for you. My entire family, except those very few who gained the most from your loans, got together last night to say that they would no longer tolerate being pushed into this bottomless cesspool.
When I gave them your message that they needed to tighten their belts, they said they were too poor and did not have any belts to tighten. They said they were fed up of the loans taken on their name – the loans that make the elite of the family get richer and have still more fun. The mounting loans have made them poorer than before and taken away the last shreds of dignity that covered their half-naked bodies. Getting crumbs like 0.8 percent for health and 1.8 percent for education made them still more unhealthy, and yet more uneducated.
In simple words, my family has decided not just to stop seeking any further loans but to also stop any further debt-servicing. An unemployed maths teacher in my family spent some time to calculate that we paid $37.2 billion as debt-servicing alone in the last eight years. This is many times more than the principal amount that we borrowed during this period.
We are absolutely sure that there is no law that can force us to close our schools, starve our children, privatise our resources and abandon our welfare, simply because our selfish elders borrowed huge sums on behalf of those who cannot even spell the word ‘loan’ or have ever seen a bank from the inside.
Having paid off the principal amount several times over, we have a good reason to ask for total debt cancellation and an immediate freeze on any further debt-servicing. Do you realise that discovering a new mode of dying – by getting trampled while struggling to receive free food donations – speaks volumes about the poverty that your loans have been able to alleviate?
Sincerely,
Issac.dare@gmail.com
naeem sadiq
twitter : @saynotoweapons
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How the state promotes crime and militancy. Look at the yearly average for prohibited bore licenses (PB) and non prohibited bore licenses (NPB) issued in last 10 years to the rich and powerful, to friends and relatives and to party men and criminals.
Yearly average of PB licenses, from 2003 to 2007………361
Yearly average of PB licenses, from 2008 to 2012 ………13895
Yearly average of NPB licenses, from 2003 to 2007………15261
Yearly average of NPB licenses, from 2008 to 2012 ………240494
Ref: official info obtained by using FOI and SC Suo moto case 16/2011
Health Matters – Papaya Benefits Vs Cancer
Health Matters – Laughter is Good for Health
Laughter relaxes the body. A hearty laugh relieves tension/stress, leaving muscles relaxed. Laughter boosts the immune system,decreases stress hormones,improving resistance to disease. It triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals, promotes a sense of well-being. Helps protects the heart, improves the function of blood vessels, increases blood flow, can protect against heart attack/cardiovascular problems.
By Nargis Javed (U.K.)
Health Matters – Banana Benefits
This is interesting.
After reading this, you’ll never look at a banana in the same way again.
Bananas contain three natural sugars – sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber. A banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy. Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout.
No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world’s leading athletes. But energy isn’t the only way a banana can help us keep fit. It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.
Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.
PMS: Forget the pills – eat a banana. The vitamin B 6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.
Anemia: High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.
Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit’s ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.
Brain Power: 200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.
Constipation: High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.
Hangovers: One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system .
Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.
Morning Sickness: Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.
Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.
Nerves: Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.
Overweight and at work? Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods every two hours to keep levels steady.
Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.
PS: Bananas must be the reason monkeys are so happy all the time! I will add one here; want a quick shine on your shoes?? Take the INSIDE of the banana skin, and rub directly on the shoe…polish with dry cloth. Amazing fruit !
Temperature control: Many other cultures see bananas as a “cooling” fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand , for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer tryptophan.
Smoking &Tobacco Use: Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking. The B 6, B 12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.
Stress: Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body’s water balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be rebalanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack.
Strokes: According to research in The New England Journal of Medicine, eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!
Warts: Those keen on natural alternatives swear that if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tape!
Health Matters – 5 Foods That Helps Lose Your Weight
1. Oats
Wait a minute; aren’t oats a carb? Yes and no. Oats are a whole grain, and they’re high on what nutritionists call the “satiety index,” meaning oats have tremendous power to make you feel full. Not only that, they’re also high in soluble fiber, so they cut cholesterol and blood fat. Oats digest slowly, so they don’t raise your blood sugar, and they keep you feeling filled up well into the late morning.
To keep the pounds at bay, eat an apple–or two–a day. Numerous studies have found that eating an apple a half hour to an hour before a meal has the result of cutting the calories of the meal. Why? The fiber in the apple makes you feel full, so you eat less. Recent research suggests eating apples has other benefits, too; the antioxidants in apples appear to prevent metabolic syndrome, the combination of high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and prediabetes that tends to accompany thickening around the waist. Also, apples are high in pectin, which binds with water and limits the amount of fat your cells can absorb.
Nutritionists have been trying for some years to restore the reputation of the lowly egg. No longer thought to be a cholesterol-booster (eggs contain a different type of cholesterol than that in humans), eggs are a concentrated form of animal protein without the added fat that comes with meat. Dietary studies have repeatedly found that when people eat an egg every morning in addition to (or instead of) toast or cereal, they lose twice as much weight as those who eat a breakfast that’s dominated by carbs.
This simple spice appears to have the power to help your body metabolize sugar, according to surprising data that came out of a USDA study involving diabetics. Eating as little as 1/4 to 2 teaspoons of cinnamon a day was found to reduce blood sugar levels and cut cholesterol from 10 to 25 percent. So add cinnamon to smoothies, sprinkle it on your cereal, or flavor your coffee with it.
Another counterintuitive choice; aren’t nuts and nut butters supposed to be incredibly fattening? Well, almonds are calorie-dense, but they also pack a huge nutritional punch–and they’re particularly effective in counteracting cholesterol and triglycerides. One study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that eating almonds was as effective as taking a statin. Spreading almond butter on your morning toast gives you a nice protein boost while preventing the carbs in the toast from spiking your blood sugar.
Compiled by Farrah Wankadia (Bombay)
Health Matters – 51 Ways to Reduce Stress
51. Stop a bad habit
52. Buy yourself a flower
53. Take time to small the flowers
54. Find support from others
55. Ask someone to be your “vent-partner”
56. Do it today
57. Work at being cheerful and optimistic
58. Put safety first
59. Do everything in moderation
60. Pay attention to your appearance
61. Strive for Excellence NOT perfection
62. Stretch your limits a little each day
63. Look at a work of art
64. Hum a jingle
65. Maintain your weight
66. Plant a tree
67. Feed the birds
68. Practice grace under pressure
69. Stand up and stretch
70. Always have a plan “B”
71. Learn a new doodle
72. Memorize a joke
73. Be responsible for your feelings
74. Learn to meet your own needs
75. Become a better listener
76. Know your limitations and let others know them, too
77. Tell someone to have a good day in Latin
78. Throw a paper airplane
79. Exercise every day
80. Learn the words to a new song
81. Get to work early
82. Clean out one closet
83. Play patty cake with a toddler
84. Go on a picnic
85. Take a different route to work
86. Leave work early (with permission)
87. Put air freshener in your car
88.. Watch a movie and eat popcorn
89. Write a note to a far away friend
90. Go to a ball game and scream
91. Cook a meal and eat it by candlelight
92. Recognize the importance of unconditional love
93. Remember that stress is an attitude
94. Keep a journal
95. Practice a monster smile
96. Remember you always have options
97. Have a support network of people, places and things
98. Quit trying to fix other people
99. Get enough sleep
100.Talk less and listen more
101.Freely praise other people
Compiled by Muhammad Shoaib Tanoli
Health Matters – Clean Your Kidneys
CLEAN YOUR KIDNEYS IN
LESS THAN Rs 1.00
Years pass by and our kidneys are filtering the blood by removing salt, poison and any unwanted entering our body. With time, the salt accumulates and this needs to undergo cleaning treatments and how are we going to overcome this?
It is very easy, first take a bunch of parsley (MALLI Leaves) KOTHIMBIR (HARA DHANIYA)and wash it clean
Then cut it in small pieces and put it in a pot and pour clean water and boil it for ten minutes and let it cool down and then filter it and pour in a clean bottle and keep it inside refrigerator to cool.
Drink one glass daily and you will notice all salt and other accumulated poison coming out of your kidney by urination also you will be able to notice the difference which you never felt before.
Parsley is known as best cleaning treatment for kidneys and it is natural.
Compiled by Farah Wankadia
Golden Words – 6 Life Principles
Health Matters – Healing Power of Flour
Once I was cooking some corn and stuck my fork in the boiling
water to see if the corn was ready. I missed and my hand went
into the boiling water….
A friend of mine, who was a Vietnam vet, came into the house, just
as I was screaming, and asked me if I had some plain old flour…I
pulled out a bag and he stuck my hand in it. He said to keep my hand
in the flour for 10 minutes, which I did. He said that in Vietnam, this guy
was on fire and in their panic, they threw a bag of flour all over him to
put the fire out…well, it not only put the fire out, but he never even had
a blister!!!!
So, to cut the long story short, I put my hand in the bag of flour for 10 mins,
pulled it out and had not even a red mark or a blister and absolutely NO
PAIN. Now, I keep a bag of flour in the fridge and every time I burn myself,
I use the flour and never ONCE have I ever had a red spot, a burn or a blister!
*cold flour feels even better than room temperature flour.
Miracle, if you ask me. Keep a bag of white flour in your fridge and you will be
happy you did. I even burnt my tongue and put the flour on it for about 10 minutes.
And the pain was gone without no burn. Try it! BTW, don’t run your burn area under
Cold water first, just put it right into the flour for 10 minutes and experience a miracle!
Health Matters – Benefits of Coconut Water
Overview
The coconut has received a lot of attention as of late due to its perceived health benefits. In particular, coconut water has been touted in some health enthusiast circles as a viable substitute for sports drinks. It is low in calories and contains vitamins and minerals, including electrolytes, much like commercial energy drinks. But is there anything that sets it apart? There are many benefits of coconut water.
What Is Coconut Water?
Coconut water is the clear liquid found in young coconuts. As the fruit matures, the water is gradually replaced by air and solid coconut meat; therefore, it is important to extract the water early. This water should not be confused with coconut oil or coconut milk, which are both processed from the meat and contain a large amount of calories and fat. Coconut water, on the other hand, has a lot of potassium and lesser amounts of electrolytes such as sodium, phosphorus and magnesium, the American Council on Exercise explains.
Low Calorie, Low Sugar Content
These days, many sports and health enthusiasts are drinking coconut water instead of sports drinks after exercise, the Texas Department of State Health Services reports. It has a low caloric content of just 46 calories per cup and 9 grams of carbohydrates. Coconut water also contains less sugar than many energy drinks and fruit juices. However, to ensure that you’re getting these benefits, be certain that you’re drinking plain coconut water and not those that have added sugar, since these are no different from sodas and processed fruit drinks.
Comparison to Sports Drinks
Like many sports drinks, coconut water contains electrolytes, carbohydrates and water, and offers similar benefits, explains All Systems Fitness. The main difference lies in electrolyte content: coconut water contains a lot more potassium, while sports drinks have more sodium. Since athletes engaging in heavy exercise require more sodium than potassium, coconut water may not be a viable replacement for sports drinks in this respect. It is also worth noting, however, that neither sports drinks nor coconut water contain enough sodium to adequately replace that lost through perspiration, “U.S. News & World Report” explains.
Considerations
Coconut water is a good source of potassium and magnesium. There are no known risks from regular consumption of coconut water. However, it can be a relatively expensive habit to maintain. In addition, keep in mind that coconut water has not yet been well-studied. As far as side effects are concerned, coconut water seems to be much like any fruit or vegetable juice. If you have any health conditions or are currently taking supplements or medication, be sure to consult with your doctor before you include coconut water in your regular diet.
Source & link: http://www.livestrong.com/article/366141-why-drink-coconut-water/#ixzz1MPAGCWNs
