Human blood pH should be slightly alkaline ( 7.35 - 7.45 ). Below or above this range means symptoms and disease. A pH of 7.0 is neutral. A pH below 7.0 is acidic. A pH above 7.0 is alkaline.
An acidic pH can occur from, an acid forming diet, emotional stress, toxic overload, and/or immune reactions or any process that deprives the cells of oxygen and other nutrients. The body will try to compensate for acidic pH by using alkaline minerals. If the diet does not contain enough minerals to compensate, a build up of acids in the cells will occur.
An acidic balance will: decrease the body's ability to absorb minerals and other nutrients, decrease the energy production in the cells, decrease it's ability to repair damaged cells, decrease it's ability to detoxify heavy metals, make tumor cells thrive, and make it more susceptible to fatigue and illness. A blood pH of 6.9, which is only slightly acidic, can induce coma and death.
The reason acidosis is more common in our society is mostly due to the typical American diet, which is far too high in acid producing animal products like meat, eggs and dairy, and far too low in alkaline producing foods like fresh vegetables. Additionally, we eat acid producing processed foods like white flour and sugar and drink acid producing beverages like coffee and soft drinks. We use too many drugs, which are acid forming; and we use artificial chemical sweetners like NutraSweet, Spoonful, Sweet 'N Low, Equal, or Aspartame, which are poison and extremely acid forming. One of the best things we can do to correct an overly acid body is to clean up the diet and lifestyle.
To maintain health, the diet should consist of 60% alkaline forming foods and 40% acid forming foods. To restore health, the diet should consist of 80% alkaline forming foods and 20% acid forming foods.
Generally, alkaline forming foods include: most fruits, green vegetables, peas, beans, lentils, spices, herbs and seasonings, and seeds and nuts.
Generally, acid forming foods include: meat, fish, poultry, eggs, grains, and legumes.
Shifting Your pH Toward Alkaline...
This chart is for those trying to "adjust" their body pH. The pH scale is from 0 to 14, with numbers below 7 acidic ( low on oxygen ) and numbers above 7 alkaline. An acidic body is a sickness magnet. What you eat and drink will impact where your body's pH level falls. Balance is Key !!!
How To Test Your pH Level... Click Here | Understanding pH Level... Click Here
This chart is intended only as a general guide to alkalizing and acidifying foods.
...ALKALINE FOODS...
...ACIDIC FOODS...
ALKALIZING VEGETABLES
Alfalfa
Barley Grass
Beet Greens
Beets
Broccoli
Cabbage
Carrot
Cauliflower
Celery
Chard Greens
Chlorella
Collard Greens
Cucumber
Dandelions
Dulce
Edible Flowers
Eggplant
Fermented Veggies
Garlic
Green Beans
Green Peas
Kale
Kohlrabi
Lettuce
Mushrooms
Mustard Greens
Nightshade Veggies
Onions
Parsnips (high glycemic)
Peas
Peppers
Pumpkin
Radishes
Rutabaga
Sea Veggies
Spinach, green
Spirulina
Sprouts
Sweet Potatoes
Tomatoes
Watercress
Wheat Grass
Wild Greens
ALKALIZING ORIENTAL VEGETABLES
Daikon
Dandelion Root
Kombu
Maitake
Nori
Reishi
Shitake
Umeboshi
Wakame
ALKALIZING FRUITS
Apple
Apricot
Avocado
Banana (high glycemic)
Berries
Blackberries
Cantaloupe
Cherries, sour
Coconut, fresh
Currants
Dates, dried
Figs, dried
Grapes
Grapefruit
Honeydew Melon
Lemon
Lime
Muskmelons
Nectarine
Orange
Peach
Pear
Pineapple
Raisins
Raspberries
Rhubarb
Strawberries
Tangerine
Tomato
Tropical Fruits
Umeboshi Plums
Watermelon
ALKALIZING PROTEIN
Almonds
Chestnuts
Millet
Tempeh (fermented)
Tofu (fermented)
Whey Protein Powder
ALKALIZING SWEETENERS
Stevia
ALKALIZING SPICES & SEASONINGS
Chili Pepper
Cinnamon
Curry
Ginger
Herbs (all)
Miso
Mustard
Sea Salt
Tamari
ALKALIZING OTHER
Alkaline Antioxidant Water
Apple Cider Vinegar
Bee Pollen
Fresh Fruit Juice
Green Juices
Lecithin Granules
Mineral Water
Molasses, blackstrap
Probiotic Cultures
Soured Dairy Products
Veggie Juices
ALKALIZING MINERALS
Calcium: pH 12
Cesium: pH 14
Magnesium: pH 9
Potassium: pH 14
Sodium: pH 14
Although it might seem that citrus fruits would have an acidifying effect on the body, the citric acid they contain actually has an alkalinizing effect in the system.
Note that a food's acid or alkaline forming tendency in the body has nothing to do with the actual pH of the food itself. For example, lemons are very acidic, however the end products they produce after digestion and assimilation are very alkaline so, lemons are alkaline forming in the body. Likewise, meat will test alkaline before digestion, but it leaves very acidic residue in the body so, like nearly all animal products, meat is very acid forming.
ACIDIFYING VEGETABLES
Corn
Lentils
Olives
Winter Squash
ACIDIFYING FRUITS
Blueberries
Canned or Glazed Fruits
Cranberries
Currants
Plums**
Prunes**
ACIDIFYING GRAINS, GRAIN PRODUCTS
Amaranth
Barley
Bran, oat
Bran, wheat
Bread
Corn
Cornstarch
Crackers, soda
Flour, wheat
Flour, white
Hemp Seed Flour
Kamut
Macaroni
Noodles
Oatmeal
Oats (rolled)
Quinoa
Rice (all)
Rice Cakes
Rye
Spaghetti
Spelt
Wheat Germ
Wheat
ACIDIFYING BEANS & LEGUMES
Almond Milk
Black Beans
Chick Peas
Green Peas
Kidney Beans
Lentils
Pinto Beans
Red Beans
Rice Milk
Soy Beans
Soy Milk
White Beans
ACIDIFYING DAIRY
Butter
Cheese
Cheese, Processed
Ice Cream
Ice Milk
ACIDIFYING NUTS & BUTTERS
Cashews
Legumes
Peanut Butter
Peanuts
Pecans
Tahini
Walnuts
ACIDIFYING ANIMAL PROTEIN
Bacon
Beef
Carp
Clams
Cod
Corned Beef
Fish
Haddock
Lamb
Lobster
Mussels
Organ Meats
Oyster
Pike
Pork
Rabbit
Salmon
Sardines
Sausage
Scallops
Shellfish
Shrimp
Tuna
Turkey
Veal
Venison
ACIDIFYING FATS & OILS
Avacado Oil
Butter
Canola Oil
Corn Oil
Flax Oil
Hemp Seed Oil
Lard
Olive Oil
Safflower Oil
Sesame Oil
Sunflower Oil
ACIDIFYING SWEETENERS
Carob
Corn Syrup
Sugar
ACIDIFYING ALCOHOL
Beer
Hard Liquor
Spirits
Wine
ACIDIFYING OTHER FOODS
Catsup
Cocoa
Coffee
Mustard
Pepper
Soft Drinks
Vinegar
ACIDIFYING DRUGS & CHEMICALS
Aspirin
Chemicals
Drugs, Medicinal
Drugs, Psychedelic
Herbicides
Pesticides
Tobacco
ACIDIFYING JUNK FOOD
Beer: pH 2.5
Coca-Cola: pH 2
Coffee: pH 4
** These foods leave an alkaline ash but have an acidifying effect on the body.
UNKNOWN:
There are several versions of the Acidic and Alkaline Food chart to be found in different books and on the Internet. The following foods are sometimes attributed to the Acidic side of the chart and sometimes to the Alkaline side. Remember, you don't need to adhere strictly to the Alkaline side of the chart, just make sure a good percentage of the foods you eat come from that side.
Brazil Nuts
Brussel Sprouts
Buckwheat
Cashews
Chicken
Corn
Cottage Cheese
Eggs
Flax Seeds
Green Tea
Herbal Tea
Honey
Kombucha
Lima Beans
Maple Syrup
Milk
Nuts
Organic Milk (unpasteurized)
Potatoes, white
Pumpkin Seeds
Quinoa
Sauerkraut
Soy Products
Sprouted Seeds
Squashes
Sunflower Seeds
Tomatoes
Yogurt
* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease; research is ongoing.
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Here's a chart that ranks foods from most alkaline to most acidic.
Ranked Foods: Alkaline to Acidic
Extremely Alkaline
Lemons, watermelon.
Alkaline Forming
Cantaloupe, cayenne celery, dates, figs, kelp, limes, mango, melons, papaya, parsley, seaweeds, seedless grapes (sweet), watercress.
Asparagus, fruit juices, grapes (sweet), kiwifruit, passionfruit, pears (sweet), pineapple, raisins, umeboshi plums, and vegetable juices.
Moderately Alkaline
Apples (sweet), alfalfa sprouts, apricots, avocados, bananas (ripe), currants, dates, figs (fresh), garlic, grapefruit, grapes (less sweet), guavas, herbs (leafy green), lettuce (leafy green), nectarine, peaches (sweet), pears (less sweet), peas (fresh, sweet), pumpkin (sweet), sea salt (vegetable).
Apples (sour), beans (fresh, green), beets, bell peppers, broccoli, cabbage, carob, cauliflower, ginger (fresh), grapes (sour), lettuce (pale green), oranges, peaches (less sweet), peas (less sweet), potatoes (with skin), pumpkin (less sweet), raspberries, strawberries, squash, sweet Corn (fresh), turnip, vinegar (apple cider).
Slightly Alkaline
Almonds, artichokes (jerusalem), brussel sprouts, cherries, coconut (fresh), cucumbers, eggplant, honey (raw), leeks, mushrooms, okra, olives (ripe), onions, pickles (homemade), radishes, sea salt, spices, tomatoes (sweet), vinegar (sweet brown rice).
Chestnuts (dry, roasted), egg yolks (soft cooked), essene bread, goat's milk and whey (raw), mayonnaise (homemade), olive oil, sesame seeds (whole), soy beans (dry), soy cheese, soy milk, sprouted grains, tofu, tomatoes (less sweet), and yeast (nutritional flakes).
Neutral
Butter (fresh, unsalted), cream (fresh, raw), cow's milk and whey (raw), margine, oils (except olive), and yogurt (plain).
Moderately Acidic
Bananas (green), barley (rye), blueberries, bran, butter, cereals (unrefined), cheeses, crackers (unrefined rye, rice and wheat), cranberries, dried beans (mung, adzuki, pinto, kidney, garbanzo), dry coconut, egg whites, eggs whole (cooked hard), fructose, goat's milk (homogenized), honey (pasteurized), ketchup, maple syrup (unprocessed), milk (homogenized).
Molasses (unsulferd and organic), most nuts, mustard, oats (rye, organic), olives (pickled), pasta (whole grain), pastry (whole grain and honey), plums, popcorn (with salt and/or butter), potatoes, prunes, rice (basmati and brown), seeds (pumpkin, sunflower), soy sauce, and wheat bread (sprouted organic).
Extremely Acidic
Artificial sweeteners, beef, beer, breads, brown sugar, carbonated soft drinks, cereals (refined), chocolate, cigarettes and tobacco, coffee, cream of wheat (unrefined), custard (with white sugar), deer, drugs, fish, flour (white, wheat), fruit juices with sugar, jams, jellies, lamb.
Liquor, maple syrup (processed), molasses (sulphured), pasta (white), pastries and cakes from white flour, pickles (commercial), pork, poultry, seafood, sugar (white), table salt (refined and iodized), tea (black), white bread, white vinegar (processed), whole wheat foods, wine, and yogurt (sweetened).
More Ranked Foods: Alkaline to Acidic
Highly Alkaline Forming Foods
Baking soda, sea salt, mineral water, pumpkin seed, lentils, seaweed, onion, taro root, sea vegetables, lotus root, sweet potato, lime, lemons, nectarine, persimmon, raspberry, watermelon, tangerine, and pineapple.
Moderately Alkaline Forming Foods
Apricots, spices, kambucha, unsulfured molasses, soy sauce, cashews, chestnuts, pepper, kohlrabi, parsnip, garlic, asparagus, kale, parsley, endive, arugula, mustard green, ginger root, broccoli, grapefruit, cantaloupe, honeydew, citrus, olive, dewberry, carrots, loganberry, and mango.
Low Alkaline Forming Foods
Most herbs, green tea, mu tea, rice syrup, apple cider vinegar, sake, quail eggs, primrose oil, sesame seed, cod liver oil, almonds, sprouts, potato, bell pepper, mushrooms, cauliflower, cabbage, rutabaga, ginseng, eggplant, pumpkin, collard green, pear, avocado, apples (sour), blackberry, cherry, peach, and papaya.
Very Low Alkaline Forming Foods
Ginger tea, umeboshi vinegar, ghee, duck eggs, oats, grain coffee, quinoa, japonica rice, wild rice, avocado oil, most seeds, coconut oil, olive oil, flax oil, brussel sprout, beet, chive, cilantro, celery, okra, cucumber, turnip greens, squashes, lettuces, orange, banana, blueberry, raisin, currant, grape, and strawberry.
Very Low Acid Forming Foods
Curry, koma coffee, honey, maple syrup, vinegar, cream, butter, goat/sheep cheese, chicken, gelatin, organs, venison, fish, wild duck, triticale, millet, kasha, amaranth, brown rice, pumpkin seed oil, grape seed oil, sunflower oil, pine nuts, canola oil, spinach, fava beans, black-eyed peas, string beans, wax beans, zucchini, chutney, rhubarb, coconut, guava, dry fruit, figs, and dates.
Low Acid Forming Foods
Vanilla, alcohol, black tea, balsamic vinegar, cow milk, aged cheese, soy cheese, goat milk, game meat, lamb, mutton, boar, elk, shell fish, mollusks, goose, turkey, buckwheat, wheat, spelt, teff, kamut, farina, semolina, white rice, almond oil, sesame oil, safflower oil, tapioca, seitan, tofu, pinto beans, white beans, navy beans, red beans, aduki beans, lima beans, chard, plum, prune and tomatoes.
Moderately Acid Forming Foods
Nutmeg, coffee, casein, milk protein, cottage cheese, soy milk, pork, veal, bear, mussels, squid, chicken, maize, barley groats, corn, rye, oat bran, pistachio seeds, chestnut oil, lard, pecans, palm kernel oil, green peas, peanuts, snow peas, other legumes, garbanzo beans, cranberry, and pomegranate.
Highly Acid Forming Foods
Tabletop sweeteners like (NutraSweet, Spoonful, Sweet 'N Low, Equal or Aspartame), pudding, jam, jelly, table salt (NaCl), beer, yeast, hops, malt, sugar, cocoa, white (acetic acid) vinegar, processed cheese, ice cream, beef, lobster, pheasant, barley, cottonseed oil, hazelnuts, walnuts, brazil nuts, fried foods, soybean, and soft drinks, especially the cola type. To neutralize a glass of cola with a pH of 2.5, it would take 32 glasses of alkaline water with a pH of 10.
A list of Acid / Alkaline Forming Foods
Alkaline Forming Foods
VEGETABLES
Garlic
Asparagus
Fermented Veggies
Watercress
Beets
Broccoli
Brussel sprouts
Cabbage
Carrot
Cauliflower
Celery
Chard
Chlorella
Collard Greens
Cucumber
Eggplant
Kale
Kohlrabi
Lettuce
Mushrooms
Mustard Greens
Dulce
Dandelions
Edible Flowers
Onions
Parsnips (high glycemic)
Peas
Peppers
Pumpkin
Rutabaga
Sea Veggies
Spirulina
Sprouts
Squashes
Alfalfa
Barley Grass
Wheat Grass
Wild Greens
Nightshade Veggies
FRUITS
Apple
Apricot
Avocado
Banana (high glycemic)
Cantaloupe
Cherries
Currants
Dates/Figs
Grapes
Grapefruit
Lime
Honeydew Melon
Nectarine
Orange
Lemon
Peach
Pear
Pineapple
All Berries
Tangerine
Tomato
Tropical Fruits
Watermelon
PROTEIN
Eggs (poached)
Whey Protein Powder
Cottage Cheese
Chicken Breast
Yogurt
Almonds
Chestnuts
Tofu (fermented)
Flax Seeds
Pumpkin Seeds
Tempeh (fermented)
Squash Seeds
Sunflower Seeds
Millet
Sprouted Seeds
Nuts OTHER
Apple Cider Vinegar
Bee Pollen
Lecithin Granules
Probiotic Cultures
Green Juices
Veggies Juices
Fresh Fruit Juice
Organic Milk
(unpasteurized)
Mineral Water
Alkaline Antioxidant Water
Green Tea
Herbal Tea
Dandelion Tea
Ginseng Tea
Banchi Tea
Kombucha
SWEETENERS
Stevia
Ki Sweet
SPICES/SEASONINGS
Cinnamon
Curry
Ginger
Mustard
Chili Pepper
Sea Salt
Miso
Tamari
All Herbs
ORIENTAL VEGETABLES
Maitake
Daikon
Dandelion Root
Shitake
Kombu
Reishi
Nori
Umeboshi
Wakame
Sea Veggies
Acid Forming Foods
FATS & OILS
Avocado Oil
Canola Oil
Corn Oil
Hemp Seed Oil
Flax Oil
Lard
Olive Oil
Safflower Oil
Sesame Oil
Sunflower Oil
FRUITS
Cranberries
GRAINS
Rice Cakes
Wheat Cakes
Amaranth
Barley
Buckwheat
Corn
Oats (rolled)
Quinoa
Rice (all)
Rye
Spelt
Kamut
Wheat
Hemp Seed Flour
DAIRY
Cheese, Cow
Cheese, Goat
Cheese, Processed
Cheese, Sheep
Milk
Butter NUTS & BUTTERS
Cashews
Brazil Nuts
Peanuts
Peanut Butter
Pecans
Tahini
Walnuts
ANIMAL PROTEIN
Beef
Carp
Clams
Fish
Lamb
Lobster
Mussels
Oyster
Pork
Rabbit
Salmon
Shrimp
Scallops
Tuna
Turkey
Venison
PASTA (WHITE)
Noodles
Macaroni
Spaghetti
OTHER
Distilled Vinegar
Wheat Germ
Potatoes DRUGS & CHEMICALS
Aspartame
Chemicals
Drugs, Medicinal
Drugs, Psychedelic
Pesticides
Herbicides
ALCOHOL
Beer
Spirits
Hard Liquor
Wine
BEANS & LEGUMES
Black Beans
Chick Peas
Green Peas
Kidney Beans
Lentils
Lima Beans
Pinto Beans
Red Beans
Soy Beans
Soy Milk
White Beans
Rice Milk
Almond Milk
More Ranked Foods: Alkaline (pH) to Acidic (pH)
Alkaline: Meditation, Prayer, Peace, Kindness & Love Acid: Overwork, Anger, Fear, Jealousy & Stress
Extremely Alkaline Forming Foods - pH 8.5 to 9.0 Extremely Acid Forming Foods - pH 5.0 to 5.5
9.0 Lemons 1, Watermelon 2
8.5 Agar Agar 3, Cantaloupe, Cayenne (Capsicum) 4,
Dried dates & figs, Kelp, Karengo, Kudzu root, Limes,
Mango, Melons, Papaya, Parsley 5, Seedless grapes
(sweet), Watercress, Seaweeds
Asparagus 6, Endive, Kiwifruit, Fruit juices 7, Grapes
(sweet), Passion fruit, Pears (sweet), Pineapple,
Raisins, Umeboshi plum, Vegetable juices 8
5.0 Artificial sweeteners
5.5 Beef, Carbonated soft drinks & fizzy drinks 38,
Cigarettes (tailor made), Drugs, Flour (white, wheat)
39, Goat, Lamb, Pastries & cakes from white flour,
Pork, Sugar (white) 40
Beer 34, Brown sugar 35, Chicken, Deer, Chocolate,
Coffee 36, Custard with white sugar, Jams, Jellies,
Liquor 37, Pasta (white), Rabbit, Semolina, Table
salt refined and iodized, Tea black, Turkey, Wheat
bread, White rice, White vinegar (processed).
Moderate Alkaline - pH 7.5 to 8.0 Moderate Acid - pH 6.0 to 6.5
8.0 Apples (sweet), Apricots, Alfalfa sprouts 9,
Arrowroot, Flour 10, Avocados, Bananas (ripe),
Berries, Carrots, Celery, Currants, Dates & figs
(fresh), Garlic 11, Gooseberry, Grapes (less sweet),
Grapefruit, Guavas, Herbs (leafy green), Lettuce
(leafy green), Nectarine, Peaches (sweet), Pears
(less sweet), Peas (fresh sweet), Persimmon,
Pumpkin (sweet), Sea salt (vegetable) 12, Spinach
7.5 Apples (sour), Bamboo shoots, Beans (fresh green),
Beets, Bell Pepper, Broccoli, Cabbage;Cauli, Carob
13, Daikon, Ginger (fresh), Grapes (sour), Kale,
Kohlrabi, Lettuce (pale green), Oranges, Parsnip,
Peaches (less sweet), Peas (less sweet), Potatoes
& skin, Pumpkin (less sweet), Raspberry, Sapote,
Strawberry, Squash 14, Sweet corn (fresh), Tamari
15, Turnip, Vinegar (apple cider) 16
6.0 Cigarette tobacco (roll your own), Cream of Wheat
(unrefined), Fish, Fruit juices with sugar, Maple
syrup (processed), Molasses (sulphured), Pickles
(commercial), Breads (refined) of corn, oats, rice &
rye, Cereals (refined) eg weetbix, corn flakes,
Shellfish, Wheat germ, Whole Wheat foods 32,
Wine 33, Yogurt (sweetened)
6.5 Bananas (green), Buckwheat, Cheeses (sharp),
Corn & rice breads, Egg whole (cooked hard),
Ketchup, Mayonnaise, Oats, Pasta (whole grain),
Pastry (wholegrain & honey), Peanuts, Potatoes
(with no skins), Popcorn (with salt & butter), Rice
(basmati), Rice (brown), Soy sauce (commercial),
Tapioca, Wheat bread (sprouted organic)
Slightly Alkaline to Neutral pH 7.0 Slightly Acid to Neutral pH 7.0
7.0 Almonds 17, Artichokes (Jerusalem), Barley-Malt
(sweetener-Bronner), Brown Rice Syrup, Brussel
Sprouts, Cherries, Coconut (fresh), Cucumbers, Egg
plant, Honey (raw), Leeks, Miso, Mushrooms, Okra,
Olives ripe 18, Onions, Pickles 19, (home made),
Radish, Sea salt 20, Spices 21, Taro, Tomatoes
(sweet), Vinegar (sweet brown rice), Water Chestnut
Amaranth, Artichoke (globe), Chestnuts (dry
roasted), Egg yolks (soft cooked), Essene bread 22,
Goat's milk and whey (raw) 23, Horseradish,
Mayonnaise (home made), Millet, Olive oil, Quinoa,
Rhubarb, Sesame seeds (whole) 24, Soy beans
(dry), Soy cheese, Soy milk, Sprouted grains 25,
Tempeh, Tofu, Tomatoes (less sweet), Yeast
(nutritional flakes)
7.0 Barley malt syrup, Barley, Bran, Cashews, Cereals
(unrefined with honey-fruit-maple syrup), Cornmeal,
Cranberries 30, Fructose, Honey (pasteurized),
Lentils, Macadamias, Maple syrup (unprocessed),
Milk (homogenized) and most processed dairy
products, Molasses (unsulphered organic) 31,
Nutmeg, Mustard, Pistachios, Popcorn & butter
(plain), Rice or wheat crackers (unrefined), Rye
(grain), Rye bread (organic sprouted), Seeds
(pumpkin & sunflower), Walnuts
Blueberries, Brazil nuts, Butter (salted), Cheeses
(mild & crumbly) 28, Crackers (unrefined rye),
Dried beans (mung, adzuki, pinto, kidney,
garbanzo) 29, Dry coconut, Egg whites, Goats
milk (homogenized), Olives (pickled), Pecans,
Plums 30, Prunes 30, Spelt
Neutral pH 7.0 ‹ Healthy Body Saliva pH Range is between 6.4 to 6.8 (on your pH test strips)
Butter (fresh unsalted), Cream (fresh and raw), Margarine 26, Milk (raw cow's) 27, Oils (except olive),
Whey (cow's), Yogurt (plain)
NOTE: Match with the numbers above.
1. Excellent for EMERGENCY SUPPORT for colds, coughs, sore throats, heartburn, and gastro upsets.
2. Good for a yearly fast. For several days eat whole melon, chew pips well and eat also. Super alkalizing food.
3. Substitute for gelatin, more nourishing.
4. Stimulating, non-irritating body healer. Good for endocrine system.
5. Purifies kidneys.
6. Powerful acid reducer detoxing to produce acid urine temporarily, causing alkalinity for the long term.
7. Natural sugars give alkalinity. Added sugar causes juice to become acid forming.
8. Depends on vege's content and sweetness.
9. Enzyme rich, superior digestibility.
10. High calcium content. Cornflour substitute.
11. Elevates acid food 5.0 in alkaline direction.
12. Vegetable content raises alkalinity.
13. Substitute for coca; mineral rich.
14. Winter squash rates 7.5. Butternut and sweeter squash rates 8.0.
15. Genuine fermented for 11Ž2 years otherwise 6.0.
16. Raw unpasteurized is a digestive aid to increase HCL in the stomach. 1 tablespoon, + honey & water before meals.
17. Soak 12 hours, peel skin to eat.
18. Sundried, tree ripened, otherwise 6.0.
19. Using sea salt and apple cider vinegar.
20. Contains sea minerals. Dried at low temperatures.
21. Range from 7.0 to 8.0.
22. Sprouted grains are more alkaline. Grains chewed well become more alkaline.
23. High sodium to aid digestion.
24. High levels of utilizable calcium. Grind before eating.
25. Alkalinity and digestibility higher.
26. Heating causes fats to harden and become indigestible.
27. High mucus production.
28. Mucus forming and hard to digest.
29. When sprouted dry beans rate 7.0.
30. Contain acid-forming benzoic and quinic acids.
31. Full of iron.
32. Unrefined wheat is more alkaline.
33. High quality red wine, no more than 4 oz. daily to build blood.
34. Good quality, well brewed - up to 5.5. Fast brewed beers drop to 5.0.
35. Most are white sugars with golden syrup added.
36. Organic, fresh ground-up to 5.5.
37. Cheaper brands drop to 5.0, as does over-indulgence.
38. Leaches minerals.
39. Bleached - has no goodness.
40. Poison! Avoid it.
41. Potential cancer agent. Over-indulgence may cause partial blindness.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Acidic & Acid Forming Foods
An unhealthy diet, high in acidic foods (e.g. dairy, meat, bread, high sugar fruits), causes acid wastes to build up in the body. When these acid wastes enter the blood stream, the blood system tries to dispose of these wastes. That means if there are too many wastes to handle they are deposited in vital organ systems like the heart, pancreas, liver, colon and other locations.
When people ingest too many acid forming or acidic foods, excess acid corrodes tissues and organs, which leads to illness. In addition, acid also provides a favourable environment for harmful bacteria and other micro organism that can damage glands and organs.
In other words, the over-acidification of our body cells (acidosis) will interrupt and disturb cellular activities and functions. It is the root of all sickness and disease. And it is also what causes overweight; to protect itself from potentially serious damage, the body creates new fat cells to store the extra acid.
All leading biochemists and micro biologists have recognized pH (pH scale or the acid alkaline balance) as the most important aspect of a balanced and healthy body. The maintenance of pH balance in our tissues and cells is critical to cellular health. Contrary to a healthy alkaline diet, an unhealty diet including too much acidic food creates a condition favourable to the growth of bacteria, yeast and other unwanted organisms.
Unhealthy acidic and acid forming foods are, for instance, nuts (cashew nuts, brazil nuts, butter, peanuts, peanut butter, pecan), animal protein (beef, clams, lamb, mussels, lobster, oysters, pork, rabbit, salmon, shrimps, tuna, ham, sausage), white pasta (noodles, macaroni, spaghetti), dairy products (cheese of any kind, milk, butter), alcohol, beans (kidney beans, red beans, lentils, peas).
Here are some simple strategies that can help to remove the acid wastes inside the body:
Eliminate dairy products and replace milk with soy or almond milk.
Eliminate red meat and reduce the portion size of any fish, chicken or turkey.
Consider using wraps to wrap your veggies and salads; sprouted tortilla wraps or organic flour tortillas are great to use; don’t use corn wraps.
Take extra virgin olive oil along with flax seed oil, as often as you can.
Use bread with no or very little yeast.
Add green food, tomatoes, avocados, cucumbers, zucchini, other vegetables, almonds, salmon or soba noodles, sunflower, pumpkin or sesame seeds to your salad.
Try to not consume processed food or if you do, limit it.
Try to eliminate soda, coffee, tea, etc. and drink alkalizing, energizing and oxygenating green sprouts powder drinks, together with alkaline water (like SuperGreens & Prime pH by InnerLight).
When people ingest too many acid forming or acidic foods, excess acid corrodes tissues and organs, which leads to illness. In addition, acid also provides a favourable environment for harmful bacteria and other micro organism that can damage glands and organs.
In other words, the over-acidification of our body cells (acidosis) will interrupt and disturb cellular activities and functions. It is the root of all sickness and disease. And it is also what causes overweight; to protect itself from potentially serious damage, the body creates new fat cells to store the extra acid.
All leading biochemists and micro biologists have recognized pH (pH scale or the acid alkaline balance) as the most important aspect of a balanced and healthy body. The maintenance of pH balance in our tissues and cells is critical to cellular health. Contrary to a healthy alkaline diet, an unhealty diet including too much acidic food creates a condition favourable to the growth of bacteria, yeast and other unwanted organisms.
Unhealthy acidic and acid forming foods are, for instance, nuts (cashew nuts, brazil nuts, butter, peanuts, peanut butter, pecan), animal protein (beef, clams, lamb, mussels, lobster, oysters, pork, rabbit, salmon, shrimps, tuna, ham, sausage), white pasta (noodles, macaroni, spaghetti), dairy products (cheese of any kind, milk, butter), alcohol, beans (kidney beans, red beans, lentils, peas).
Here are some simple strategies that can help to remove the acid wastes inside the body:
Eliminate dairy products and replace milk with soy or almond milk.
Eliminate red meat and reduce the portion size of any fish, chicken or turkey.
Consider using wraps to wrap your veggies and salads; sprouted tortilla wraps or organic flour tortillas are great to use; don’t use corn wraps.
Take extra virgin olive oil along with flax seed oil, as often as you can.
Use bread with no or very little yeast.
Add green food, tomatoes, avocados, cucumbers, zucchini, other vegetables, almonds, salmon or soba noodles, sunflower, pumpkin or sesame seeds to your salad.
Try to not consume processed food or if you do, limit it.
Try to eliminate soda, coffee, tea, etc. and drink alkalizing, energizing and oxygenating green sprouts powder drinks, together with alkaline water (like SuperGreens & Prime pH by InnerLight).
The three basic types of bread are
- Yeast bread
- Quick bread
- Flat bread
Yeast bread is characteristic as it contains air pockets throughout. This is caused by the yeast that is used to prepare this type of bread. Yeast bread includes pan breads such as bread made with white wheat flour, raisin bread and whole-wheat bread. Hearth bread, which includes French bread, most rye breads and Italian breads, is baked on a flat pan or placed directly on the hearth or floor of an oven. A yeast bread recipe is used to make Foccacia bread. When a yeast bread is loaded up with tomato sauce, cheese and a variety of toppings it's called pizza. Hamburger, hot dog buns and brown-and-serve (partially baked) rolls are also examples of yeast bread.
Quick bread is called "quick" because it takes less to prepare before baking than yeast bread. Quick breads are raised using baking powder. Quick bread includes corn bread, doughnuts, muffins, and pancakes. Quick bread is usually baked at home or in local bakeries and supermarkets. Quick bread is more commonly associated with dessert or other treat rather than with bread.
Flat bread is important in many parts of the world. As the name suggests, the bread is not risen like yeast and quick breads. There is little or no leaven in flat breads. Examples of flat breads include tortillas which are made from corn or wheat flour (Mexico and Central America), flat bread made from rice flour (Far East), a flat bread made with coarsely ground wheat called chapatti (India), and a flat bread made from durum wheat called pita bread (Middle East).
- Quick bread
- Flat bread
Yeast bread is characteristic as it contains air pockets throughout. This is caused by the yeast that is used to prepare this type of bread. Yeast bread includes pan breads such as bread made with white wheat flour, raisin bread and whole-wheat bread. Hearth bread, which includes French bread, most rye breads and Italian breads, is baked on a flat pan or placed directly on the hearth or floor of an oven. A yeast bread recipe is used to make Foccacia bread. When a yeast bread is loaded up with tomato sauce, cheese and a variety of toppings it's called pizza. Hamburger, hot dog buns and brown-and-serve (partially baked) rolls are also examples of yeast bread.
Quick bread is called "quick" because it takes less to prepare before baking than yeast bread. Quick breads are raised using baking powder. Quick bread includes corn bread, doughnuts, muffins, and pancakes. Quick bread is usually baked at home or in local bakeries and supermarkets. Quick bread is more commonly associated with dessert or other treat rather than with bread.
Flat bread is important in many parts of the world. As the name suggests, the bread is not risen like yeast and quick breads. There is little or no leaven in flat breads. Examples of flat breads include tortillas which are made from corn or wheat flour (Mexico and Central America), flat bread made from rice flour (Far East), a flat bread made with coarsely ground wheat called chapatti (India), and a flat bread made from durum wheat called pita bread (Middle East).
The Acid Alkaline Diet - The Basics of Beginning an Alkaline Lifestyle
Each and every person living in the UK is facing a myriad of health and lifestyle challenges every day.
We are constantly being fed new information about what is healthy and what is unhealthy while thousands of us try to deal with problems ranging from obesity to fatigue to life threatening diseases.
The alkalarian approach to diet offers a simple, basic understanding of what causes the body to become ‘out of balance’. Through what has become the typical Western diet largely based around meat, dairy, sugars, alcohol, saturated fats and caffeine, millions of us have created a hostile, acidic environment within our bodies.
What is the pH Balance?
The pH level of our internal fluids affects every living cell in our bodies and the effect that over-acidification can have upon the health of our bodies is immense, with a chronically over acidic pH creating an extremely negative environment which affects all cellular functions from the beatings of the heart to the neural workings of the brain.
When our pH level is unbalanced, almost any area of our bodies can be negatively affected creating results such as cancer, heart disease, obesity, weight problems, allergies, fatigue and premature aging as well as problems with our nervous system, cardiovascular system and muscles.
Acid Alkaline Diet: Where to Start?
To begin an alkaline diet it is important to start consuming alkalising foods and drinks while eliminating acidifying foods and drinks from your diet. As a rough guide you should try to include some of the following:
Foods that Alkalise (alkalize):
Vegetables:
Spinach, asparagus, broccoli, carrots, celery, cucumber, lettuce, courgette, cabbage, greens, swede, squash (summer, butternut, yellow etc), peppers, chili, tomato, onion, garlic, chickpeas, pinto beans, kidney beans, spring onion, root ginger
Salads:
Lettuce, spinach, celery, cucumber, nuts (aside from peanuts and cashews), seeds, avocado, carrots etc.
Herbs & Spices:
Basil, parsley, mint, coriander, ginger, cumin etc.
Essential Fats:
Flax/Linseed, Evening Primrose, Olive Oil, Avocado Oil or an oil blend such as Udo' Choice
Fruits:
ONLY - Lemons, Lime, Grapefruit, Watermelon, Tomato, Avocado - all other fruits to be used quite sparingly
Grasses:
Wheat, barley, kamut, lemon, shave etc.
Sprouts:
Alfalfa, mung bean, broccoli, radish, wheat, lentil, fenugreek etc.
Dips and Sauces:
Pesto, hummus, tahini, guacamole etc.
Foods that Acidify:
- Sugar
- Dairy Products
- Meat (aside from occasional coldwater fish)
- Caffeine
- Tobacco
- Wheat (aside from sprouts or wheatgrass)
- Fruit (apart from those mentioned above)
- 'Bad' fats (saturated, trans fatty acids, hydrogenated)
- Junk/ Processed foods
- Fizzy drinks
- Peanuts and Cashews
- Pasta and White Rice
- Condiments
The most effective way to reverse the trend of over-acidification and to create a more harmonious acid alkaline balance is to ‘cleanse’ the body of toxins and rapidly create an alkaline environment in which the body can heal itself. Cleansing and beginning an alkaline diet is a natural, holistic method of healing in which the body detoxifies itself and regenerates healthy vibrant cells, effectively becoming more alkaline and less acid.
Cleansing can put an individual one year ahead in the healing process!
This is a very brief outline of the most important principles of an alkaline diet. We highly recommend you read both The pH Miracle and Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill to gain a full understanding of how to create an alkaline diet.
We are constantly being fed new information about what is healthy and what is unhealthy while thousands of us try to deal with problems ranging from obesity to fatigue to life threatening diseases.
The alkalarian approach to diet offers a simple, basic understanding of what causes the body to become ‘out of balance’. Through what has become the typical Western diet largely based around meat, dairy, sugars, alcohol, saturated fats and caffeine, millions of us have created a hostile, acidic environment within our bodies.
What is the pH Balance?
The pH level of our internal fluids affects every living cell in our bodies and the effect that over-acidification can have upon the health of our bodies is immense, with a chronically over acidic pH creating an extremely negative environment which affects all cellular functions from the beatings of the heart to the neural workings of the brain.
When our pH level is unbalanced, almost any area of our bodies can be negatively affected creating results such as cancer, heart disease, obesity, weight problems, allergies, fatigue and premature aging as well as problems with our nervous system, cardiovascular system and muscles.
Acid Alkaline Diet: Where to Start?
To begin an alkaline diet it is important to start consuming alkalising foods and drinks while eliminating acidifying foods and drinks from your diet. As a rough guide you should try to include some of the following:
Foods that Alkalise (alkalize):
Vegetables:
Spinach, asparagus, broccoli, carrots, celery, cucumber, lettuce, courgette, cabbage, greens, swede, squash (summer, butternut, yellow etc), peppers, chili, tomato, onion, garlic, chickpeas, pinto beans, kidney beans, spring onion, root ginger
Salads:
Lettuce, spinach, celery, cucumber, nuts (aside from peanuts and cashews), seeds, avocado, carrots etc.
Herbs & Spices:
Basil, parsley, mint, coriander, ginger, cumin etc.
Essential Fats:
Flax/Linseed, Evening Primrose, Olive Oil, Avocado Oil or an oil blend such as Udo' Choice
Fruits:
ONLY - Lemons, Lime, Grapefruit, Watermelon, Tomato, Avocado - all other fruits to be used quite sparingly
Grasses:
Wheat, barley, kamut, lemon, shave etc.
Sprouts:
Alfalfa, mung bean, broccoli, radish, wheat, lentil, fenugreek etc.
Dips and Sauces:
Pesto, hummus, tahini, guacamole etc.
Foods that Acidify:
- Sugar
- Dairy Products
- Meat (aside from occasional coldwater fish)
- Caffeine
- Tobacco
- Wheat (aside from sprouts or wheatgrass)
- Fruit (apart from those mentioned above)
- 'Bad' fats (saturated, trans fatty acids, hydrogenated)
- Junk/ Processed foods
- Fizzy drinks
- Peanuts and Cashews
- Pasta and White Rice
- Condiments
The most effective way to reverse the trend of over-acidification and to create a more harmonious acid alkaline balance is to ‘cleanse’ the body of toxins and rapidly create an alkaline environment in which the body can heal itself. Cleansing and beginning an alkaline diet is a natural, holistic method of healing in which the body detoxifies itself and regenerates healthy vibrant cells, effectively becoming more alkaline and less acid.
Cleansing can put an individual one year ahead in the healing process!
This is a very brief outline of the most important principles of an alkaline diet. We highly recommend you read both The pH Miracle and Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill to gain a full understanding of how to create an alkaline diet.
Craving for chocolate linked to strong sexual desire
WOMEN have compared chocolate to sex for decades.
Now doctors have discovered a scientific link between the two.
female chocolate lovers have a higher sex drive.
According to Italian researchers, women who eat chocolate regularly had the highest levels of desire, arousal and satisfaction from sex.
But for men, the findings of a British study were not so good.
Research has found men who are sexually promiscuous when they are young could be increasing their risk of contracting prostate cancer later in life.
The study suggests sex with lots of partners increases the risk of exposure to the human papilloma virus (HPV) and that such infections may kick-start the chain of genetic mutations that lead to cancer, often decades later.
HPV is already linked to cervical cancer in women, but the suggestion it might also cause prostate cancer in men is new.
If confirmed, it could explain why rates of the disease have surged in the Western world.
"HPV infects many women in their late teens and early 20s," said Tim Oliver, professor of medical oncology at the London School of Medicine and Dentistry.
"We know this is linked to cervical cancer later in life and now we're seeing that in men it also lays the seeds for prostate cancer."
Dr Oliver's study follows research from Sweden that found men with high levels of antibodies against the HPV 33 strain of the virus - the same one involved in cervical cancer - were more likely to develop prostate cancer.
In the chocolate/sex study, urologists from Milan's San Raffaele hospital questioned 163 women about their consumption of chocolate and their sexual fulfilment.
"Chocolate can have a positive physiological impact on a woman's sexuality."
"Women who suffer mood swings as a result of their menstrual cycle may also suffer a dip in their sexual function.
Now doctors have discovered a scientific link between the two.
female chocolate lovers have a higher sex drive.
According to Italian researchers, women who eat chocolate regularly had the highest levels of desire, arousal and satisfaction from sex.
But for men, the findings of a British study were not so good.
Research has found men who are sexually promiscuous when they are young could be increasing their risk of contracting prostate cancer later in life.
The study suggests sex with lots of partners increases the risk of exposure to the human papilloma virus (HPV) and that such infections may kick-start the chain of genetic mutations that lead to cancer, often decades later.
HPV is already linked to cervical cancer in women, but the suggestion it might also cause prostate cancer in men is new.
If confirmed, it could explain why rates of the disease have surged in the Western world.
"HPV infects many women in their late teens and early 20s," said Tim Oliver, professor of medical oncology at the London School of Medicine and Dentistry.
"We know this is linked to cervical cancer later in life and now we're seeing that in men it also lays the seeds for prostate cancer."
Dr Oliver's study follows research from Sweden that found men with high levels of antibodies against the HPV 33 strain of the virus - the same one involved in cervical cancer - were more likely to develop prostate cancer.
In the chocolate/sex study, urologists from Milan's San Raffaele hospital questioned 163 women about their consumption of chocolate and their sexual fulfilment.
"Chocolate can have a positive physiological impact on a woman's sexuality."
"Women who suffer mood swings as a result of their menstrual cycle may also suffer a dip in their sexual function.
Acid / Alkaline Food Chart
Balanced body chemistry is of utmost importance for the maintenance of health and correction of disease. Acidosis, or over-acidity in the body tissues, is one of the basic causes of many diseases, especially the arthritic and rheumatic diseases.
All foods are "burned" in the body--more commonly called "digested"-- leaving an ash as the result of the "burning", or the digestion. This food ash can be neutral, acid or alkaline, depending largely on the mineral composition of the foods. Some foods leave an acid residue or ash, some alkaline. The acid ash (acidosis) results when there is a depletion of the alkali reserve or the diminution in the reserve supply of fixed bases in the blood and the tissues of the body.
It is, therefore, vitally important that there is a proper ratio between acid and alkaline foods in the diet. The natural ratio in a normal healthy body is approximately 4 to 1 -- four parts alkaline to one part acid, or 80% to 20%. When such an ideal ratio is maintained, the body has a strong resistance against disease. In the healing of disease, when the patient usually has acidosis, the higher the ratio of alkaline elements in the diet, the faster will be the recovery. Alkalis neutralize the acids. Therefore in the treatment of most diseases it is important that the patient's diet includes plenty of alkaline-ash foods to offset the effects of acid-forming foods and leave a safe margin of alkalinity.
A healthy body usually keeps large alkaline reserves which are used to meet the emergency demands if too many acid-producing foods are consumed. But these normal reserves can be depleted. When the alkaline-acid ratio drops to 3 to 1, health can be seriously menaced. Your body can function normally and sustain health only in the presence of adequate alkaline reserves and the proper acid-alkaline ratio in all the body tissues and the blood.
For optimum health and maximum resistance to disease, it is imperative that your diet is slightly over-alkaline. The ideal ratio, according to the world's foremost authority on the relationship between the acid-alkaline ratio in the diet in health and disease, Dr. Ragnar Berg, is about 80% alkali-producing foods and 20% acid-producing foods.
Below are tables of common foods with an approximate potential acidity or alkalinity, as present in one ounce of food.
Alkali-Forming Foods
Figs 30.0 Potatoes 2.0
Soy Beans 12.0 Pineapple 2.0
Lima Beans 12.0 Cabbage 1.8
Apricots 9.5 Grapefruit 1.7
Spinach 8.0 Tomatoes 1.7
Turnip/Beettops 8.0 Peaches 1.5
Raisins 7.0 Apples 1.0
Almonds 3.6 Grapes 1.0
Carrots 3.5 Bananas 1.0
Dates 3.0 Watermelon 1.0
Celery 2.5 Millet 0.5
Cucumber 2.5 Brazil nuts 0.5
Cantaloupe 2.5 Coconuts 0.5
Lettuce 2.2 Buckwheat 0.5
Watercress 2.0
Neutral (near/neutral) Ash Foods
milk Vegetable oils
Butter White sugar
Acid-Forming Foods
Oysters 5.0 Rice 2.5
Veal 3.5 W.Wheat/Rye bread 2.5
Most Fish 3.5 Most nuts (X-almond/brazil nut) 2.0
Organ meats 3.0 Natural Cheese 1.5
Liver 3.0 Lentils 1.5
Chicken 3.0 Peanuts 1.0
Fowl 3.0 Eggs 3.0
Most Grains 3.0
Most grains are acid-forming, except millet and buckwheat, which are considered to be alkaline. Sprouted seeds and grains become more alkaline in the process of sprouting.
All vegetable and fruit juices are highly alkaline. The most alkali-forming juices are: fig juice, green juices of all green vegetables and tops, carrots, beet, celery, pineapple and citrus juices. Vegetable broth ( HERE ) is an extremely alkalizing drink.
All foods are "burned" in the body--more commonly called "digested"-- leaving an ash as the result of the "burning", or the digestion. This food ash can be neutral, acid or alkaline, depending largely on the mineral composition of the foods. Some foods leave an acid residue or ash, some alkaline. The acid ash (acidosis) results when there is a depletion of the alkali reserve or the diminution in the reserve supply of fixed bases in the blood and the tissues of the body.
It is, therefore, vitally important that there is a proper ratio between acid and alkaline foods in the diet. The natural ratio in a normal healthy body is approximately 4 to 1 -- four parts alkaline to one part acid, or 80% to 20%. When such an ideal ratio is maintained, the body has a strong resistance against disease. In the healing of disease, when the patient usually has acidosis, the higher the ratio of alkaline elements in the diet, the faster will be the recovery. Alkalis neutralize the acids. Therefore in the treatment of most diseases it is important that the patient's diet includes plenty of alkaline-ash foods to offset the effects of acid-forming foods and leave a safe margin of alkalinity.
A healthy body usually keeps large alkaline reserves which are used to meet the emergency demands if too many acid-producing foods are consumed. But these normal reserves can be depleted. When the alkaline-acid ratio drops to 3 to 1, health can be seriously menaced. Your body can function normally and sustain health only in the presence of adequate alkaline reserves and the proper acid-alkaline ratio in all the body tissues and the blood.
For optimum health and maximum resistance to disease, it is imperative that your diet is slightly over-alkaline. The ideal ratio, according to the world's foremost authority on the relationship between the acid-alkaline ratio in the diet in health and disease, Dr. Ragnar Berg, is about 80% alkali-producing foods and 20% acid-producing foods.
Below are tables of common foods with an approximate potential acidity or alkalinity, as present in one ounce of food.
Alkali-Forming Foods
Figs 30.0 Potatoes 2.0
Soy Beans 12.0 Pineapple 2.0
Lima Beans 12.0 Cabbage 1.8
Apricots 9.5 Grapefruit 1.7
Spinach 8.0 Tomatoes 1.7
Turnip/Beettops 8.0 Peaches 1.5
Raisins 7.0 Apples 1.0
Almonds 3.6 Grapes 1.0
Carrots 3.5 Bananas 1.0
Dates 3.0 Watermelon 1.0
Celery 2.5 Millet 0.5
Cucumber 2.5 Brazil nuts 0.5
Cantaloupe 2.5 Coconuts 0.5
Lettuce 2.2 Buckwheat 0.5
Watercress 2.0
Neutral (near/neutral) Ash Foods
milk Vegetable oils
Butter White sugar
Acid-Forming Foods
Oysters 5.0 Rice 2.5
Veal 3.5 W.Wheat/Rye bread 2.5
Most Fish 3.5 Most nuts (X-almond/brazil nut) 2.0
Organ meats 3.0 Natural Cheese 1.5
Liver 3.0 Lentils 1.5
Chicken 3.0 Peanuts 1.0
Fowl 3.0 Eggs 3.0
Most Grains 3.0
Most grains are acid-forming, except millet and buckwheat, which are considered to be alkaline. Sprouted seeds and grains become more alkaline in the process of sprouting.
All vegetable and fruit juices are highly alkaline. The most alkali-forming juices are: fig juice, green juices of all green vegetables and tops, carrots, beet, celery, pineapple and citrus juices. Vegetable broth ( HERE ) is an extremely alkalizing drink.
成酸性食品和成碱性食品
许多食物经过代谢后，会产生少量矿物质残渣或灰分。只有高度精制食品，主要含脂肪、碳水化合物不产生灰分，这类食物的加工过程除去了矿物质元素，只含有碳、氢、氧等元素，经代谢后生成水、二氧化碳和能量。
食物的矿物质残渣溶液在试验时会呈现为酸性、碱性或中性反应，根据成酸元素（氯、磷、硫）或成碱元素（钠、钾、钙、镁）相对比例而定，食物残渣在水中的这种反应对人体具有重要的意义，它表明了食物对体液以至最后对尿液的酸度、碱度或中性的影响。肾脏能帮助体液保持中性，过量的酸或碱会随尿液排出。
1.成酸性食品
含有中等量或大量的蛋白质的食品，其成酸元素超过成碱元素，但奶和某些乳制品含足量钙而呈碱性反应。全谷类虽然含蛋白质量不高，但由于含有过量的磷以植酸盐形式存在，所以也呈酸性反应。尽管大部分的水果产生碱性灰分，但像李、梅、酸蔓果等在人体净显酸性，因为它们含有人体不能代谢的有机酸，并直接进入尿中。
2.成碱性食品
水果和蔬菜因其蛋白质含量较低，一般含有比成酸元素高的成碱元素，属于成碱性食品。玉米和小扁豆则是成酸性食品。人们可能会感到奇怪，像番茄、柑橘、葡萄等有突出酸味的水果怎么被列人成碱性食品呢？因为它们含有的有机酸（构橼酸、抗坏血酸、草酸及其它酸）在体内完全代谢成二氧化碳、水和能量。某些干果（椰子、杏、栗）产生碱性灰分，而其它（如花生、核桃）产生酸性灰分。
常见的成酸性、成碱性及中性的食品表
酸性食品 中性灰分食品 碱性食品
面包： 白面包 竹芋淀粉 水果： 苹果，生杏，橙
全麦面包 咖啡 杏干，香蕉，生梨
裸麦面包 白糖 草莓，甜瓜，柠檬
蛋糕： 普通蛋糕 玉米淀粉 鲜樱桃，干枣，柿
谷物： 玉米粉 普通糖果 干无花果，葡萄柚
面粉 淀粉 葡萄，橄榄，芒果
燕麦片 糖浆 酸橙，生菠萝，菠萝汁
大米等 黄油 蜜桃，葡萄干，西瓜
脂肪： 蛋黄酱 猪油 蔬菜： 洋葱，豌豆，胡椒
水果： 酸蔓果 植物油 莴苣，蘑菇，球葵
李，梅 人造黄油 黄瓜，茄子，小萝卜
肉类： 卤肉，牛肉 木薯 芦笋，青豆，甘薯
酸奶酪 饮料 甜菜，甜菜，番茄
鸡蛋类 茶 绿叶，甘蓝，芜箐
比目鱼 卷心菜，胡萝卜，南瓜
猪肉 花菜，芹菜，水芹
羊肉 马铃薯，西葫芦
坚果： 巴西坚果，花生酱 坚果： 杏仁，栗，鲜椰子
花生，核桃 其他： 果酱，冰激淋
蔬菜： 嫩玉米 奶油，牛奶，糖蜜
干小扁豆
3.成酸性食品和成碱性食品的实际应用
正常情况下，人们没有必要去注意食物是成酸性或是成碱性，因为血液的中性由肾脏来维持，肺给以适当的帮助。然而当患有肾结石病或肾功能受损时，可能就有必要选择特定的食品以使尿液呈酸性、碱性或中性。由钙和镁的磷酸盐、碳酸盐和草酸盐组成的肾结石易于在碱性条件下形成，因为这些盐类在碱性条件下不溶解。研究表明生成酸性尿的饮食有助于减少肾结石的生成。医生可能会建议病人一天饮用几次酸蔓果汁（含有不能代谢的有机酸）以使尿液保持酸性。
尿酸和胱氨酸结石在酸性情况下生成，因此，在这种状况下饮食治疗应使尿液保持碱性。
牛奶通常允许列入成酸性或成碱性饮食中，因为钙的吸收水平不固定，因而它究竟属于成酸性或成碱性食品还有争议。
在没有医疗必须的情况下，一般不建议人们自行尝试故意改变其体液和尿液的相对酸度或碱度。因为过分强调某些食品而不食用其他食品很可能造成饮食的不平衡，甚至出现某些营养缺乏病。
食物的矿物质残渣溶液在试验时会呈现为酸性、碱性或中性反应，根据成酸元素（氯、磷、硫）或成碱元素（钠、钾、钙、镁）相对比例而定，食物残渣在水中的这种反应对人体具有重要的意义，它表明了食物对体液以至最后对尿液的酸度、碱度或中性的影响。肾脏能帮助体液保持中性，过量的酸或碱会随尿液排出。
1.成酸性食品
含有中等量或大量的蛋白质的食品，其成酸元素超过成碱元素，但奶和某些乳制品含足量钙而呈碱性反应。全谷类虽然含蛋白质量不高，但由于含有过量的磷以植酸盐形式存在，所以也呈酸性反应。尽管大部分的水果产生碱性灰分，但像李、梅、酸蔓果等在人体净显酸性，因为它们含有人体不能代谢的有机酸，并直接进入尿中。
2.成碱性食品
水果和蔬菜因其蛋白质含量较低，一般含有比成酸元素高的成碱元素，属于成碱性食品。玉米和小扁豆则是成酸性食品。人们可能会感到奇怪，像番茄、柑橘、葡萄等有突出酸味的水果怎么被列人成碱性食品呢？因为它们含有的有机酸（构橼酸、抗坏血酸、草酸及其它酸）在体内完全代谢成二氧化碳、水和能量。某些干果（椰子、杏、栗）产生碱性灰分，而其它（如花生、核桃）产生酸性灰分。
常见的成酸性、成碱性及中性的食品表
酸性食品 中性灰分食品 碱性食品
面包： 白面包 竹芋淀粉 水果： 苹果，生杏，橙
全麦面包 咖啡 杏干，香蕉，生梨
裸麦面包 白糖 草莓，甜瓜，柠檬
蛋糕： 普通蛋糕 玉米淀粉 鲜樱桃，干枣，柿
谷物： 玉米粉 普通糖果 干无花果，葡萄柚
面粉 淀粉 葡萄，橄榄，芒果
燕麦片 糖浆 酸橙，生菠萝，菠萝汁
大米等 黄油 蜜桃，葡萄干，西瓜
脂肪： 蛋黄酱 猪油 蔬菜： 洋葱，豌豆，胡椒
水果： 酸蔓果 植物油 莴苣，蘑菇，球葵
李，梅 人造黄油 黄瓜，茄子，小萝卜
肉类： 卤肉，牛肉 木薯 芦笋，青豆，甘薯
酸奶酪 饮料 甜菜，甜菜，番茄
鸡蛋类 茶 绿叶，甘蓝，芜箐
比目鱼 卷心菜，胡萝卜，南瓜
猪肉 花菜，芹菜，水芹
羊肉 马铃薯，西葫芦
坚果： 巴西坚果，花生酱 坚果： 杏仁，栗，鲜椰子
花生，核桃 其他： 果酱，冰激淋
蔬菜： 嫩玉米 奶油，牛奶，糖蜜
干小扁豆
3.成酸性食品和成碱性食品的实际应用
正常情况下，人们没有必要去注意食物是成酸性或是成碱性，因为血液的中性由肾脏来维持，肺给以适当的帮助。然而当患有肾结石病或肾功能受损时，可能就有必要选择特定的食品以使尿液呈酸性、碱性或中性。由钙和镁的磷酸盐、碳酸盐和草酸盐组成的肾结石易于在碱性条件下形成，因为这些盐类在碱性条件下不溶解。研究表明生成酸性尿的饮食有助于减少肾结石的生成。医生可能会建议病人一天饮用几次酸蔓果汁（含有不能代谢的有机酸）以使尿液保持酸性。
尿酸和胱氨酸结石在酸性情况下生成，因此，在这种状况下饮食治疗应使尿液保持碱性。
牛奶通常允许列入成酸性或成碱性饮食中，因为钙的吸收水平不固定，因而它究竟属于成酸性或成碱性食品还有争议。
在没有医疗必须的情况下，一般不建议人们自行尝试故意改变其体液和尿液的相对酸度或碱度。因为过分强调某些食品而不食用其他食品很可能造成饮食的不平衡，甚至出现某些营养缺乏病。
85％癌症病患属于酸性体质，如何避免酸性体质
健康人的血液是呈弱碱性的，约是PH7.35～7.45左右。婴儿也是属于弱碱性的体质。成长期的成人有体质酸化的现象。根据一项六百位癌症病人体液分布的研究，显示85％癌症病患属于酸性体质。因此，如何使体质维持在弱碱性就是远离疾病的第一步。
酸性体质的生理表征：
1.皮肤无光泽。
2.香港脚。
3.稍做运动即感疲劳，一上公车便想睡觉。
4.上下楼梯容易气喘。
5.肥胖、下腹突出。
6.步伐缓慢、动作迟缓。
为什幺会形成酸性体质？
1.过度摄取乳酸性食品
a）肉类、奶酪制品与蛋、牛肉、火腿等皆属于酸性食品。
b）摄取过量的酸性食品血液会倾向酸性而变黏稠，不易流到细血管的末稍，而易造成手脚或膝盖的冷寒症，以及肩膀僵硬和失眠等。
c）年轻力壮时吃适量的肉类是对的，但老年人则以蔬菜或小鱼为宜。
2.生活步调失常会造成酸性体质
a）生活步调失常会造成精神与肉体的压力。
b）据统计，晚睡者罹患癌症的机率比正常人高出五倍。
c）人类本来就活在节奏的世界里，无法事先储备睡眠或饮食，也不能日夜颠倒。
d）人体内脏受自律神经控制，白天主要是交感神经活动，晚上则由副交感神经工作，若使其错乱及倒置，就亦百病滋生。
3.情绪过于紧张
a）文明社会会造成的压力。
b）工作上或精神上的压力。
c）当一个人承受精神压力后，一旦紧张松弛，时会造成猝死，称为潜在性副肾皮质机能不全症。
4.肉体的紧张
a）动手术之前应先检查肾上腺皮质机能是否正常。如果副肾皮质机能较差， 或手术压力远超过副肾调整功能，则可能造成病人死亡或其它不良影响。
b）若发现病患脸部浮肿，需详加询问病史及服药状况，为长期服用肾上腺皮质贺尔蒙者，施以针灸要特别注意反应。
c）劳动或运动过度，通宵打牌、开车等压力都应尽量避免。
强碱性食品：葡萄、茶叶、葡萄酒、海带芽、海带等。 尤其是天然绿藻富含叶绿素，是不错的碱性健康食品，而茶类不宜过量，最佳饮用时间为早上。
酸性体质的生理表征：
1.皮肤无光泽。
2.香港脚。
3.稍做运动即感疲劳，一上公车便想睡觉。
4.上下楼梯容易气喘。
5.肥胖、下腹突出。
6.步伐缓慢、动作迟缓。
为什幺会形成酸性体质？
1.过度摄取乳酸性食品
a）肉类、奶酪制品与蛋、牛肉、火腿等皆属于酸性食品。
b）摄取过量的酸性食品血液会倾向酸性而变黏稠，不易流到细血管的末稍，而易造成手脚或膝盖的冷寒症，以及肩膀僵硬和失眠等。
c）年轻力壮时吃适量的肉类是对的，但老年人则以蔬菜或小鱼为宜。
2.生活步调失常会造成酸性体质
a）生活步调失常会造成精神与肉体的压力。
b）据统计，晚睡者罹患癌症的机率比正常人高出五倍。
c）人类本来就活在节奏的世界里，无法事先储备睡眠或饮食，也不能日夜颠倒。
d）人体内脏受自律神经控制，白天主要是交感神经活动，晚上则由副交感神经工作，若使其错乱及倒置，就亦百病滋生。
3.情绪过于紧张
a）文明社会会造成的压力。
b）工作上或精神上的压力。
c）当一个人承受精神压力后，一旦紧张松弛，时会造成猝死，称为潜在性副肾皮质机能不全症。
4.肉体的紧张
a）动手术之前应先检查肾上腺皮质机能是否正常。如果副肾皮质机能较差， 或手术压力远超过副肾调整功能，则可能造成病人死亡或其它不良影响。
b）若发现病患脸部浮肿，需详加询问病史及服药状况，为长期服用肾上腺皮质贺尔蒙者，施以针灸要特别注意反应。
c）劳动或运动过度，通宵打牌、开车等压力都应尽量避免。
强碱性食品：葡萄、茶叶、葡萄酒、海带芽、海带等。 尤其是天然绿藻富含叶绿素，是不错的碱性健康食品，而茶类不宜过量，最佳饮用时间为早上。
酸碱失衡影响肠胃
蛋白质的食物如肉、蛋类等，需要在强酸的胃液中消化，而淀粉质的食物如面包等，则要在碱性的环境发挥，如果将以上食物一起食用，蛋白质的食物与淀粉类的食物不能进行同时消化。淀粉在胃中停留等待消化的时间里，易造成糖类的发酵、腐败，引起胃肠过重的负担，所以容易引起饱胀、吐酸或口中有异味，也影响到营养的吸收。
而柠檬、橘子等酸性水果，或是食用的醋以及有机酸进入体内后，经过胰液、胆汁、肠液、碳酸的中和后被肝脏吸收，很快燃烧成二氧化碳，对身体不会造成负担。有机酸被分解后，留下的矿物质成分即钾、钠、钙、镁等。所以，消化功能不良的人应该尽量避免过度摄取酸性食物，尤其要减少蛋白质、脂肪、淀粉类食物的摄取，增加碱性食物的比例。
碱性食品推荐
1.苹果。水果是食物中最容易消化的，也是最好的体内清洁剂。在水果中，苹果被称为最佳的碱性食物，它可以改善酸性体质以维持人体的酸碱平衡，吃苹果可以迅速中和体内过多的酸性物质，从而增强体力和抗病能力。除了中和酸碱平衡，研究分析还表明：常吃苹果有利于减肥，这是因为苹果会增加饱腹感，饭前吃能减少进食量，达到减肥的目的。
2.蔬菜类：几乎所有蔬菜，尤其是绿叶蔬菜都属于碱性食物。它们富含丰富的维生素及矿物质，能够为身体增加养分。蔬菜中的大量纤维素还能够使人体的消化功能得到改善，保持肠胃的健康。所以，非常适合用它们来中和体内大量的酸性食物如肉类、淀粉类，帮助食物及时消化和排泄。
而柠檬、橘子等酸性水果，或是食用的醋以及有机酸进入体内后，经过胰液、胆汁、肠液、碳酸的中和后被肝脏吸收，很快燃烧成二氧化碳，对身体不会造成负担。有机酸被分解后，留下的矿物质成分即钾、钠、钙、镁等。所以，消化功能不良的人应该尽量避免过度摄取酸性食物，尤其要减少蛋白质、脂肪、淀粉类食物的摄取，增加碱性食物的比例。
碱性食品推荐
1.苹果。水果是食物中最容易消化的，也是最好的体内清洁剂。在水果中，苹果被称为最佳的碱性食物，它可以改善酸性体质以维持人体的酸碱平衡，吃苹果可以迅速中和体内过多的酸性物质，从而增强体力和抗病能力。除了中和酸碱平衡，研究分析还表明：常吃苹果有利于减肥，这是因为苹果会增加饱腹感，饭前吃能减少进食量，达到减肥的目的。
2.蔬菜类：几乎所有蔬菜，尤其是绿叶蔬菜都属于碱性食物。它们富含丰富的维生素及矿物质，能够为身体增加养分。蔬菜中的大量纤维素还能够使人体的消化功能得到改善，保持肠胃的健康。所以，非常适合用它们来中和体内大量的酸性食物如肉类、淀粉类，帮助食物及时消化和排泄。
酸性、碱性食物都有哪些？
好吃的东西几乎都是酸性的，如：鱼、肉、米饭、酒、砂糖等，全都是酸性食物，相反，碱性食物如海带、蔬菜、白萝卜、豆腐等多半是不易引起食欲但却对身体有益的食物。外行人的想法，以为酸的东西就是酸性食物，诸如一看就会令人流口水的草莓、柠檬等，其实，这些东西正是典型的碱性食物，麻烦也就在这个地方。
可以参考食物中的钙、磷的含量来判断，钙质多的就是碱性食物，磷质多的就是酸性食物。所以我们应该好好检讨自己平日所吃的东西，是否有酸性过度的倾向。
白米饭是典型酸性食物，以此为主食的中国人，如果没有摄取相当量的碱性食物，就容易变成酸性体质。尤其是近年来，工业发展而引起环境污染、果菜类的农药污染、化学性加工食品等危害，变本加厉，加上土壤的酸性化导致食物中的钙也相对缺少。
此外还有一种酸性体质的原因，那就是都市人精神上的压力反应。从外面而来的压力，透过间脑而传到副肾和脑下垂体，以荷尔蒙分泌再传达到各器官，此时，若测定血液中的钙离子，一定会比正常值下降，也就是压力使血液中的钙离子降低，使血液变成酸性化。
总之，环境污染及不正常生活及饮食习惯，使我们体质逐渐转为酸性、生活步调失常会造成酸性体质、情绪过于紧张、动手术之身体的负荷都易让体质变成酸性。
1、保持良好的心情、情绪对体液酸化影响很大。适量运动以及杜绝抽烟、酗酒等不良嗜好。
2、不吃消夜：通常晚上八点过后进食就称之为宵夜。因晚上人体活动力低，且大部分处于休息状态，因此食物 留在肠子理会变酸、发酵、产生毒素，使体质变酸。
3、要吃早餐：人体在凌晨 4 ： 30 体温达到最低点，血循会变慢，如果睡太晚再加上不吃早餐，血液循环变慢， 氧气减少，形成缺氧性燃烧，会使体质变酸。
4、调整饮食结构，酸碱食物的比例建议为 20 ∶ 80 。多喝碱性离子水，少喝酸性水，如纯净、可乐等。如果体质偏酸性，可多实用碱性食物，例如糙米、蔬菜水果，另外海藻类食品也是很好的选择。体重反应身体健康，身体的健康与否，在于您平日的保健，多一分关心，将多一些健康。
我们日常摄取的食物可大致分为酸性食物和碱性食物。从营养的角度看，酸性食物和碱性食物的合理搭配是身体健康的保障。
食物酸碱一览表
强酸性食品：蛋黄、乳酪、甜点、白糖、金枪鱼、比目鱼。
中酸性食品：火腿、培根、鸡肉、猪肉、鳗鱼、牛肉、面包、小麦。
弱酸性食品：白米、花生、啤酒、海苔、章鱼、巧克力、空心粉、葱。
强碱性食品：葡萄、茶叶、葡萄酒、海带、柑橘类、柿子、黄瓜、胡萝卜。
中碱性食品：大豆、蕃茄、 香蕉、草莓、蛋白、梅干、柠檬、菠菜等。
弱碱性食品：红豆、苹果、甘蓝菜、豆腐、卷心菜、油菜、梨、马铃薯。
大部分人对食物酸碱性的认识十分模糊，认为吃起来酸酸的柠檬就是酸性的。其实，食物的酸碱性不是用简单的味觉来判定的。所谓食物的酸碱性，是指食物中的无机盐属于酸性还是属于碱性。食物的酸碱性取决于食物中所含矿物质的种类和含量多少的比率而定：钾、钠、钙、镁、铁进入人体之后呈现的是碱性反应；磷、氯、硫进入人体之后则呈现酸性。
碱性食物主要分为：
一、蔬菜、水果类；
二、海藻类；三、坚果类；
四、发过芽的谷类、豆类。要避免或减少以下酸性食物的摄取：一、淀粉类；二、动物性食物；三、甜食；四、精制加工食品(如白面包等)；
五、油炸食物或奶油类；
六、豆类(如花生等)
可以参考食物中的钙、磷的含量来判断，钙质多的就是碱性食物，磷质多的就是酸性食物。所以我们应该好好检讨自己平日所吃的东西，是否有酸性过度的倾向。
白米饭是典型酸性食物，以此为主食的中国人，如果没有摄取相当量的碱性食物，就容易变成酸性体质。尤其是近年来，工业发展而引起环境污染、果菜类的农药污染、化学性加工食品等危害，变本加厉，加上土壤的酸性化导致食物中的钙也相对缺少。
此外还有一种酸性体质的原因，那就是都市人精神上的压力反应。从外面而来的压力，透过间脑而传到副肾和脑下垂体，以荷尔蒙分泌再传达到各器官，此时，若测定血液中的钙离子，一定会比正常值下降，也就是压力使血液中的钙离子降低，使血液变成酸性化。
总之，环境污染及不正常生活及饮食习惯，使我们体质逐渐转为酸性、生活步调失常会造成酸性体质、情绪过于紧张、动手术之身体的负荷都易让体质变成酸性。
1、保持良好的心情、情绪对体液酸化影响很大。适量运动以及杜绝抽烟、酗酒等不良嗜好。
2、不吃消夜：通常晚上八点过后进食就称之为宵夜。因晚上人体活动力低，且大部分处于休息状态，因此食物 留在肠子理会变酸、发酵、产生毒素，使体质变酸。
3、要吃早餐：人体在凌晨 4 ： 30 体温达到最低点，血循会变慢，如果睡太晚再加上不吃早餐，血液循环变慢， 氧气减少，形成缺氧性燃烧，会使体质变酸。
4、调整饮食结构，酸碱食物的比例建议为 20 ∶ 80 。多喝碱性离子水，少喝酸性水，如纯净、可乐等。如果体质偏酸性，可多实用碱性食物，例如糙米、蔬菜水果，另外海藻类食品也是很好的选择。体重反应身体健康，身体的健康与否，在于您平日的保健，多一分关心，将多一些健康。
我们日常摄取的食物可大致分为酸性食物和碱性食物。从营养的角度看，酸性食物和碱性食物的合理搭配是身体健康的保障。
食物酸碱一览表
强酸性食品：蛋黄、乳酪、甜点、白糖、金枪鱼、比目鱼。
中酸性食品：火腿、培根、鸡肉、猪肉、鳗鱼、牛肉、面包、小麦。
弱酸性食品：白米、花生、啤酒、海苔、章鱼、巧克力、空心粉、葱。
强碱性食品：葡萄、茶叶、葡萄酒、海带、柑橘类、柿子、黄瓜、胡萝卜。
中碱性食品：大豆、蕃茄、 香蕉、草莓、蛋白、梅干、柠檬、菠菜等。
弱碱性食品：红豆、苹果、甘蓝菜、豆腐、卷心菜、油菜、梨、马铃薯。
大部分人对食物酸碱性的认识十分模糊，认为吃起来酸酸的柠檬就是酸性的。其实，食物的酸碱性不是用简单的味觉来判定的。所谓食物的酸碱性，是指食物中的无机盐属于酸性还是属于碱性。食物的酸碱性取决于食物中所含矿物质的种类和含量多少的比率而定：钾、钠、钙、镁、铁进入人体之后呈现的是碱性反应；磷、氯、硫进入人体之后则呈现酸性。
碱性食物主要分为：
一、蔬菜、水果类；
二、海藻类；三、坚果类；
四、发过芽的谷类、豆类。要避免或减少以下酸性食物的摄取：一、淀粉类；二、动物性食物；三、甜食；四、精制加工食品(如白面包等)；
五、油炸食物或奶油类；
六、豆类(如花生等)
Monday, June 16, 2008
2008 新概念
一、一個中心：一切以健康為中心。
二、兩個基本點： 遇事瀟灑一點，看世糊塗一點。
三、三個忘記： 忘記年齡，忘記過去，忘記恩怨。
四、四個擁有： 無論你有多弱或多強，一定要擁有真正愛你的人，擁有知心朋友，擁
有向上的事業，擁有溫暖的住所。
五、五個要： 要唱，要跳，要俏，要笑，要苗條。
六、六個不能： 不能餓了才吃，不能渴了才喝，不能困了才睡，不能累了才歇，不能
病了才檢查，不能老了再後悔！
※ 少喝奶茶，不吃剛烤的麵包，遠離充電電源，白天多喝水晚上少喝酒，一天不喝多
於兩杯咖啡，少吃油多的食物，最佳睡眠為晚上十點至早上六點，晚上五點後少吃大
餐，每天喝酒不多過一杯，不用冷水服膠囊，睡前半小時服藥忌立刻躺下。睡眠不足
八小時人會變笨，有午睡的習慣人不易老。 電池剩一格時不要打電話，剩一格時輻射
是平時的一千倍，還要記得用左耳接電話，用右耳會直接傷害到大腦，看到了就轉發
給每一個你珍惜的朋友 !!! 忙碌也要記得愛自己!
二、兩個基本點： 遇事瀟灑一點，看世糊塗一點。
三、三個忘記： 忘記年齡，忘記過去，忘記恩怨。
四、四個擁有： 無論你有多弱或多強，一定要擁有真正愛你的人，擁有知心朋友，擁
有向上的事業，擁有溫暖的住所。
五、五個要： 要唱，要跳，要俏，要笑，要苗條。
六、六個不能： 不能餓了才吃，不能渴了才喝，不能困了才睡，不能累了才歇，不能
病了才檢查，不能老了再後悔！
※ 少喝奶茶，不吃剛烤的麵包，遠離充電電源，白天多喝水晚上少喝酒，一天不喝多
於兩杯咖啡，少吃油多的食物，最佳睡眠為晚上十點至早上六點，晚上五點後少吃大
餐，每天喝酒不多過一杯，不用冷水服膠囊，睡前半小時服藥忌立刻躺下。睡眠不足
八小時人會變笨，有午睡的習慣人不易老。 電池剩一格時不要打電話，剩一格時輻射
是平時的一千倍，還要記得用左耳接電話，用右耳會直接傷害到大腦，看到了就轉發
給每一個你珍惜的朋友 !!! 忙碌也要記得愛自己!
Friday, June 13, 2008
The World's Best Places to Live 2008
Mercer Consulting's annual roundup of the global cities with the best quality of life is here, and Zurich once again comes out on top. The best place in the U.S.? Honolulu at No. 28.
New York, London, and Paris are internationally renowned cities but consultants at Mercer Consulting have picked Zurich, Switzerland, as the best place to live in the company's annual survey.
Consultants rated each city on a variety of factors including the level of traffic congestion, air quality, and personal safety reported by expatriates living in more than 600 cities worldwide. In the top 25, U.S. cities such as San Francisco, Boston, and Chicago were all edged out by Geneva, Switzerland, Vancouver, B.C., and Auckland, New Zealand. The highest-scoring U.S. city is Honolulu, which came in at No. 28.
Still, Mercer acknowledges that cities with a high quality of life are not necessarily the most exciting. "There are a lot of 'sleepy' towns that got high ratings," said Rebecca Powers, a principal consultant in human capital for the company. "But if you were to judge them on something like nightlife, there are some that probably wouldn't have rated as high."
No. 1: Zurich, Switzerland
Mercer score: 108*
2007 rank: No. 1
GDP: $300.9 billion (2007 est.)**
Population: 7,581,520 (total country); 347,517 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.74 years
No. 2 (tie): Vienna, Austria
Mercer score: 107.9
2007 rank: No. 3
GDP: $319.7 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 8,205,533 (total country); 1,825,287 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.36 years
No. 2 (tie): Geneva, Switzerland
Mercer score: 107.9
2007 rank: No. 2
GDP: $300.9 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 7,581,520 (total country); 185,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.74 years
No. 4: Vancouver, Canada
Mercer score: 107.6
2007 rank: No. 3
GDP: $1.274 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 33,212,696 (total country); 560,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 81.16 years
No. 5: Auckland, New Zealand
Mercer score: 107.3
2007 rank: No. 5
GDP: $112.6 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 4,173,460 (total country); 1.18 million (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.24 years
No. 6: Dusseldorf, Germany
Mercer score: 107.2
2007 rank: No. 6
GDP: $2.833 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 82,369,548 (total country); 581,858 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.1 years
No. 7 (tie): Munich, Germany
Mercer score: 107
2007 rank: No. 8
GDP: $2.833 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 82,369,548 (total country); 1,332,650 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.1 years
No. 7 (tie): Frankfurt, Germany
Mercer score: 107
2007 rank: No. 7
GDP: $2.833 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 82,369,548 (total country); 3,700,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.1 years
No. 9: Bern, Switzerland
Mercer score: 106.5
2007 rank: No. 9
GDP: $319.7 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 8,205,533 (total country); 122,178 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.36 years
No. 10: Sydney, Australia
Mercer score: 106.3
2007 rank: No. 9
GDP: $766.8 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 20,600,856 (total country); 4,297,100 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.73 years
No. 11: Copenhagen, Denmark
Mercer score: 106.2
2007 rank: No. 11
GDP: $204.6 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 5,484,723 (total country); 1, 086,762 (total city)
Life expectancy: 78.13 years
No. 12: Wellington, New Zealand
Mercer score: 105.8
2007 rank: No. 12
GDP: $112.6 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 4,173,460 (total country); 370,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.24 years
No. 13: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Mercer score: 105.7
2007 rank: No. 13
GDP: $638.9 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 16,645,313 (total country); 740,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.25 years
No. 14: Brussels, Belgium
Mercer score: 105.4
2007 rank: No. 14
GDP: $378.9 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 10,403,951 (total country); 1,067,162 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.07 years
No. 15: Toronto, Canada
Mercer score: 105.3
2007 rank: No. 15
GDP: $1.274 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 33,212,696 (total country); 2,481,494 (total city)
Life expectancy: 81.16 years
No. 16: Berlin, Germany
Mercer score: 105
2007 rank: No. 16
GDP: $2.833 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 82,369,548 (total country); 3,405,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.1 years
No. 17 (tie): Melbourne, Australia
Mercer score: 104.8
2007 rank: No. 17
GDP: $766.8 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 20,600,856 (total country); 3,850,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.73 years
No. 19: Ottawa, Canada
Mercer score: 104.7
2007 rank: No. 18
GDP: $1.274 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 33,212,696 (total country); 774,072 (total city)
Life expectancy: 81.16 years
No. 20: Stockholm, Sweden
Mercer score: 104.5
2007 rank: No. 20
GDP: $333.1 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 9,045,389 (total country); 794,700 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.74 years
New York, London, and Paris are internationally renowned cities but consultants at Mercer Consulting have picked Zurich, Switzerland, as the best place to live in the company's annual survey.
Consultants rated each city on a variety of factors including the level of traffic congestion, air quality, and personal safety reported by expatriates living in more than 600 cities worldwide. In the top 25, U.S. cities such as San Francisco, Boston, and Chicago were all edged out by Geneva, Switzerland, Vancouver, B.C., and Auckland, New Zealand. The highest-scoring U.S. city is Honolulu, which came in at No. 28.
Still, Mercer acknowledges that cities with a high quality of life are not necessarily the most exciting. "There are a lot of 'sleepy' towns that got high ratings," said Rebecca Powers, a principal consultant in human capital for the company. "But if you were to judge them on something like nightlife, there are some that probably wouldn't have rated as high."
No. 1: Zurich, Switzerland
Mercer score: 108*
2007 rank: No. 1
GDP: $300.9 billion (2007 est.)**
Population: 7,581,520 (total country); 347,517 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.74 years
No. 2 (tie): Vienna, Austria
Mercer score: 107.9
2007 rank: No. 3
GDP: $319.7 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 8,205,533 (total country); 1,825,287 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.36 years
No. 2 (tie): Geneva, Switzerland
Mercer score: 107.9
2007 rank: No. 2
GDP: $300.9 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 7,581,520 (total country); 185,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.74 years
No. 4: Vancouver, Canada
Mercer score: 107.6
2007 rank: No. 3
GDP: $1.274 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 33,212,696 (total country); 560,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 81.16 years
No. 5: Auckland, New Zealand
Mercer score: 107.3
2007 rank: No. 5
GDP: $112.6 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 4,173,460 (total country); 1.18 million (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.24 years
No. 6: Dusseldorf, Germany
Mercer score: 107.2
2007 rank: No. 6
GDP: $2.833 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 82,369,548 (total country); 581,858 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.1 years
No. 7 (tie): Munich, Germany
Mercer score: 107
2007 rank: No. 8
GDP: $2.833 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 82,369,548 (total country); 1,332,650 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.1 years
No. 7 (tie): Frankfurt, Germany
Mercer score: 107
2007 rank: No. 7
GDP: $2.833 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 82,369,548 (total country); 3,700,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.1 years
No. 9: Bern, Switzerland
Mercer score: 106.5
2007 rank: No. 9
GDP: $319.7 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 8,205,533 (total country); 122,178 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.36 years
No. 10: Sydney, Australia
Mercer score: 106.3
2007 rank: No. 9
GDP: $766.8 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 20,600,856 (total country); 4,297,100 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.73 years
No. 11: Copenhagen, Denmark
Mercer score: 106.2
2007 rank: No. 11
GDP: $204.6 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 5,484,723 (total country); 1, 086,762 (total city)
Life expectancy: 78.13 years
No. 12: Wellington, New Zealand
Mercer score: 105.8
2007 rank: No. 12
GDP: $112.6 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 4,173,460 (total country); 370,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.24 years
No. 13: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Mercer score: 105.7
2007 rank: No. 13
GDP: $638.9 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 16,645,313 (total country); 740,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.25 years
No. 14: Brussels, Belgium
Mercer score: 105.4
2007 rank: No. 14
GDP: $378.9 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 10,403,951 (total country); 1,067,162 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.07 years
No. 15: Toronto, Canada
Mercer score: 105.3
2007 rank: No. 15
GDP: $1.274 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 33,212,696 (total country); 2,481,494 (total city)
Life expectancy: 81.16 years
No. 16: Berlin, Germany
Mercer score: 105
2007 rank: No. 16
GDP: $2.833 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 82,369,548 (total country); 3,405,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 79.1 years
No. 17 (tie): Melbourne, Australia
Mercer score: 104.8
2007 rank: No. 17
GDP: $766.8 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 20,600,856 (total country); 3,850,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.73 years
No. 19: Ottawa, Canada
Mercer score: 104.7
2007 rank: No. 18
GDP: $1.274 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 33,212,696 (total country); 774,072 (total city)
Life expectancy: 81.16 years
No. 20: Stockholm, Sweden
Mercer score: 104.5
2007 rank: No. 20
GDP: $333.1 billion (2007 est.)
Population: 9,045,389 (total country); 794,700 (total city)
Life expectancy: 80.74 years
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Headphones damaging young Australians' hearing
MORE than 70 per cent of young Australians show early signs of hearing loss, with loud music played through headphones believed to be a major cause, a survey released on Tuesday showed.
It was found that tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, was more prevalent among 18 to 34-year-olds than elderly people, even though it is seen as one of the first signs of hearing loss.
The figures, based on a survey of 1,000 people, showed Australians who reported using headphones to listen to loud music or going to loud bars at least once a week were risking hearing loss.
It was revealed that listening to loud music through headphones is more detrimental to hearing than other sources of leisure noise.
Despite this, more than two thirds of respondents said they listen to music through headphones regularly and 60 per cent of these people often have the volume above safe levels.
While the elderly were the most likely to experience hearing loss, the next most vulnerable group was teenagers.
There are, however, responsible steps people could take to minimise the risk of going deaf from loud music, like setting the volume of MP3 players at a level that allows one to hear someone else at arm's length without them having to shout.
It was found that tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, was more prevalent among 18 to 34-year-olds than elderly people, even though it is seen as one of the first signs of hearing loss.
The figures, based on a survey of 1,000 people, showed Australians who reported using headphones to listen to loud music or going to loud bars at least once a week were risking hearing loss.
It was revealed that listening to loud music through headphones is more detrimental to hearing than other sources of leisure noise.
Despite this, more than two thirds of respondents said they listen to music through headphones regularly and 60 per cent of these people often have the volume above safe levels.
While the elderly were the most likely to experience hearing loss, the next most vulnerable group was teenagers.
There are, however, responsible steps people could take to minimise the risk of going deaf from loud music, like setting the volume of MP3 players at a level that allows one to hear someone else at arm's length without them having to shout.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Sleep: A Necessity, Not a Luxury
The pace of life gets faster and faster, and people try to cram more and more into every minute of the day.
As things get more hectic, sleep tends to get short shrift. It's seen as wasted time, lost forever.
"For healthy people, there's a big temptation to voluntarily restrict sleep, to stay up an hour or two or get up an hour or two earlier," said Dr. Greg Belenky, director of the Sleep and Performance Research Center at Washington State University Spokane.
"But you're really reducing your productivity and exposing yourself to risk," Belenky added.
That's a message doctors are trying to spread to Americans, including the estimated 40 million people who struggle with some type of sleep disorder each year.
Before Thomas Edison invented the light bulb in 1880, people slept an average of 10 hours a night. These days, Americans average 6.9 hours of sleep on weeknights and 7.5hours a night on weekends, according to the National Sleep Foundation.
"The group of people getting optimal sleep is getting smaller and smaller," said Dr. Chris Drake, senior scientist at the Henry Ford Hospital Sleep Disorders and Research Center in Detroit. "When a person's sleep drops to six hours or less, that's when a lot of things become very problematic."
While experts recommend seven to eight hours of sleep each night, the amount needed for an individual can vary.
But lack of sleep affects a person in one of two ways, Belenky said. First, sleeplessness influences the day-to-day performance of tasks.
"The performance effects are seen immediately," he said. "You short-change yourself of sleep, and you see the effects immediately. You can make a bad decision. You can miss something. Have a moment's inattention, and you're off the road."
The longer-term effects of sleep deprivation involve a person's health. Doctors have linked lack of sleep to weight gain, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart problems, depression and substance abuse.
"Hormones that process appetite begin to get disorganized," said Drake, who's also an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the Wayne State University School of Medicine. There's a decrease in the amount of leptin, an appetite-suppressing hormone, when a person gets too little sleep. At the same time, ghrelin -- a hormone that stimulates appetite -- increases with a lack of sleep.
Too little sleep also interferes with the body's ability to regulate glucose and can cause inflammation leading to heart problems and a rise in blood pressure. "There's a stress response to being in a sleep loss," Belenky said.
The types of people not getting enough sleep also break down into two groups. First, there are those who make the conscious choice to go without enough sleep.
"It's sort of part of the culture," Belenky said. "People pride themselves on getting little sleep. You'll hear people bragging, 'I only need six hours a night.' So there's a macho element here."
On the other hand, there are people who are suffering from sleep disorders. These disorders include:
Insomnia, an inability to go to sleep or stay asleep.
Sleep apnea, or breathing interruptions during sleep that cause people to wake up repeatedly.
Restless legs syndrome, a tingling or prickly sensation in the legs that causes a person to need to move them, interrupting sleep.
Someone suffering from any of these problems should visit their doctor or see a sleep specialist, Belenky said.
Sleep apnea, the most prevalent sleep disorder, can have particularly serious long-term effects if left untreated. "You're waking up out of sleep to breathe. You can't sleep and breathe at the same time," Drake said. "It's a risk factor for developing major cardiovascular health effects."
Some people who have trouble sleeping will resort to mild sedatives like Ambien and Lunesta.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently asked the makers of these sedative-hypnotic drugs to strengthen their warning labels. This action followed reports of dangerous allergic reactions, as well as a host of bizarre behavioral side effects that include sleep-driving, making phone calls, and preparing and eating food or having sex while asleep.
Drake and Belenky both consider sleeping pills to be fine for the short term if taken properly.
"Sleeping pills are a temporary solution," Belenky said. "If you're upset about something or have situational insomnia, or you're trying to sleep at the wrong time of day because you've traveled across time zones, they are effective."
But, both doctors noted the pills will do nothing to help a chronic sleep problem. "They don't address the pathology of their sleeplessness," Drake said.
The U.S. National Institutes of Health offers these tips for getting a good night's sleep:
Stick to a regular sleep schedule.
Avoid exercising closer than five or six hours before bedtime.
Avoid caffeine, nicotine and alcohol before bed.
Avoid large meals and beverages late at night.
Don't take naps after 3 p.m.
Relax before bed, taking time to unwind with a hot bath, a good book or soothing music.
If you're still awake after more than 20 minutes in bed, get up and do something relaxing until you feel sleepy. Anxiety over not being able to sleep can make it harder to fall asleep.
As things get more hectic, sleep tends to get short shrift. It's seen as wasted time, lost forever.
"For healthy people, there's a big temptation to voluntarily restrict sleep, to stay up an hour or two or get up an hour or two earlier," said Dr. Greg Belenky, director of the Sleep and Performance Research Center at Washington State University Spokane.
"But you're really reducing your productivity and exposing yourself to risk," Belenky added.
That's a message doctors are trying to spread to Americans, including the estimated 40 million people who struggle with some type of sleep disorder each year.
Before Thomas Edison invented the light bulb in 1880, people slept an average of 10 hours a night. These days, Americans average 6.9 hours of sleep on weeknights and 7.5hours a night on weekends, according to the National Sleep Foundation.
"The group of people getting optimal sleep is getting smaller and smaller," said Dr. Chris Drake, senior scientist at the Henry Ford Hospital Sleep Disorders and Research Center in Detroit. "When a person's sleep drops to six hours or less, that's when a lot of things become very problematic."
While experts recommend seven to eight hours of sleep each night, the amount needed for an individual can vary.
But lack of sleep affects a person in one of two ways, Belenky said. First, sleeplessness influences the day-to-day performance of tasks.
"The performance effects are seen immediately," he said. "You short-change yourself of sleep, and you see the effects immediately. You can make a bad decision. You can miss something. Have a moment's inattention, and you're off the road."
The longer-term effects of sleep deprivation involve a person's health. Doctors have linked lack of sleep to weight gain, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart problems, depression and substance abuse.
"Hormones that process appetite begin to get disorganized," said Drake, who's also an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the Wayne State University School of Medicine. There's a decrease in the amount of leptin, an appetite-suppressing hormone, when a person gets too little sleep. At the same time, ghrelin -- a hormone that stimulates appetite -- increases with a lack of sleep.
Too little sleep also interferes with the body's ability to regulate glucose and can cause inflammation leading to heart problems and a rise in blood pressure. "There's a stress response to being in a sleep loss," Belenky said.
The types of people not getting enough sleep also break down into two groups. First, there are those who make the conscious choice to go without enough sleep.
"It's sort of part of the culture," Belenky said. "People pride themselves on getting little sleep. You'll hear people bragging, 'I only need six hours a night.' So there's a macho element here."
On the other hand, there are people who are suffering from sleep disorders. These disorders include:
Insomnia, an inability to go to sleep or stay asleep.
Sleep apnea, or breathing interruptions during sleep that cause people to wake up repeatedly.
Restless legs syndrome, a tingling or prickly sensation in the legs that causes a person to need to move them, interrupting sleep.
Someone suffering from any of these problems should visit their doctor or see a sleep specialist, Belenky said.
Sleep apnea, the most prevalent sleep disorder, can have particularly serious long-term effects if left untreated. "You're waking up out of sleep to breathe. You can't sleep and breathe at the same time," Drake said. "It's a risk factor for developing major cardiovascular health effects."
Some people who have trouble sleeping will resort to mild sedatives like Ambien and Lunesta.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently asked the makers of these sedative-hypnotic drugs to strengthen their warning labels. This action followed reports of dangerous allergic reactions, as well as a host of bizarre behavioral side effects that include sleep-driving, making phone calls, and preparing and eating food or having sex while asleep.
Drake and Belenky both consider sleeping pills to be fine for the short term if taken properly.
"Sleeping pills are a temporary solution," Belenky said. "If you're upset about something or have situational insomnia, or you're trying to sleep at the wrong time of day because you've traveled across time zones, they are effective."
But, both doctors noted the pills will do nothing to help a chronic sleep problem. "They don't address the pathology of their sleeplessness," Drake said.
The U.S. National Institutes of Health offers these tips for getting a good night's sleep:
Stick to a regular sleep schedule.
Avoid exercising closer than five or six hours before bedtime.
Avoid caffeine, nicotine and alcohol before bed.
Avoid large meals and beverages late at night.
Don't take naps after 3 p.m.
Relax before bed, taking time to unwind with a hot bath, a good book or soothing music.
If you're still awake after more than 20 minutes in bed, get up and do something relaxing until you feel sleepy. Anxiety over not being able to sleep can make it harder to fall asleep.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Centenarian Tips for a Long Life
Everyone would love to live to a ripe old age, but not if it means looking and feeling like an over-ripe old vegetable. We need to understand that though getting older is inevitable, getting decrepit is not.
Being bent in half and wheeling around an oxygen tank should not be what we picture when we hear the phrase "the golden years." I have seen centenarians around the world who defy our stereotypes of the aging experience.
In fact, 20 years ago, while in Shanghai, I took note of the thousands of seniors - a great many of them centenarians - meeting up in parks each morning to practice tai chi. I was truly amazed by their agility, sharp minds, and overall state of health.
Intrigued by this discovery, I began studying the lifestyle of centenarians around the world and anti-aging therapies. I combined these discoveries and uncovered the secrets to longevity. Here are a few secrets that will have you looking forward to your 100th birthday!
Tai Chi: An Exercise in Anti-aging
Tai chi, the choreographed meditative exercises that have been a healing art in China for thousands of years, is practiced by over 100 million people worldwide and owes its popularity to a simple fact - it's enjoyable and it makes you stronger.
Recent studies confirm that when practiced regularly - 30 minutes, three times a week - it has numerous health benefits including: increased energy, decreased stress, an immunity boost against viruses, lowered blood pressure, better cognitive functioning, increased joint mobility, an improved cholesterol profile, relief from fibromyalgia symptoms, and even a better night's sleep.
It also increases leg muscle strength and provides better balance and posture. Perhaps the best part is that tai chi is a gentle exercise that can be performed by anyone at any age. Click here to find out more about tai chi.
Centenarians I have met also take advantage of other rejuvenation techniques the Chinese have known for thousands of years - like acupuncture, acupressure, and energy healing - that increase energy, promote health, and balance the body and the mind.
Diet: The Cornerstone of Longevity
It is no surprise that diet is an essential factor to health and longevity. So what should you be eating? In my studies, I found that the centenarians of two reputed "longevity capitals" - Okinawa, Japan, and Rugao County, a rural community four hours north of Shanghai - shared a nearly identical diet.
These long-lifers eat mostly fish, vegetables, mushrooms, seaweed, corn, and buckwheat - and virtually no meat. Scientists have confirmed the health benefits of a diet high in fish and vegetables and low in animal products. These centenarians are living examples, as they suffer from very little heart and liver disease and have negligible rates of cancer and degenerative diseases.
Environ-Mentality
When it comes to longevity, environment is half of the equation. From the verdant valleys of Ecuador to the rugged mountains of Armenia to the pristine foothills of the Himalayas, centenarians live in environments that exhibit the same characteristics: clean air, good water, low stress, close communities, and unspoiled nature.
Take a tip from these centenarians and drink only clean, filtered water. Connect with your community in a positive way. Find every way you can to bring nature into your life, from planting more trees in your area to more plants in your home.
Avoid the environmental factors that are damaging to our wellbeing and know what to look out for. Just a few things to avoid include xenoestrogens, which are present just about everywhere, pesticides used on vegetables, hormones injected into meats and poultry, phthalates leaching from plastic bottles, and dioxins from bleached paper products. You can avoid these chemical compounds if you buy organic foods and use glass containers and unbleached paper products.
Keep it Simple!
Centenarians' lifestyles are simple. The centenarians I have known lead active lives and get plenty of rest. They are dedicated lifelong learners and avid travelers. Enjoy your years and you will have many more years to enjoy!
I hope these suggestions further your longevity goals! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.
May you live long, live strong, and live happy!
Being bent in half and wheeling around an oxygen tank should not be what we picture when we hear the phrase "the golden years." I have seen centenarians around the world who defy our stereotypes of the aging experience.
In fact, 20 years ago, while in Shanghai, I took note of the thousands of seniors - a great many of them centenarians - meeting up in parks each morning to practice tai chi. I was truly amazed by their agility, sharp minds, and overall state of health.
Intrigued by this discovery, I began studying the lifestyle of centenarians around the world and anti-aging therapies. I combined these discoveries and uncovered the secrets to longevity. Here are a few secrets that will have you looking forward to your 100th birthday!
Tai Chi: An Exercise in Anti-aging
Tai chi, the choreographed meditative exercises that have been a healing art in China for thousands of years, is practiced by over 100 million people worldwide and owes its popularity to a simple fact - it's enjoyable and it makes you stronger.
Recent studies confirm that when practiced regularly - 30 minutes, three times a week - it has numerous health benefits including: increased energy, decreased stress, an immunity boost against viruses, lowered blood pressure, better cognitive functioning, increased joint mobility, an improved cholesterol profile, relief from fibromyalgia symptoms, and even a better night's sleep.
It also increases leg muscle strength and provides better balance and posture. Perhaps the best part is that tai chi is a gentle exercise that can be performed by anyone at any age. Click here to find out more about tai chi.
Centenarians I have met also take advantage of other rejuvenation techniques the Chinese have known for thousands of years - like acupuncture, acupressure, and energy healing - that increase energy, promote health, and balance the body and the mind.
Diet: The Cornerstone of Longevity
It is no surprise that diet is an essential factor to health and longevity. So what should you be eating? In my studies, I found that the centenarians of two reputed "longevity capitals" - Okinawa, Japan, and Rugao County, a rural community four hours north of Shanghai - shared a nearly identical diet.
These long-lifers eat mostly fish, vegetables, mushrooms, seaweed, corn, and buckwheat - and virtually no meat. Scientists have confirmed the health benefits of a diet high in fish and vegetables and low in animal products. These centenarians are living examples, as they suffer from very little heart and liver disease and have negligible rates of cancer and degenerative diseases.
Environ-Mentality
When it comes to longevity, environment is half of the equation. From the verdant valleys of Ecuador to the rugged mountains of Armenia to the pristine foothills of the Himalayas, centenarians live in environments that exhibit the same characteristics: clean air, good water, low stress, close communities, and unspoiled nature.
Take a tip from these centenarians and drink only clean, filtered water. Connect with your community in a positive way. Find every way you can to bring nature into your life, from planting more trees in your area to more plants in your home.
Avoid the environmental factors that are damaging to our wellbeing and know what to look out for. Just a few things to avoid include xenoestrogens, which are present just about everywhere, pesticides used on vegetables, hormones injected into meats and poultry, phthalates leaching from plastic bottles, and dioxins from bleached paper products. You can avoid these chemical compounds if you buy organic foods and use glass containers and unbleached paper products.
Keep it Simple!
Centenarians' lifestyles are simple. The centenarians I have known lead active lives and get plenty of rest. They are dedicated lifelong learners and avid travelers. Enjoy your years and you will have many more years to enjoy!
I hope these suggestions further your longevity goals! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.
May you live long, live strong, and live happy!
5 Tips for Mom's Longevity
This Mother's Day, show your mother how much you care by sharing with her these 5 vital ways to increase her health and longevity!
1. Exercise Every Day
As women age, they need more than ever to protect their bones and joints. Consider the benefits of a daily walk, at least 20 minutes every day. This will not only help your mother stay fit and build her bones, but it is also a wonderful way to reflect and clear the mind.
Swimming is a great form of cardiovascular exercise, and although it is not considered a weight-bearing activity, can also help fight osteoporosis. Better still, water acts as the perfect cushion for joints, great for those suffering from worn hips and knees. Additionally, gentle energy-boosting exercises like tai chi and yoga are essential for a flourishing anti-aging exercise program.
2. Frequent Fresh Water
Water is essential for everyone. Our body requires a certain amount to maintain our blood osmotic levels, provide the medium for circulating and excreting waste products, and cleansing our internal tissues. Centenarians around the world give credit to their native water sources for their health and long lives; the scientists agree!
What they all have in common is pure water sources located far from any city, free from chemicals and toxins. Choose filtered water; the best filtration process are the ones that use activated charcoal, which removes the impurities but leaves the water-soluble minerals. At least eight glasses of clean pure water should be consumed every day. Click here for my recommended water filters.
3. Treat Your Mother to Tea Time
In addition to being a delicious, low-calorie beverage, tea is the beverage most commonly enjoyed by centenarians around the world. Tea possesses free-radical inhibiting properties more potent than even vitamin E and also helps prevent and treat hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis). The polyphenols in tea, especially the catechins, are powerful antioxidants that help protect against cancer and diabetes. Drink up!
For a masterful blend of healing herbal tea, especially beneficial to your mother's health and wellbeing, click here.
4. Rejuvenate with Anti-aging Foods
When your mother told you to always eat your greens, she was looking out for your health. Now let her know how much you care about her by sharing with her these top life-extending, anti-aging foods:
• Soy contains phytoestrogen, which is a plant form of estrogen that improves the body's hormonal balance and protects women from breast cancer. Soy is also rich in genistein, which protects against osteoporosis and other aging symptoms. Foods that are made with soy include tofu, bean curd, soymilk, soy yogurt, miso, tempeh, and the actual bean pod itself.
• Leafy green vegetables like spinach, collards, chard, kale, mustard greens, parsley and seaweed all contain much needed calcium and other trace minerals for bone health, as well as phytosterol activities that help balance and support the hormonal system.
• Yams and sweet potatoes are powerhouse foods that contain higher amounts of beta-carotene and vitamin C than carrots, more protein than wheat and rice, and more fiber than oat bran. They are also rich in DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone) - a precursor hormone that is essential for the body's anti-aging defenses to work.
• Nuts and seeds: just a handful every day can help improve circulation and muscle tone. Research indicates that many of these nuts and seeds are rich sources of vitamin E, lignans and omega-3 fatty acids, which can help prevent against heart disease and the ravages of aging.
• Deep-sea fish, such as salmon, sea bass, halibut, tuna, and mackeral are rich sources of omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFA), which are crucial to hormonal production and also protect the heart and blood vessels.
5. Laughter for a Long Life
And finally, protecting your mother's health can be fun! Recall a comical family story or a funny family joke. Research tells us that laughter and joy boost immune functions, especially the production of the natural killer cells that help protect the body from illness and cancer. Laughter will also increase your mother's release of endorphins-compounds in her brain that give her a warm and fuzzy sense of wellbeing.
I hope you celebrate your mother's long and healthy life! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.
May you stay healthy, live long, and live happy! And may your mother live to 100 in good health!
1. Exercise Every Day
As women age, they need more than ever to protect their bones and joints. Consider the benefits of a daily walk, at least 20 minutes every day. This will not only help your mother stay fit and build her bones, but it is also a wonderful way to reflect and clear the mind.
Swimming is a great form of cardiovascular exercise, and although it is not considered a weight-bearing activity, can also help fight osteoporosis. Better still, water acts as the perfect cushion for joints, great for those suffering from worn hips and knees. Additionally, gentle energy-boosting exercises like tai chi and yoga are essential for a flourishing anti-aging exercise program.
2. Frequent Fresh Water
Water is essential for everyone. Our body requires a certain amount to maintain our blood osmotic levels, provide the medium for circulating and excreting waste products, and cleansing our internal tissues. Centenarians around the world give credit to their native water sources for their health and long lives; the scientists agree!
What they all have in common is pure water sources located far from any city, free from chemicals and toxins. Choose filtered water; the best filtration process are the ones that use activated charcoal, which removes the impurities but leaves the water-soluble minerals. At least eight glasses of clean pure water should be consumed every day. Click here for my recommended water filters.
3. Treat Your Mother to Tea Time
In addition to being a delicious, low-calorie beverage, tea is the beverage most commonly enjoyed by centenarians around the world. Tea possesses free-radical inhibiting properties more potent than even vitamin E and also helps prevent and treat hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis). The polyphenols in tea, especially the catechins, are powerful antioxidants that help protect against cancer and diabetes. Drink up!
For a masterful blend of healing herbal tea, especially beneficial to your mother's health and wellbeing, click here.
4. Rejuvenate with Anti-aging Foods
When your mother told you to always eat your greens, she was looking out for your health. Now let her know how much you care about her by sharing with her these top life-extending, anti-aging foods:
• Soy contains phytoestrogen, which is a plant form of estrogen that improves the body's hormonal balance and protects women from breast cancer. Soy is also rich in genistein, which protects against osteoporosis and other aging symptoms. Foods that are made with soy include tofu, bean curd, soymilk, soy yogurt, miso, tempeh, and the actual bean pod itself.
• Leafy green vegetables like spinach, collards, chard, kale, mustard greens, parsley and seaweed all contain much needed calcium and other trace minerals for bone health, as well as phytosterol activities that help balance and support the hormonal system.
• Yams and sweet potatoes are powerhouse foods that contain higher amounts of beta-carotene and vitamin C than carrots, more protein than wheat and rice, and more fiber than oat bran. They are also rich in DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone) - a precursor hormone that is essential for the body's anti-aging defenses to work.
• Nuts and seeds: just a handful every day can help improve circulation and muscle tone. Research indicates that many of these nuts and seeds are rich sources of vitamin E, lignans and omega-3 fatty acids, which can help prevent against heart disease and the ravages of aging.
• Deep-sea fish, such as salmon, sea bass, halibut, tuna, and mackeral are rich sources of omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFA), which are crucial to hormonal production and also protect the heart and blood vessels.
5. Laughter for a Long Life
And finally, protecting your mother's health can be fun! Recall a comical family story or a funny family joke. Research tells us that laughter and joy boost immune functions, especially the production of the natural killer cells that help protect the body from illness and cancer. Laughter will also increase your mother's release of endorphins-compounds in her brain that give her a warm and fuzzy sense of wellbeing.
I hope you celebrate your mother's long and healthy life! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.
May you stay healthy, live long, and live happy! And may your mother live to 100 in good health!
3 tips for how to live to 100
Your behavior now makes a difference, says new research. Experts recommend these habits:
Get creative at work.
On average, a woman with a creative job has the cardiovascular fitness and other health attributes of someone six years younger, according to a recent study. What does “creative” mean? Acting, writing or painting are obvious picks, but any job can count as long as you find it interesting and it lets you develop new skills, experts say.
Make sure you cover the basics.
Eating five servings of fruits and veggies a day, being active, not smoking, and drinking in moderation could add 14 years to your life, according to new British research. Too tall an order? Tackle just the exercise part: A recent study by the National Cancer Institute found that older people who got at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise most days of the week were less likely to die over the next seven years than those who didn't.
Do something fun.
Women who are feeling “happy, excited or content” have lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol, as well as C-reactive protein and interleukin-6—two markers of inflammation linked to heart disease, a University College London study found. It may not take a Ph.D. to figure out that being happy is good for you, but this is one of the first studies to pinpoint a biological reason. So the next time you're feeling frazzled, make plans to do anything that'll get you smiling
Get creative at work.
On average, a woman with a creative job has the cardiovascular fitness and other health attributes of someone six years younger, according to a recent study. What does “creative” mean? Acting, writing or painting are obvious picks, but any job can count as long as you find it interesting and it lets you develop new skills, experts say.
Make sure you cover the basics.
Eating five servings of fruits and veggies a day, being active, not smoking, and drinking in moderation could add 14 years to your life, according to new British research. Too tall an order? Tackle just the exercise part: A recent study by the National Cancer Institute found that older people who got at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise most days of the week were less likely to die over the next seven years than those who didn't.
Do something fun.
Women who are feeling “happy, excited or content” have lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol, as well as C-reactive protein and interleukin-6—two markers of inflammation linked to heart disease, a University College London study found. It may not take a Ph.D. to figure out that being happy is good for you, but this is one of the first studies to pinpoint a biological reason. So the next time you're feeling frazzled, make plans to do anything that'll get you smiling
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
EcoGeeks get all the girls
Just in case you needed another reason to care about the environment: It turns out girls dig guys who dig environmental technology.
According to a study conducted by GM as part of this year's Challenge X competition:
Nearly 9 in 10 women (88 percent) say they'd rather chat up someone who owns the latest fuel-efficient car versus the latest sports car.
Eighty percent of American car buyers would find someone with the latest fuel-efficient car more interesting to talk to at a party than someone with the latest sports car.
More than 4 out of 10 (45 percent) 18- to 43-year-olds say it's a fashion faux pas nowadays to have a car that's not green or environmentally friendly.
Little did we know we've been fashionable all along! (OK, maybe not me - I'm still tooling around in my old Sentra.) No one seems to have told 80 percent of America that it's actually greener to keep driving your current car than to invest in buying a new one.
Nonetheless, this study is good news. And when I buy my first new car (never!), I'll be sure to let everyone know how green it is.
GM's Challenge X is a yearly competition among college students to make GM vehicles more efficient. This year's competition had students from 17 universities "re-engineering" Chevy's Equinox to make it more efficient and reduce its greenhouse impact, while retaining consumer appeal.
Solutions the students put together included using alternative propulsion systems like fuel cells and hybrid technologies, and using alternative fuels like biodiesel and ethanol.
This year's winners are from Mississippi State. They increased the fuel economy of the Equinox by almost 40 percent with a hybrid-electric biodiesel engine.
That's hot.
According to a study conducted by GM as part of this year's Challenge X competition:
Nearly 9 in 10 women (88 percent) say they'd rather chat up someone who owns the latest fuel-efficient car versus the latest sports car.
Eighty percent of American car buyers would find someone with the latest fuel-efficient car more interesting to talk to at a party than someone with the latest sports car.
More than 4 out of 10 (45 percent) 18- to 43-year-olds say it's a fashion faux pas nowadays to have a car that's not green or environmentally friendly.
Little did we know we've been fashionable all along! (OK, maybe not me - I'm still tooling around in my old Sentra.) No one seems to have told 80 percent of America that it's actually greener to keep driving your current car than to invest in buying a new one.
Nonetheless, this study is good news. And when I buy my first new car (never!), I'll be sure to let everyone know how green it is.
GM's Challenge X is a yearly competition among college students to make GM vehicles more efficient. This year's competition had students from 17 universities "re-engineering" Chevy's Equinox to make it more efficient and reduce its greenhouse impact, while retaining consumer appeal.
Solutions the students put together included using alternative propulsion systems like fuel cells and hybrid technologies, and using alternative fuels like biodiesel and ethanol.
This year's winners are from Mississippi State. They increased the fuel economy of the Equinox by almost 40 percent with a hybrid-electric biodiesel engine.
That's hot.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Men prefer being solo over a bad marriage: study
SYDNEY (Reuters Life!) - Bachelor Carl Weisman got fed up of being classified as a playboy, a loser or a commitment-phobe so he set out to find out exactly why he and a growing number of eligible men were steering clear of marriage.
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Weisman, 49, conducted a survey of 1,533 heterosexual men to research a book aiming to give women an insight into why some smart, successful men opted to stay single -- and help lifelong bachelors understand why they are still the solo man at parties.
He concluded that most men were not afraid of marriage -- but they were afraid of a bad marriage.
"Men are 10 times more scared of marrying the wrong person than of never getting married at all," Weisman told Reuters in a telephone interview.
"This is the first generation of people who have grown up with bad divorces. People assume there is something wrong if you don't marry but these are men who have made a different choice and not given in to social pressures."
The release of his book "So Why Have You Never Been Married? - Ten Insights into Why He Hasn't Wed," comes amid a growing trend for more people to stay single, with less social or religious pressures on men -- and women -- to tie the knot.
Weisman said U.S. figures showed that in 1980 about 6 percent of men aged in their early 40s had never married but this number had now risen to 17 percent.
AFRAID TO MAKE MISTAKES
Weisman said his online survey found there are three groups of bachelors -- about 8 percent who never want to marry, 62 percent want to marry but of which half won't settle for anything less than perfection, and about 30 percent who are on the fence.
Four out of 10 bachelors did not want children compared to three out of 10 wanting to be a father. The rest were undecided.
But while 72 percent of respondents said they were not afraid of marriage, about half of them said the situation that scared them most was marrying the wrong person.
"It's so important to these men to get it right. My best advice to single women after bachelors is to be patient. If you're in a hurry to get married you'll be frustrated," he said.
Weisman also found that financial issues, both positive and negative, played a large part in men's fear of commitment.
"Those with little money said they would have nothing to offer a partner, with some suffering self-esteem issues and withdrawing from the dating pool," said Weisman, an engineer-turned-author with two books now published.
"While those who are financially sound were terrified what a bad divorce could do to them."
Weisman said his research blew away any idea that single men were unhappy.
"A compelling issue was how many of them had found contentment in a never-married life," he said. "They had created lives full of careers, friends and ambitions. It was not like they walk around all day worried about not being married."
For him, researching the book made him also look at himself -- and he ended up living with a girlfriend for the first time.
"Now we're looking at getting married. As I researched the book I found I was looking at men 10 years older than me and it was like looking into the future. If I didn't change, nothing would," he said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Weisman, 49, conducted a survey of 1,533 heterosexual men to research a book aiming to give women an insight into why some smart, successful men opted to stay single -- and help lifelong bachelors understand why they are still the solo man at parties.
He concluded that most men were not afraid of marriage -- but they were afraid of a bad marriage.
"Men are 10 times more scared of marrying the wrong person than of never getting married at all," Weisman told Reuters in a telephone interview.
"This is the first generation of people who have grown up with bad divorces. People assume there is something wrong if you don't marry but these are men who have made a different choice and not given in to social pressures."
The release of his book "So Why Have You Never Been Married? - Ten Insights into Why He Hasn't Wed," comes amid a growing trend for more people to stay single, with less social or religious pressures on men -- and women -- to tie the knot.
Weisman said U.S. figures showed that in 1980 about 6 percent of men aged in their early 40s had never married but this number had now risen to 17 percent.
AFRAID TO MAKE MISTAKES
Weisman said his online survey found there are three groups of bachelors -- about 8 percent who never want to marry, 62 percent want to marry but of which half won't settle for anything less than perfection, and about 30 percent who are on the fence.
Four out of 10 bachelors did not want children compared to three out of 10 wanting to be a father. The rest were undecided.
But while 72 percent of respondents said they were not afraid of marriage, about half of them said the situation that scared them most was marrying the wrong person.
"It's so important to these men to get it right. My best advice to single women after bachelors is to be patient. If you're in a hurry to get married you'll be frustrated," he said.
Weisman also found that financial issues, both positive and negative, played a large part in men's fear of commitment.
"Those with little money said they would have nothing to offer a partner, with some suffering self-esteem issues and withdrawing from the dating pool," said Weisman, an engineer-turned-author with two books now published.
"While those who are financially sound were terrified what a bad divorce could do to them."
Weisman said his research blew away any idea that single men were unhappy.
"A compelling issue was how many of them had found contentment in a never-married life," he said. "They had created lives full of careers, friends and ambitions. It was not like they walk around all day worried about not being married."
For him, researching the book made him also look at himself -- and he ended up living with a girlfriend for the first time.
"Now we're looking at getting married. As I researched the book I found I was looking at men 10 years older than me and it was like looking into the future. If I didn't change, nothing would," he said.
Key to All Optical Illusions Discovered
Humans can see into the future, says a cognitive scientist. It's nothing like the alleged predictive powers of Nostradamus, but we do get a glimpse of events one-tenth of a second before they occur.
And the mechanism behind that can also explain why we are tricked by optical illusions.
Researcher Mark Changizi of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York says it starts with a neural lag that most everyone experiences while awake. When light hits your retina, about one-tenth of a second goes by before the brain translates the signal into a visual perception of the world.
Scientists already knew about the lag, yet they have debated over exactly how we compensate, with one school of thought proposing our motor system somehow modifies our movements to offset the delay.
Changizi now says it's our visual system that has evolved to compensate for neural delays, generating images of what will occur one-tenth of a second into the future. That foresight keeps our view of the world in the present. It gives you enough heads up to catch a fly ball (instead of getting socked in the face) and maneuver smoothly through a crowd. His research on this topic is detailed in the May/June issue of the journal Cognitive Science,
Explaining illusions
That same seer ability can explain a range of optical illusions, Changizi found.
"Illusions occur when our brains attempt to perceive the future, and those perceptions don't match reality," Changizi said.
Here's how the foresight theory could explain the most common visual illusions - geometric illusions that involve shapes: Something called the Hering illusion, for instance, looks like bike spokes around a central point, with vertical lines on either side of this central, so-called vanishing point. The illusion tricks us into thinking we are moving forward, and thus, switches on our future-seeing abilities. Since we aren't actually moving and the figure is static, we misperceive the straight lines as curved ones.
"Evolution has seen to it that geometric drawings like this elicit in us premonitions of the near future," Changizi said. "The converging lines toward a vanishing point (the spokes) are cues that trick our brains into thinking we are moving forward - as we would in the real world, where the door frame (a pair of vertical lines) seems to bow out as we move through it - and we try to perceive what that world will look like in the next instant."
Grand unified theory
In real life, when you are moving forward, it's not just the shape of objects that changes, he explained. Other variables, such as the angular size (how much of your visual field the object takes up), speed and contrast between the object and background, will also change.
For instance, if two objects are about the same distance in front of you, and you move toward one of the objects, that object will speed up more in the next moment, appear larger, have lower contrast (because something that is moving faster gets more blurred), and literally get nearer to you compared with the other object.
Changizi realized the same future-seeing process could explain several other types of illusions. In what he refers to as a "grand unified theory," Changizi organized 50kinds of illusions into a matrix of 28 categories. The results can successfully predict how certain variables, such as proximity to the central point or size, will be perceived.
Changizi says that finding a theory that works for so many different classes of illusions is "a theorist's dream."
Most other ideas put forth to explain illusions have explained one or just a few types, he said.
The theory is "a big new player in the debate about the origins of illusions," Changizi told LiveScience. "All I'm hoping for is that it becomes a giant gorilla on the block that can take some punches."
And the mechanism behind that can also explain why we are tricked by optical illusions.
Researcher Mark Changizi of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York says it starts with a neural lag that most everyone experiences while awake. When light hits your retina, about one-tenth of a second goes by before the brain translates the signal into a visual perception of the world.
Scientists already knew about the lag, yet they have debated over exactly how we compensate, with one school of thought proposing our motor system somehow modifies our movements to offset the delay.
Changizi now says it's our visual system that has evolved to compensate for neural delays, generating images of what will occur one-tenth of a second into the future. That foresight keeps our view of the world in the present. It gives you enough heads up to catch a fly ball (instead of getting socked in the face) and maneuver smoothly through a crowd. His research on this topic is detailed in the May/June issue of the journal Cognitive Science,
Explaining illusions
That same seer ability can explain a range of optical illusions, Changizi found.
"Illusions occur when our brains attempt to perceive the future, and those perceptions don't match reality," Changizi said.
Here's how the foresight theory could explain the most common visual illusions - geometric illusions that involve shapes: Something called the Hering illusion, for instance, looks like bike spokes around a central point, with vertical lines on either side of this central, so-called vanishing point. The illusion tricks us into thinking we are moving forward, and thus, switches on our future-seeing abilities. Since we aren't actually moving and the figure is static, we misperceive the straight lines as curved ones.
"Evolution has seen to it that geometric drawings like this elicit in us premonitions of the near future," Changizi said. "The converging lines toward a vanishing point (the spokes) are cues that trick our brains into thinking we are moving forward - as we would in the real world, where the door frame (a pair of vertical lines) seems to bow out as we move through it - and we try to perceive what that world will look like in the next instant."
Grand unified theory
In real life, when you are moving forward, it's not just the shape of objects that changes, he explained. Other variables, such as the angular size (how much of your visual field the object takes up), speed and contrast between the object and background, will also change.
For instance, if two objects are about the same distance in front of you, and you move toward one of the objects, that object will speed up more in the next moment, appear larger, have lower contrast (because something that is moving faster gets more blurred), and literally get nearer to you compared with the other object.
Changizi realized the same future-seeing process could explain several other types of illusions. In what he refers to as a "grand unified theory," Changizi organized 50kinds of illusions into a matrix of 28 categories. The results can successfully predict how certain variables, such as proximity to the central point or size, will be perceived.
Changizi says that finding a theory that works for so many different classes of illusions is "a theorist's dream."
Most other ideas put forth to explain illusions have explained one or just a few types, he said.
The theory is "a big new player in the debate about the origins of illusions," Changizi told LiveScience. "All I'm hoping for is that it becomes a giant gorilla on the block that can take some punches."
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Bear
Bearish Factors
1. Most Indexes can't break 200 MA
2. Inflation
3. US Housing
4. Feb stops lower rate
5. Sell in May and go away
6. Write-off by Banks have not stopped
7. best time for correction
8. Funds pushing up to off load holdings
9. More companies will announce bad news
10.No much impact of US govt assistance bonus
11.Petrochem sectors hit
12.Bankers brace for slowdown in loans growth
1. Most Indexes can't break 200 MA
2. Inflation
3. US Housing
4. Feb stops lower rate
5. Sell in May and go away
6. Write-off by Banks have not stopped
7. best time for correction
8. Funds pushing up to off load holdings
9. More companies will announce bad news
10.No much impact of US govt assistance bonus
11.Petrochem sectors hit
12.Bankers brace for slowdown in loans growth
Turn $451 a Month Into a Million Bucks
If you're 30 years old, you need to set aside $448 per month for next 35 years to become a millionaire -- if you earn a reasonable 8% annualized return in a retirement account. Don’t have $448 to spare -- or even $248? Maybe you do and don't realize it. Let's take a look at how you can come up with the cash.
Save $219 Per Month on Taxes
Here’s How: The average refund for the 2008 filing season so far is about $2,500. If you received an average refund and you are in the 25% federal tax bracket, you could be entitled to three extra exemptions worth $3,500 each. That would boost your take-home pay by $219 a month. A couple of reasons you might be eligible for more exemptions: becoming a new parent or buying a house.
Simple Tips to Save on Entertainment
Save $100 Per Month on Food
Here’s How: Bring your lunch and snacks to work. Considering that the average meal at McDonald’s costs $5 and Dunkin’ Donuts charges $2 for a large cup of coffee, the brown-bag windfall can be substantial.
Save $80 Per Month on Entertainment
Here’s How: We're talking about one fewer dinner-and-a-movie night every month. That assumes you and your significant other pay the average $33 per person for a restaurant meal (according to a recent Zagat survey) and that you spend $7 per ticket, the average price at the movies (according to the Motion Picture Association of America).
Save $28 Per Month on Health Care
Here’s How: The typical family spends $1,321 on out-of-pocket health expenses each year, says the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. You can pay those costs with a flexible spending account, which lets you set aside pretax dollars.
Save $10 Per Month on Auto Insurance
Here’s How: The average consumer pays $829 annually for car insurance, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Raising your deductible from $250 to $1,000 can save you 15% or more.
Save $8 Per Month on a Well Maintained Car
Here’s How: Keep your car’s engine tuned and tires inflated to the proper air pressure. Those minor improvements can save you up to $100 on gas each year.
Save $6 Per Month on Generic Non-Prescription Medicines
Here’s How: The average American spends $185 annually on over-the-counter medications. Generics cost up to 40% less than their brand-name counterparts and work just as well.
$451 Saved in Total!
Invest the found money every month in a retirement account that earns an average of 8% return over the next 35 years, and you'll have $1 million. That wasn't too hard, right?
Save $219 Per Month on Taxes
Here’s How: The average refund for the 2008 filing season so far is about $2,500. If you received an average refund and you are in the 25% federal tax bracket, you could be entitled to three extra exemptions worth $3,500 each. That would boost your take-home pay by $219 a month. A couple of reasons you might be eligible for more exemptions: becoming a new parent or buying a house.
Simple Tips to Save on Entertainment
Save $100 Per Month on Food
Here’s How: Bring your lunch and snacks to work. Considering that the average meal at McDonald’s costs $5 and Dunkin’ Donuts charges $2 for a large cup of coffee, the brown-bag windfall can be substantial.
Save $80 Per Month on Entertainment
Here’s How: We're talking about one fewer dinner-and-a-movie night every month. That assumes you and your significant other pay the average $33 per person for a restaurant meal (according to a recent Zagat survey) and that you spend $7 per ticket, the average price at the movies (according to the Motion Picture Association of America).
Save $28 Per Month on Health Care
Here’s How: The typical family spends $1,321 on out-of-pocket health expenses each year, says the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. You can pay those costs with a flexible spending account, which lets you set aside pretax dollars.
Save $10 Per Month on Auto Insurance
Here’s How: The average consumer pays $829 annually for car insurance, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Raising your deductible from $250 to $1,000 can save you 15% or more.
Save $8 Per Month on a Well Maintained Car
Here’s How: Keep your car’s engine tuned and tires inflated to the proper air pressure. Those minor improvements can save you up to $100 on gas each year.
Save $6 Per Month on Generic Non-Prescription Medicines
Here’s How: The average American spends $185 annually on over-the-counter medications. Generics cost up to 40% less than their brand-name counterparts and work just as well.
$451 Saved in Total!
Invest the found money every month in a retirement account that earns an average of 8% return over the next 35 years, and you'll have $1 million. That wasn't too hard, right?
Spend $10 Today, Be Out $100K Tomorrow
Little amounts can make a large difference to your finances.
As gasoline and food prices continue to rise, the squeeze to make family budgets balance each month becomes more of a struggle. After the big savings have been found and taken, smaller savings have to be found to make ends meet.
This can be frustrating as it can feel like everyone is being nickled and dimed to death. That's why it's important to realize how these small amounts can make a huge difference in your overall financial health.
You've likely heard about the little ways to save money a million times. Money-saving advice includes standards like packing your lunch instead of buying it at work, skipping the Starbucks and making your coffee at home and watching videos at home instead of going out to the movies. While you may have grown tired of hearing them, they are still as true as ever and even more important when the economy is struggling.
Saving small amounts of money is good advice for everyone, it's not as essential for people that are currently living well below their means. If you spend $5 on a cup of coffee each day, but you're still able to put away five times that amount toward your savings, that coffee splurge isn't going to hurt as much as for someone who isn't saving anything. For those that are barely making ends meet, spending small amounts of money can be the difference between deep debt and a nice retirement account.
When you are faced with a budget that isn't balancing, you have two main choices: earn more money or cut more expenses. Unfortunately, many turn to a third alternative. When they can't seem to make their budget balance, they decide that it's acceptable to place the difference onto a credit card. Even though the monthly shortfall in the budget is small, placing it onto credit cards is one of the worst financial moves that a person can make. The result will be a downward cycle that will not only keep you in debt, but also create a tremendous amount of stress.
There is often a false assumption that saving $10 and spending $10, although opposite, are relatively the same. For example, if a person saves $10 a day, after a month their account will have $300 while if a person spends $10 a day, that will result in a debt of $300. While on the surface this makes perfect sense, the problem lies in that these numbers fail to take into account the interest that can be gained or charged on this money. It is this failure to understand the concept of compound interest and the dramatic effect it can have that greatly changes these results.
It's important to understand that it takes very little to start sinking into debt.
For most people, spending $10 a day would not be considered extravagant spending by any means, but $10 can result in tens of thousands of dollar of debt. It's simple to see when you compare the results of what happens when one person saves $10 a day while the other spends $10 a day that he doesn't have.
If a person were to save $300 a month (approx. $10 a day) and invest it to get a 5% yearly return, that person would have $20,402 in the bank after five years. On the other hand, if a person ends up spending $300 a month more than he has and puts it onto a credit card that he doesn't pay off over the same 5 year period, that person will owe $36,259, assuming a 26% credit card interest rate. After five years, the difference between saving $10 and spending $10 each day results in a $56,661 gap in net worth between the two.
Add another five years to the same patterns, and the results are even more dramatic. After 10 years, the person who saved $10 a day would have $46,585 in the bank, whereas the person whop spent the $10 he didn't have would be $167,470 in debt, resulting in a net worth difference of over $210,000.
Of course, there are many other factors that could alter these calculations. The interest you can earn and what your credit card interest rates are will vary from this example. There is a minimum amount that the person would need to pay on a credit card each month. If debt to this extent began to occur, the person would have their credit cut off long before this amount accumulated and would likely need to declare bankruptcy. The point is that over time, small amounts added to debt can result in far more debt than most people realize.
Once you learn that saving a small amount and overspending a small amount aren't simple opposites, you understand the importance of having a budget and strictly sticking with it. If you are able to fight through the hard times and keep your budget balanced, then you set yourself to reap great financial rewards when the economy finally turns around.
As gasoline and food prices continue to rise, the squeeze to make family budgets balance each month becomes more of a struggle. After the big savings have been found and taken, smaller savings have to be found to make ends meet.
This can be frustrating as it can feel like everyone is being nickled and dimed to death. That's why it's important to realize how these small amounts can make a huge difference in your overall financial health.
You've likely heard about the little ways to save money a million times. Money-saving advice includes standards like packing your lunch instead of buying it at work, skipping the Starbucks and making your coffee at home and watching videos at home instead of going out to the movies. While you may have grown tired of hearing them, they are still as true as ever and even more important when the economy is struggling.
Saving small amounts of money is good advice for everyone, it's not as essential for people that are currently living well below their means. If you spend $5 on a cup of coffee each day, but you're still able to put away five times that amount toward your savings, that coffee splurge isn't going to hurt as much as for someone who isn't saving anything. For those that are barely making ends meet, spending small amounts of money can be the difference between deep debt and a nice retirement account.
When you are faced with a budget that isn't balancing, you have two main choices: earn more money or cut more expenses. Unfortunately, many turn to a third alternative. When they can't seem to make their budget balance, they decide that it's acceptable to place the difference onto a credit card. Even though the monthly shortfall in the budget is small, placing it onto credit cards is one of the worst financial moves that a person can make. The result will be a downward cycle that will not only keep you in debt, but also create a tremendous amount of stress.
There is often a false assumption that saving $10 and spending $10, although opposite, are relatively the same. For example, if a person saves $10 a day, after a month their account will have $300 while if a person spends $10 a day, that will result in a debt of $300. While on the surface this makes perfect sense, the problem lies in that these numbers fail to take into account the interest that can be gained or charged on this money. It is this failure to understand the concept of compound interest and the dramatic effect it can have that greatly changes these results.
It's important to understand that it takes very little to start sinking into debt.
For most people, spending $10 a day would not be considered extravagant spending by any means, but $10 can result in tens of thousands of dollar of debt. It's simple to see when you compare the results of what happens when one person saves $10 a day while the other spends $10 a day that he doesn't have.
If a person were to save $300 a month (approx. $10 a day) and invest it to get a 5% yearly return, that person would have $20,402 in the bank after five years. On the other hand, if a person ends up spending $300 a month more than he has and puts it onto a credit card that he doesn't pay off over the same 5 year period, that person will owe $36,259, assuming a 26% credit card interest rate. After five years, the difference between saving $10 and spending $10 each day results in a $56,661 gap in net worth between the two.
Add another five years to the same patterns, and the results are even more dramatic. After 10 years, the person who saved $10 a day would have $46,585 in the bank, whereas the person whop spent the $10 he didn't have would be $167,470 in debt, resulting in a net worth difference of over $210,000.
Of course, there are many other factors that could alter these calculations. The interest you can earn and what your credit card interest rates are will vary from this example. There is a minimum amount that the person would need to pay on a credit card each month. If debt to this extent began to occur, the person would have their credit cut off long before this amount accumulated and would likely need to declare bankruptcy. The point is that over time, small amounts added to debt can result in far more debt than most people realize.
Once you learn that saving a small amount and overspending a small amount aren't simple opposites, you understand the importance of having a budget and strictly sticking with it. If you are able to fight through the hard times and keep your budget balanced, then you set yourself to reap great financial rewards when the economy finally turns around.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Centenarian Tips for a Long Life
Everyone would love to live to a ripe old age, but not if it means looking and feeling like an over-ripe old vegetable. We need to understand that though getting older is inevitable, getting decrepit is not.
Being bent in half and wheeling around an oxygen tank should not be what we picture when we hear the phrase "the golden years." I have seen centenarians around the world who defy our stereotypes of the aging experience.In fact, 20 years ago, while in Shanghai, I took note of the thousands of seniors - a great many of them centenarians - meeting up in parks each morning to practice tai chi. I was truly amazed by their agility, sharp minds, and overall state of health.
Intrigued by this discovery, I began studying the lifestyle of centenarians around the world and anti-aging therapies. I combined these discoveries and uncovered the secrets to longevity. Here are a few secrets that will have you looking forward to your 100th birthday! Tai Chi: An Exercise in Anti-aging Tai chi, the choreographed meditative exercises that have been a healing art in China for thousands of years, is practiced by over 100 million people worldwide and owes its popularity to a simple fact - it's enjoyable and it makes you stronger.
Recent studies confirm that when practiced regularly - 30 minutes, three times a week - it has numerous health benefits including: increased energy, decreased stress, an immunity boost against viruses, lowered blood pressure, better cognitive functioning, increased joint mobility, an improved cholesterol profile, relief from fibromyalgia symptoms, and even a better night's sleep.
It also increases leg muscle strength and provides better balance and posture. Perhaps the best part is that tai chi is a gentle exercise that can be performed by anyone at any age. Click here to find out more about tai chi.Centenarians I have met also take advantage of other rejuvenation techniques the Chinese have known for thousands of years - like acupuncture, acupressure, and energy healing - that increase energy, promote health, and balance the body and the mind.Diet: The Cornerstone of LongevityIt is no surprise that diet is an essential factor to health and longevity. So what should you be eating? In my studies, I found that the centenarians of two reputed "longevity capitals" - Okinawa, Japan, and Rugao County, a rural community four hours north of Shanghai - shared a nearly identical diet.
These long-lifers eat mostly fish, vegetables, mushrooms, seaweed, corn, and buckwheat - and virtually no meat. Scientists have confirmed the health benefits of a diet high in fish and vegetables and low in animal products. These centenarians are living examples, as they suffer from very little heart and liver disease and have negligible rates of cancer and degenerative diseases.Environ-MentalityWhen it comes to longevity, environment is half of the equation. From the verdant valleys of Ecuador to the rugged mountains of Armenia to the pristine foothills of the Himalayas, centenarians live in environments that exhibit the same characteristics: clean air, good water, low stress, close communities, and unspoiled nature. Take a tip from these centenarians and drink only clean, filtered water. Connect with your community in a positive way. Find every way you can to bring nature into your life, from planting more trees in your area to more plants in your home.
Avoid the environmental factors that are damaging to our wellbeing and know what to look out for. Just a few things to avoid include xenoestrogens, which are present just about everywhere, pesticides used on vegetables, hormones injected into meats and poultry, phthalates leaching from plastic bottles, and dioxins from bleached paper products. You can avoid these chemical compounds if you buy organic foods and use glass containers and unbleached paper products. Keep it Simple!Centenarians' lifestyles are simple. The centenarians I have known lead active lives and get plenty of rest. They are dedicated lifelong learners and avid travelers. Enjoy your years and you will have many more years to enjoy!I hope these suggestions further your longevity goals! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me. May you live long, live strong, and live happy!
Being bent in half and wheeling around an oxygen tank should not be what we picture when we hear the phrase "the golden years." I have seen centenarians around the world who defy our stereotypes of the aging experience.In fact, 20 years ago, while in Shanghai, I took note of the thousands of seniors - a great many of them centenarians - meeting up in parks each morning to practice tai chi. I was truly amazed by their agility, sharp minds, and overall state of health.
Intrigued by this discovery, I began studying the lifestyle of centenarians around the world and anti-aging therapies. I combined these discoveries and uncovered the secrets to longevity. Here are a few secrets that will have you looking forward to your 100th birthday! Tai Chi: An Exercise in Anti-aging Tai chi, the choreographed meditative exercises that have been a healing art in China for thousands of years, is practiced by over 100 million people worldwide and owes its popularity to a simple fact - it's enjoyable and it makes you stronger.
Recent studies confirm that when practiced regularly - 30 minutes, three times a week - it has numerous health benefits including: increased energy, decreased stress, an immunity boost against viruses, lowered blood pressure, better cognitive functioning, increased joint mobility, an improved cholesterol profile, relief from fibromyalgia symptoms, and even a better night's sleep.
It also increases leg muscle strength and provides better balance and posture. Perhaps the best part is that tai chi is a gentle exercise that can be performed by anyone at any age. Click here to find out more about tai chi.Centenarians I have met also take advantage of other rejuvenation techniques the Chinese have known for thousands of years - like acupuncture, acupressure, and energy healing - that increase energy, promote health, and balance the body and the mind.Diet: The Cornerstone of LongevityIt is no surprise that diet is an essential factor to health and longevity. So what should you be eating? In my studies, I found that the centenarians of two reputed "longevity capitals" - Okinawa, Japan, and Rugao County, a rural community four hours north of Shanghai - shared a nearly identical diet.
These long-lifers eat mostly fish, vegetables, mushrooms, seaweed, corn, and buckwheat - and virtually no meat. Scientists have confirmed the health benefits of a diet high in fish and vegetables and low in animal products. These centenarians are living examples, as they suffer from very little heart and liver disease and have negligible rates of cancer and degenerative diseases.Environ-MentalityWhen it comes to longevity, environment is half of the equation. From the verdant valleys of Ecuador to the rugged mountains of Armenia to the pristine foothills of the Himalayas, centenarians live in environments that exhibit the same characteristics: clean air, good water, low stress, close communities, and unspoiled nature. Take a tip from these centenarians and drink only clean, filtered water. Connect with your community in a positive way. Find every way you can to bring nature into your life, from planting more trees in your area to more plants in your home.
Avoid the environmental factors that are damaging to our wellbeing and know what to look out for. Just a few things to avoid include xenoestrogens, which are present just about everywhere, pesticides used on vegetables, hormones injected into meats and poultry, phthalates leaching from plastic bottles, and dioxins from bleached paper products. You can avoid these chemical compounds if you buy organic foods and use glass containers and unbleached paper products. Keep it Simple!Centenarians' lifestyles are simple. The centenarians I have known lead active lives and get plenty of rest. They are dedicated lifelong learners and avid travelers. Enjoy your years and you will have many more years to enjoy!I hope these suggestions further your longevity goals! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me. May you live long, live strong, and live happy!
Thursday, May 1, 2008
医治＋食疗让男性抬起头
年过半百，性功能开始衰退，再加上城市生活紧张忙碌，阳痿成了很多中年男士心头之痛。时至今日，很多人面对阳痿问题时，仍然觉得这是难以启齿，有损尊严的事，宁可悄悄打听，偷偷服药，希望借助药物一振雄风。
如果要服用目前已名满天下的西药处方如伟哥(Viagra)、犀利士(Cialis)和力威大(Levitra)等，必须先经医生诊断，另外，这些药物价格不便宜，一颗要20元左右，有些人负担不来，也不想看医生，于是转而购买非法春药。
但是，吞食非法春药，后果可不是闹着玩的。非法春药在本地已导致一人死亡，两人昏迷，一人中风，至少89人因服用或怀疑服用这类非法药物入院。卫生科学局所列出的非法春药包括“动力一号核桃素片”、仿冒的“犀利士”“三体牛鞭”及“中华牛鞭”等。
尽管黑市壮阳药严重危害健康的事实摆在眼前，还有人为此丢命，可是当本报记者走访一些曾服用“动力一号”和其他非法春药的德士司机时，他们依然不相信这些黑市药会危害健康。他们为了贪图价格便宜，贪图一时之快，也为了逞一时之“强”，不顾警告，冒生命风险，偷偷吞食这类药物。
卫生科学局所列出的非法春药包括“动力一号核桃素片”、仿冒的“犀利士”“三体牛鞭”及“中华牛鞭”等。
难道除了吞服这些非法春药，就没有别的方法可解决他们的问题？本报走访了本地的一些中西医，希望从中西医的角度，甚至食疗的角度，探讨这一问题。
中医西医异口同声：非法壮阳药不安全
其实，中医和西医各有一套治疗阳痿的方法，大家可以通过各种管道来解决问题，不必拿自己的健康和性命来开玩笑。胡乱服用各种来历不明的药物，就算服用后没有立刻出现并发症，不等于那就是安全的，那可能只是暂时没问题，难保日积月累，待发生问题时已经太迟了。
根据中医的看法，男性到了五六十岁，性功能自然开始衰退。本地著名中医师陈美娥指出，按照中医的说法，人上了年纪便会精气衰，自然会出现性功能障碍，这时候应该开始修身养性，寻找精神寄托，通过阅读，培养个人嗜好和兴趣来丰富生活。
专科中医院医师许振益则指出，“饱暖思淫欲”，一个人如果没有精神寄托，便会往这方面寻求刺激。至于为什么会有那么多人不顾卫生部警告，偷偷服用非法的黑市春药，许医师认为，很多男性依然把阳痿视为难以启齿，有损尊严的问题。非法春药价格便宜，也是吸引买客的一大因素。
鹰阁医药中心妇产专科医生方壮威说，50岁以上的男性中，大约有一半会面对某种短暂性功能障碍。很多人买非法春药，可能是出于无知，但也可能因为价格便宜。很多低收入阶层，包括外劳，是负担不起看医生和吃合法药物的费用，当然也有一些人过度纵欲和喜欢展示雄风。
他和许多医学界朋友始终不明白，目前市面上的非法壮阳药，为何会加入大量降低血糖的格列本脲（glibenclamide）。他说，这种药物和性功能勃起毫无关系，其作用是刺激胰脏分泌胰岛素，减低血糖，但是大量服用的话，会使人全身乏力，身体发抖，最后休克死去，因此非常危险。
西医 通过抑制PDE-5酶 医治阳痿
鹰阁医药中心妇产专科医生方壮威医生说，目前最常用来治疗阳痿的药物如伟哥(Viagra)、犀利士(Cialis)和力威大(Levitra)等口服药物，主要是靠抑制体内PDE-5酶的活跃程度，协助阴茎勃起。这些药物能在短时间内起局部作用。
原来，男性阴茎是由海绵体组织构成，里面充满血管。由于血管通常处在缩紧状态，造成血液循环受到限制。一旦受到性刺激，阴茎就会释放cGMP激素，使血管松弛，让更多血液流通，造成阴茎充血。当性高潮过去后，阴茎会释放PDE-5酶，将cGMP分解，让血管恢复到原本的缩紧状态。
抑制PDE-5酶的活跃程度
随着年龄增长，有些男性的血管中会永久性地累积高成分的PDE-5酶，阻止了阴茎持续勃起，而西医处方便是靠抑制体内PDE-5酶的活跃程度，达到短暂作用。
要服用上述药物，必须先经医生诊断，每颗药物的售价约20元。方医生解释说，有些病人不适合服用伟哥，比如有心脏、肾脏和肝脏问题的病人；长期服用某种药物的病人，也不宜服用伟哥，否则对身体有害，这便是为何服药前需要医生的诊断。
方医生说，长期服用扩张血管药物的病人，如果使用这些壮阳药，可能会导致血压下降，造成危险。
西医除了通过抑制PDE-5酶来帮助阳痿病人勃起外，也有以男性荷尔蒙来增强病人性欲，这包括口服药丸、注射打针、在外部涂抹荷尔蒙药膏，或者使用贴片，让皮肤吸收男性荷尔蒙。
不过方医生指出，男性要长远解决阳痿问题，还必须从健康情况着手，如果病人有糖尿病或高血压，就必须从控制疾病开始，只有在改善了病人的健康情况后，阳痿问题才可能彻底解决。
中医：可壮阳中药、食物非常多
从中医学的角度，可用来壮阳的药物非常多，包括淫羊藿、菟丝子、鹿茸、人参、冬虫草、枸杞子、补骨脂、肉苁蓉、巴戟、黄精等。
本地资深中医师陈美娥说，中医治疗阳痿等男性病，至少有几千年历史，累积了很丰富的经验，因此能被用来壮阳的药物不胜枚举。另外，中医还有各种可治阳痿的传统处方和成药，以及各种能加强性功能的食疗。
今年初离开人世的本地著名中医师李金龙，出版过一本畅销书《性不性由你——中医说房事》，当中便提到中国很早便有各种论述男女性生理和病理问题的古书籍，包括《素女经》《内经》等。
《内经》清楚地阐明男子到了“二八”16岁时，便有了精虫，女子到了“二七”14岁时，便有卵子和月经。男子到了“七八”56岁、“八八”64岁时，生精功能开始衰退，对性生活越来越没兴趣。女子“七七”49岁不再生产卵子，开始停经，步入更年期。
李金龙在他的书中说，早在三千年前，周朝皇帝周穆王便已懂得用强精壮体的中药补身，而他最推崇的便是中药大枣。现代医学认为大枣能医治神经系统衰弱，因此有一定道理。
中国民间过去有一句古话：“男子出远门，不可吃枸杞”，说的是男子吃枸杞会增强性欲，出门在外容易寻花问柳，由此可见，枸杞也是一种壮阳药。
“壮肾阳”和“滋肾阴”
中医是怎样治理阳痿的？陈美娥医师说，阳痿不一定要用壮阳药，还可能取“清热利湿”和“滋肾阴”的做法。
中医认为，阳痿可能是“命门火衰”，也可能是“湿热下注”。如果是“命门火衰”，便采用“壮肾阳”的做法，但如果是“湿热下注”，便要“清热利湿”了。
可以用来“壮肾阳”的壮阳药，包括鹿茸、淫羊藿、补骨脂，以及各种动物鞭（牛、羊、虎、鹿、鳄鱼等）。这当中的淫羊藿相当有趣，据说古代名医陶弘景观察羊只吃了这种叶子后，可一日交配“数次”，因此得出这种叶子有壮阳作用，还称它为“淫羊藿”。
至于“滋肾阴”的药物，则有人参、冬虫夏草、菟丝子、枸杞子、肉苁蓉、黄精等。
许振益医师说，中医治疗阳痿，一般不主张单用一味药。这是因为中医认为每个病人体质不一样，加上不同药物有不同药性，因此需要调配使用。
中医既然是从调理病人体质着手，便需要一段时间才能见效，不像西医的壮阳药那样，让病人迅速勃起，应付几个小时之需。话说回来，一旦把身体调理好了，其作用比较持久。
陈美娥医师说，中医也有用针灸治疗阳痿的，针灸比较立竿见影，更快见效，但要持久效果，就必须长期针灸，还要配合药物。
中医：传统成药和食疗可治阳痿
中医也有一些传统成药，具有增强性功能作用，这包括六味地黄丸、金锁固精丸、金匮肾气丸、右归丸（补阳）、左归丸（滋阴）、龟鹿大补丸、十全大补汤、五子地黄汤、五子衍宗丸等。但是陈美娥医师指出，用成药前，同样必须先了解体质和造成阳痿的原因，对症下药。
另外，一些人也通过食疗来补气强身，比如韭菜炒虾仁、核桃炖瘦肉、核桃炒虾仁、巴戟炖瘦肉等，便据说有“壮阳”作用。
按按照现代医学研究，男性要产生精虫，需要两种物质起作用，那便是锌元素和精氨酸。
哪些食物含有丰富的锌元素？答案是牡蛎，也就是蚝，每100克可含100毫克的锌元素。相比之下，牛肉每百克是8毫克，鸡蛋3毫克，猪肉3毫克。
含精氨酸的食物又有哪些？答案是冻豆腐，每百克含4.11克，其他包括木松鱼（含3.97克）、豆腐皮（含3.66克）、花生（含3.61克）、核桃（含2.19克）、大豆、芝麻等。
有壮阳作用的药材和食品
药材
枸杞子 巴戟
食品
韭菜 虾 牡蛎 淡菜 泥鳅 冻豆腐 核桃 芝麻 蜂蜜 葡萄 莲子 核桃 羊肉
如果要服用目前已名满天下的西药处方如伟哥(Viagra)、犀利士(Cialis)和力威大(Levitra)等，必须先经医生诊断，另外，这些药物价格不便宜，一颗要20元左右，有些人负担不来，也不想看医生，于是转而购买非法春药。
但是，吞食非法春药，后果可不是闹着玩的。非法春药在本地已导致一人死亡，两人昏迷，一人中风，至少89人因服用或怀疑服用这类非法药物入院。卫生科学局所列出的非法春药包括“动力一号核桃素片”、仿冒的“犀利士”“三体牛鞭”及“中华牛鞭”等。
尽管黑市壮阳药严重危害健康的事实摆在眼前，还有人为此丢命，可是当本报记者走访一些曾服用“动力一号”和其他非法春药的德士司机时，他们依然不相信这些黑市药会危害健康。他们为了贪图价格便宜，贪图一时之快，也为了逞一时之“强”，不顾警告，冒生命风险，偷偷吞食这类药物。
卫生科学局所列出的非法春药包括“动力一号核桃素片”、仿冒的“犀利士”“三体牛鞭”及“中华牛鞭”等。
难道除了吞服这些非法春药，就没有别的方法可解决他们的问题？本报走访了本地的一些中西医，希望从中西医的角度，甚至食疗的角度，探讨这一问题。
中医西医异口同声：非法壮阳药不安全
其实，中医和西医各有一套治疗阳痿的方法，大家可以通过各种管道来解决问题，不必拿自己的健康和性命来开玩笑。胡乱服用各种来历不明的药物，就算服用后没有立刻出现并发症，不等于那就是安全的，那可能只是暂时没问题，难保日积月累，待发生问题时已经太迟了。
根据中医的看法，男性到了五六十岁，性功能自然开始衰退。本地著名中医师陈美娥指出，按照中医的说法，人上了年纪便会精气衰，自然会出现性功能障碍，这时候应该开始修身养性，寻找精神寄托，通过阅读，培养个人嗜好和兴趣来丰富生活。
专科中医院医师许振益则指出，“饱暖思淫欲”，一个人如果没有精神寄托，便会往这方面寻求刺激。至于为什么会有那么多人不顾卫生部警告，偷偷服用非法的黑市春药，许医师认为，很多男性依然把阳痿视为难以启齿，有损尊严的问题。非法春药价格便宜，也是吸引买客的一大因素。
鹰阁医药中心妇产专科医生方壮威说，50岁以上的男性中，大约有一半会面对某种短暂性功能障碍。很多人买非法春药，可能是出于无知，但也可能因为价格便宜。很多低收入阶层，包括外劳，是负担不起看医生和吃合法药物的费用，当然也有一些人过度纵欲和喜欢展示雄风。
他和许多医学界朋友始终不明白，目前市面上的非法壮阳药，为何会加入大量降低血糖的格列本脲（glibenclamide）。他说，这种药物和性功能勃起毫无关系，其作用是刺激胰脏分泌胰岛素，减低血糖，但是大量服用的话，会使人全身乏力，身体发抖，最后休克死去，因此非常危险。
西医 通过抑制PDE-5酶 医治阳痿
鹰阁医药中心妇产专科医生方壮威医生说，目前最常用来治疗阳痿的药物如伟哥(Viagra)、犀利士(Cialis)和力威大(Levitra)等口服药物，主要是靠抑制体内PDE-5酶的活跃程度，协助阴茎勃起。这些药物能在短时间内起局部作用。
原来，男性阴茎是由海绵体组织构成，里面充满血管。由于血管通常处在缩紧状态，造成血液循环受到限制。一旦受到性刺激，阴茎就会释放cGMP激素，使血管松弛，让更多血液流通，造成阴茎充血。当性高潮过去后，阴茎会释放PDE-5酶，将cGMP分解，让血管恢复到原本的缩紧状态。
抑制PDE-5酶的活跃程度
随着年龄增长，有些男性的血管中会永久性地累积高成分的PDE-5酶，阻止了阴茎持续勃起，而西医处方便是靠抑制体内PDE-5酶的活跃程度，达到短暂作用。
要服用上述药物，必须先经医生诊断，每颗药物的售价约20元。方医生解释说，有些病人不适合服用伟哥，比如有心脏、肾脏和肝脏问题的病人；长期服用某种药物的病人，也不宜服用伟哥，否则对身体有害，这便是为何服药前需要医生的诊断。
方医生说，长期服用扩张血管药物的病人，如果使用这些壮阳药，可能会导致血压下降，造成危险。
西医除了通过抑制PDE-5酶来帮助阳痿病人勃起外，也有以男性荷尔蒙来增强病人性欲，这包括口服药丸、注射打针、在外部涂抹荷尔蒙药膏，或者使用贴片，让皮肤吸收男性荷尔蒙。
不过方医生指出，男性要长远解决阳痿问题，还必须从健康情况着手，如果病人有糖尿病或高血压，就必须从控制疾病开始，只有在改善了病人的健康情况后，阳痿问题才可能彻底解决。
中医：可壮阳中药、食物非常多
从中医学的角度，可用来壮阳的药物非常多，包括淫羊藿、菟丝子、鹿茸、人参、冬虫草、枸杞子、补骨脂、肉苁蓉、巴戟、黄精等。
本地资深中医师陈美娥说，中医治疗阳痿等男性病，至少有几千年历史，累积了很丰富的经验，因此能被用来壮阳的药物不胜枚举。另外，中医还有各种可治阳痿的传统处方和成药，以及各种能加强性功能的食疗。
今年初离开人世的本地著名中医师李金龙，出版过一本畅销书《性不性由你——中医说房事》，当中便提到中国很早便有各种论述男女性生理和病理问题的古书籍，包括《素女经》《内经》等。
《内经》清楚地阐明男子到了“二八”16岁时，便有了精虫，女子到了“二七”14岁时，便有卵子和月经。男子到了“七八”56岁、“八八”64岁时，生精功能开始衰退，对性生活越来越没兴趣。女子“七七”49岁不再生产卵子，开始停经，步入更年期。
李金龙在他的书中说，早在三千年前，周朝皇帝周穆王便已懂得用强精壮体的中药补身，而他最推崇的便是中药大枣。现代医学认为大枣能医治神经系统衰弱，因此有一定道理。
中国民间过去有一句古话：“男子出远门，不可吃枸杞”，说的是男子吃枸杞会增强性欲，出门在外容易寻花问柳，由此可见，枸杞也是一种壮阳药。
“壮肾阳”和“滋肾阴”
中医是怎样治理阳痿的？陈美娥医师说，阳痿不一定要用壮阳药，还可能取“清热利湿”和“滋肾阴”的做法。
中医认为，阳痿可能是“命门火衰”，也可能是“湿热下注”。如果是“命门火衰”，便采用“壮肾阳”的做法，但如果是“湿热下注”，便要“清热利湿”了。
可以用来“壮肾阳”的壮阳药，包括鹿茸、淫羊藿、补骨脂，以及各种动物鞭（牛、羊、虎、鹿、鳄鱼等）。这当中的淫羊藿相当有趣，据说古代名医陶弘景观察羊只吃了这种叶子后，可一日交配“数次”，因此得出这种叶子有壮阳作用，还称它为“淫羊藿”。
至于“滋肾阴”的药物，则有人参、冬虫夏草、菟丝子、枸杞子、肉苁蓉、黄精等。
许振益医师说，中医治疗阳痿，一般不主张单用一味药。这是因为中医认为每个病人体质不一样，加上不同药物有不同药性，因此需要调配使用。
中医既然是从调理病人体质着手，便需要一段时间才能见效，不像西医的壮阳药那样，让病人迅速勃起，应付几个小时之需。话说回来，一旦把身体调理好了，其作用比较持久。
陈美娥医师说，中医也有用针灸治疗阳痿的，针灸比较立竿见影，更快见效，但要持久效果，就必须长期针灸，还要配合药物。
中医：传统成药和食疗可治阳痿
中医也有一些传统成药，具有增强性功能作用，这包括六味地黄丸、金锁固精丸、金匮肾气丸、右归丸（补阳）、左归丸（滋阴）、龟鹿大补丸、十全大补汤、五子地黄汤、五子衍宗丸等。但是陈美娥医师指出，用成药前，同样必须先了解体质和造成阳痿的原因，对症下药。
另外，一些人也通过食疗来补气强身，比如韭菜炒虾仁、核桃炖瘦肉、核桃炒虾仁、巴戟炖瘦肉等，便据说有“壮阳”作用。
按按照现代医学研究，男性要产生精虫，需要两种物质起作用，那便是锌元素和精氨酸。
哪些食物含有丰富的锌元素？答案是牡蛎，也就是蚝，每100克可含100毫克的锌元素。相比之下，牛肉每百克是8毫克，鸡蛋3毫克，猪肉3毫克。
含精氨酸的食物又有哪些？答案是冻豆腐，每百克含4.11克，其他包括木松鱼（含3.97克）、豆腐皮（含3.66克）、花生（含3.61克）、核桃（含2.19克）、大豆、芝麻等。
有壮阳作用的药材和食品
药材
枸杞子 巴戟
食品
韭菜 虾 牡蛎 淡菜 泥鳅 冻豆腐 核桃 芝麻 蜂蜜 葡萄 莲子 核桃 羊肉
Sunday, March 30, 2008
低技術高風險高回報的性工作
芝大的《政治經濟學報》（ＪＰＥ）發表二名分別來自哥倫比亞大學和德國Tubingen大學學者合撰的論文〈賣淫經濟學〉（Lena Edlund and Evelyn Korn:〈A Theory of Prostitution〉），看題目已喜。這二位教授選擇這個題目，看似荒誕不經，其實大有道理，因為賣淫這門世人公認的「最古老行業」，迄今乏人深入研究。
賣淫，是一種出賣低技術勞力而收入較高的工作。這即是說，娼妓─性工作者的收入與其技術水平不相稱。賣淫者有三項與其他勞工不同的特點。第一是妓女屬高入息階層，其收入不僅比男妓高，平均亦高於白領，其工作的技術要求低卻有高收入，這種不符合經濟原理的反常現象，經濟學家非尋根問柢不可。據作者們搜集的資料，瑞典妓女的日薪（一個工作天的收入）等於該國白領的平均月薪；在立陶宛，「艷名四播」的妓女月入五千美元，約為平均白領月薪的二十倍。這種「收入不均」情況，在發展中國家特別是嚴禁賣淫的國家最為嚴重─馬來西亞妓女的收入為非技術工人的六倍、印尼「高級（可能目不識丁）妓女」月入在一千五百至二千五百美元之間，比有大學文憑的中級公務員還高。如果把「逃稅」因素一併考慮，妓女的收入遠較一般受薪階級的稅後收入高！
淫業的第二項特點是男妓的收入較他們的女性同行低，九三年在加拿大蒙特利爾進行的調查顯示，三分之二妓女年入息五萬加元以上，男妓達此數額的只有三分之一強。此一特點，與發達國家賣淫者佔人口比例遠遠低於發展中國家的特點，可一併分析。
第三是，妓女的收入較高與「工作風險」（job hazards）較高有關，但這只是相對的說法，因為工作環境惡劣並有隨時被控「阻街」的「阻街女郎」，收入不及風險較低的「應召女郎」、「導遊」和「一樓一或多鳳」的妓女，在賣淫合法化即娼妓基本上沒有觸犯法律風險的地區，娼妓入息亦較平均收入高，證明此行業和風險與報酬率的關係不穩定。在一般人尤其是電影電視迷心目中，妓女受鴇婆或龜公重重盤剝，到手的錢有限，實際上又不盡然，九十年代初期洛杉磯一項調查顯示只有百分之六妓女需要「分佣」給其「代理人」（請參考一月十一日本欄〈聽課權可拍賣 流鶯收入甚低〉）！這種情況不是四海皆準，總趨勢則錯不了；當然，偷渡或以遊客簽證來港賣淫的國內女性，因為非法身份而被包庇者重重剝削，不過，即使如此，她們的收入肯定仍較平均工資高！
當娼女性極少同時做家庭主婦。換句話說，家庭主婦可以兼做其他工作，唯獨不能「兼營醜業」（對「職業不分貴賤」的人，這當然不是「醜業」），經濟學家因此指出做性工作者的機會成本特別高；在當娼無法同時做家庭主婦的局限下，妓女的「夜度資」若低於平均工資，其供應便會短缺，因為更多女性會選擇當主婦，在必要時兼做非出賣肉體的工作；另一方面，當男性的工資、薪金水平上升時，意味其養妻活兒的能力上升，嫁人等於「有糧票」、衣食無憂，作歸家娘打算的女性便有所增加，加入賣淫業的女性相應萎縮……。當娼妓供不應求時，其價格自然提高。
上面的分析是娼妓何以收入較高的根本理由。不過，亦有經濟學家認為「賣笑收入較豐」，與「加速折舊」（accelerated depreciation）有關；這種現象與職業運動員並無分別，他們都要在「青春仍在期」努力工作賺錢以彌補「人老珠黃」門庭冷落時的「收入不足」。這是妓女一天接客人數在雙位數的底因。
賣淫，是一種出賣低技術勞力而收入較高的工作。這即是說，娼妓─性工作者的收入與其技術水平不相稱。賣淫者有三項與其他勞工不同的特點。第一是妓女屬高入息階層，其收入不僅比男妓高，平均亦高於白領，其工作的技術要求低卻有高收入，這種不符合經濟原理的反常現象，經濟學家非尋根問柢不可。據作者們搜集的資料，瑞典妓女的日薪（一個工作天的收入）等於該國白領的平均月薪；在立陶宛，「艷名四播」的妓女月入五千美元，約為平均白領月薪的二十倍。這種「收入不均」情況，在發展中國家特別是嚴禁賣淫的國家最為嚴重─馬來西亞妓女的收入為非技術工人的六倍、印尼「高級（可能目不識丁）妓女」月入在一千五百至二千五百美元之間，比有大學文憑的中級公務員還高。如果把「逃稅」因素一併考慮，妓女的收入遠較一般受薪階級的稅後收入高！
淫業的第二項特點是男妓的收入較他們的女性同行低，九三年在加拿大蒙特利爾進行的調查顯示，三分之二妓女年入息五萬加元以上，男妓達此數額的只有三分之一強。此一特點，與發達國家賣淫者佔人口比例遠遠低於發展中國家的特點，可一併分析。
第三是，妓女的收入較高與「工作風險」（job hazards）較高有關，但這只是相對的說法，因為工作環境惡劣並有隨時被控「阻街」的「阻街女郎」，收入不及風險較低的「應召女郎」、「導遊」和「一樓一或多鳳」的妓女，在賣淫合法化即娼妓基本上沒有觸犯法律風險的地區，娼妓入息亦較平均收入高，證明此行業和風險與報酬率的關係不穩定。在一般人尤其是電影電視迷心目中，妓女受鴇婆或龜公重重盤剝，到手的錢有限，實際上又不盡然，九十年代初期洛杉磯一項調查顯示只有百分之六妓女需要「分佣」給其「代理人」（請參考一月十一日本欄〈聽課權可拍賣 流鶯收入甚低〉）！這種情況不是四海皆準，總趨勢則錯不了；當然，偷渡或以遊客簽證來港賣淫的國內女性，因為非法身份而被包庇者重重剝削，不過，即使如此，她們的收入肯定仍較平均工資高！
當娼女性極少同時做家庭主婦。換句話說，家庭主婦可以兼做其他工作，唯獨不能「兼營醜業」（對「職業不分貴賤」的人，這當然不是「醜業」），經濟學家因此指出做性工作者的機會成本特別高；在當娼無法同時做家庭主婦的局限下，妓女的「夜度資」若低於平均工資，其供應便會短缺，因為更多女性會選擇當主婦，在必要時兼做非出賣肉體的工作；另一方面，當男性的工資、薪金水平上升時，意味其養妻活兒的能力上升，嫁人等於「有糧票」、衣食無憂，作歸家娘打算的女性便有所增加，加入賣淫業的女性相應萎縮……。當娼妓供不應求時，其價格自然提高。
上面的分析是娼妓何以收入較高的根本理由。不過，亦有經濟學家認為「賣笑收入較豐」，與「加速折舊」（accelerated depreciation）有關；這種現象與職業運動員並無分別，他們都要在「青春仍在期」努力工作賺錢以彌補「人老珠黃」門庭冷落時的「收入不足」。這是妓女一天接客人數在雙位數的底因。
Saturday, March 22, 2008
李嘉诚的人生忠告
⒈我17岁开始做批发行的推销员，更体会到挣钱不容易和生活的艰辛。人家做8个小时，我就做16个小时。
⒉我们的社会中没有大学文凭、白手起家而终成大业的人不计其数，其中的优秀企业家群体更是引人注目。他们通过自己的活动为社会作贡献，社会也以崇高荣誉和巨额财富回报他们。
⒊精明的商家可以将商业意识渗透到生活的每一件事去，甚至是一举手一投足。充满商业细胞的商人，赚钱可以是无处不在、无时不在。
⒋我凡事必有充分的准备然后才去做。一向以来，做生意处理事情都是如此。例如天文台说天气很好，但我常常问我自己，如5分钟后宣布有台风，我会怎样，在香港做生意，也要保持这种心理准备。
⒌精明的商人只有嗅觉敏锐才能将商业情报作用发挥到极致，那种感觉迟钝、闭门自锁的公司老板常常会无所作为。
⒍我从不间断阅读新科技、新知识的书籍，不会因不了解新信息而同时代潮流脱节。
⒎即使本来有一百的力量足以成事，但我要储足二百的力量去攻，而不是随便去赌一赌。
⒏扩张中不忘谨慎，谨慎中不忘扩张。我讲求的是在稳健与进取中取得平衡。船要行得快，但面对风浪一定要捱得住。
⒐好的时候不要看得太好，坏的时候不要看得太坏。最重要的是要有远见，杀鸡取卵的方式是短视的行为。
⒑不必再有丝毫犹豫，竞争既搏命，更是斗智斗勇。倘若连这点勇气都没有，如何在商场立脚，超越置地?
⒒对人诚恳，做事负责，多结善缘，自然会得到很多人的帮助。淡泊明志，随遇而安，不作非分之想，心境安泰，必少许多失意之苦。
⒓在逆境时，要问自己是否有足够的条件。当我自己处在逆境的时候，我认为我够！因我勤奋、节俭、有毅力，我肯求知及肯建立信誉。
⒉我们的社会中没有大学文凭、白手起家而终成大业的人不计其数，其中的优秀企业家群体更是引人注目。他们通过自己的活动为社会作贡献，社会也以崇高荣誉和巨额财富回报他们。
⒊精明的商家可以将商业意识渗透到生活的每一件事去，甚至是一举手一投足。充满商业细胞的商人，赚钱可以是无处不在、无时不在。
⒋我凡事必有充分的准备然后才去做。一向以来，做生意处理事情都是如此。例如天文台说天气很好，但我常常问我自己，如5分钟后宣布有台风，我会怎样，在香港做生意，也要保持这种心理准备。
⒌精明的商人只有嗅觉敏锐才能将商业情报作用发挥到极致，那种感觉迟钝、闭门自锁的公司老板常常会无所作为。
⒍我从不间断阅读新科技、新知识的书籍，不会因不了解新信息而同时代潮流脱节。
⒎即使本来有一百的力量足以成事，但我要储足二百的力量去攻，而不是随便去赌一赌。
⒏扩张中不忘谨慎，谨慎中不忘扩张。我讲求的是在稳健与进取中取得平衡。船要行得快，但面对风浪一定要捱得住。
⒐好的时候不要看得太好，坏的时候不要看得太坏。最重要的是要有远见，杀鸡取卵的方式是短视的行为。
⒑不必再有丝毫犹豫，竞争既搏命，更是斗智斗勇。倘若连这点勇气都没有，如何在商场立脚，超越置地?
⒒对人诚恳，做事负责，多结善缘，自然会得到很多人的帮助。淡泊明志，随遇而安，不作非分之想，心境安泰，必少许多失意之苦。
⒓在逆境时，要问自己是否有足够的条件。当我自己处在逆境的时候，我认为我够！因我勤奋、节俭、有毅力，我肯求知及肯建立信誉。
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
勾引可訓練試情價不菲
日本可說是補習王國，什麼千奇百怪科目的補習學校都有（比如開班專門教授如何用手機發放短訊勾搭異性），可是，有系統且理論實踐並重，訓練、指導學生勾引女性的，似乎只此一家「勾引女性男校」（Pick-up School for Men Who can't get Any），校長為今年四十八歲的醜男籐田聰，看相片，他真的十分「樣衰」，眼睛細小狹長（所謂「矇豬眼」）、腿短腰長，戴近視眼鏡和蓬鬆假髮，以他這副「女性勿近」的尊容和身材，難怪他在二十七歲前「對女性完全無知」；這一年，他頓悟長此下去將以王老五終老，這是他絕不甘心的，因為他內心極度喜歡女性，為了打破宿命，籐田開始研究勾引女性的技巧，以那些身邊女性如穿花蝴蝶去來不絕的名流、藝員為仿效對象，終於大有所成，他的「桃花運」在三十四歲那年戴假髮不再以禿頭示人時開始，他說戴假髮有如女性隆胸，令人信心大增，自此色膽包天，結識女性得心應手，不僅開了那家「專科」學校，還出了包括《當我的女友發現我戴假髮》等三本暢銷書，令他在業界─東京大約六家類似的學校─聲名大噪。美國 Wired 雜誌聞其大名給他做了專訪，從此享有「國際知名度」。
籐田說他平均每月有約百名「畢業生」，他們有公務員、中小企高級職員（籐田認為大企業的ＣＥＯ用手機短訊勾引女性易如反掌，毌須上課）、工程師以至教師，學費每月三萬日圓（現值約為二千四百港元），課程有在教室講授的「理論課」，學員可「選科」，較受歡迎的科目是「如何使女性歡笑」、「如何恭維女性令她們心花怒放」及「女性喜歡什麼樣的小玩意（魔術）」等，這些「學科」都很普通，籐田之所以能成為「天王」，是發展出一套獨有的「科學化勾引術」（Proprietary Science），唯內容如何，他說是商業秘密，不能公諸同好。
「理論課」之外，「勾引女性男校」最叫座的是實踐課程，籐田在街角向學員傳授軟派（日文Nanpa的漢字，意為勾引、「溝女」）之術，這不但要「因人（學員）施技」，勾引手法亦要「因女（目標女性）而異」，因為令女性動心的東西不一而足，隨機應變十分重要，只要認清對象─籐田以一副「心理分析撲克牌」協助他決策─用他的獨門方法，勾引女性十拿九穩。Wired 同時訪問數名以真面目示人的學員，他們的特徵是「樣衰」，但經籐田指導後，都成為無往不利的「情場」猛男！
籐田的「勾引哲學」是先發生性關係然後才論婚娶，程序顛倒大多一無所得且失敗收場。
籐田說他平均每月有約百名「畢業生」，他們有公務員、中小企高級職員（籐田認為大企業的ＣＥＯ用手機短訊勾引女性易如反掌，毌須上課）、工程師以至教師，學費每月三萬日圓（現值約為二千四百港元），課程有在教室講授的「理論課」，學員可「選科」，較受歡迎的科目是「如何使女性歡笑」、「如何恭維女性令她們心花怒放」及「女性喜歡什麼樣的小玩意（魔術）」等，這些「學科」都很普通，籐田之所以能成為「天王」，是發展出一套獨有的「科學化勾引術」（Proprietary Science），唯內容如何，他說是商業秘密，不能公諸同好。
「理論課」之外，「勾引女性男校」最叫座的是實踐課程，籐田在街角向學員傳授軟派（日文Nanpa的漢字，意為勾引、「溝女」）之術，這不但要「因人（學員）施技」，勾引手法亦要「因女（目標女性）而異」，因為令女性動心的東西不一而足，隨機應變十分重要，只要認清對象─籐田以一副「心理分析撲克牌」協助他決策─用他的獨門方法，勾引女性十拿九穩。Wired 同時訪問數名以真面目示人的學員，他們的特徵是「樣衰」，但經籐田指導後，都成為無往不利的「情場」猛男！
籐田的「勾引哲學」是先發生性關係然後才論婚娶，程序顛倒大多一無所得且失敗收場。
Monday, March 17, 2008
DRINK WATER ON EMPTY STOMACH
It is popular in Japan today to drink water immediately after waking up every morning.
Furthermore, scientific tests have proven a its value. We publish below a description of use of water for our readers. For old and serious diseases as well as modern illnesses the water treatment had been found successful by a Japanese medical society as a 100% cure for the following diseases:
Headache, body ache, heart system, arthritis, fast heart beat, epilepsy, excess fatness, bronchitis asthma, TB, meningitis, kidney and urine diseases, vomiting, gastritis, diarrhea, piles, diabetes, constipation, all eye diseases, womb, cancer and menstrual disorders, ear nose and throat diseases;
METHOD OF TREATMENT
1. As you wake up in the morning before brushing teeth, drink 4 x 160ml glasses of water
2. Brush and clean the mouth but do not eat or drink anything for 45 minutes
3. After 45 minutes you may eat and drink as normal.
4. After 15 minutes of breakfast, lunch and dinner do not eat or drink anything for 2 hours
5. Those who are old or sick and are unable to drink 4 glasses of water at the beginning may commence by taking little water and gradually increase it to 4 glasses per day.
6. The above method of treatment will cure diseases of the sick and others can enjoy a healthy life.
The following list gives the number of days of treatment required to cure/control/reduce main diseases:
1. High Blood Pressure - 30 ;days
2. Gastric - 10 days
3. Diabetes - 30 days
4. Constipation - 10 days
5. Cancer - 180 days
6. TB - 90 days
7. Arthritis patients should follow the above treatment only for 3 days in the 1st week, and from 2nd week onwards - daily.
This treatment method has no side effects, however at the commencement of treatment you may have to urinate a few times.It is better if we continue this and make this procedure as a routine work in our life.Drink Water and Stay healthy and Active.
This makes sense .... the Chinese and Japanese drink hot tea with their meals not cold water. maybe it is time we adopt their drinking habit while eating!!! Nothing to lose, everything to gain...
For those who like to drink cold water, this article is applicable to you.It is nice to have a cup of cold drink after a meal. However, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed. It will slow down the digestion.Once this "sludge" reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine. Very soon, this will turn into fats and lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.
A serious note about heart attacks: Women should know that not every heart attack symptom is going to be the left arm hurting.Be aware of intense pain in the jaw line.You may never have the first chest pain during the course of a heart attack.Nausea and intense sweating are also common symptoms.60% of people who have a heart attack while they are asleep do not wake up.Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep.
Furthermore, scientific tests have proven a its value. We publish below a description of use of water for our readers. For old and serious diseases as well as modern illnesses the water treatment had been found successful by a Japanese medical society as a 100% cure for the following diseases:
Headache, body ache, heart system, arthritis, fast heart beat, epilepsy, excess fatness, bronchitis asthma, TB, meningitis, kidney and urine diseases, vomiting, gastritis, diarrhea, piles, diabetes, constipation, all eye diseases, womb, cancer and menstrual disorders, ear nose and throat diseases;
METHOD OF TREATMENT
1. As you wake up in the morning before brushing teeth, drink 4 x 160ml glasses of water
2. Brush and clean the mouth but do not eat or drink anything for 45 minutes
3. After 45 minutes you may eat and drink as normal.
4. After 15 minutes of breakfast, lunch and dinner do not eat or drink anything for 2 hours
5. Those who are old or sick and are unable to drink 4 glasses of water at the beginning may commence by taking little water and gradually increase it to 4 glasses per day.
6. The above method of treatment will cure diseases of the sick and others can enjoy a healthy life.
The following list gives the number of days of treatment required to cure/control/reduce main diseases:
1. High Blood Pressure - 30 ;days
2. Gastric - 10 days
3. Diabetes - 30 days
4. Constipation - 10 days
5. Cancer - 180 days
6. TB - 90 days
7. Arthritis patients should follow the above treatment only for 3 days in the 1st week, and from 2nd week onwards - daily.
This treatment method has no side effects, however at the commencement of treatment you may have to urinate a few times.It is better if we continue this and make this procedure as a routine work in our life.Drink Water and Stay healthy and Active.
This makes sense .... the Chinese and Japanese drink hot tea with their meals not cold water. maybe it is time we adopt their drinking habit while eating!!! Nothing to lose, everything to gain...
For those who like to drink cold water, this article is applicable to you.It is nice to have a cup of cold drink after a meal. However, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed. It will slow down the digestion.Once this "sludge" reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine. Very soon, this will turn into fats and lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.
A serious note about heart attacks: Women should know that not every heart attack symptom is going to be the left arm hurting.Be aware of intense pain in the jaw line.You may never have the first chest pain during the course of a heart attack.Nausea and intense sweating are also common symptoms.60% of people who have a heart attack while they are asleep do not wake up.Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Green group issues warning over nanotechnology in food
The green group Friends of the Earth on Tuesday said legal loopholes in Europe bred worries about the impact of nanoscale compounds, used in the food industry, on health and the environment.
In a report presented to the press, Friends of the Earth Europe (FoEE) said it had identified "at least" 104 food or food-related products on sale in the EU that contained manufactured nanomaterials or were produced using nanotechnology and for which there was insufficient scrutiny under health and safety laws.
Internationally, several hundred nano-food products were likely to be on sale, it said.
Nanotechnology entails using materials on the scale of a nanometre, or a billionth of a metre.
Nanoparticles are being closely studied in fundamental research because of their potential in science and medicine -- for instance as new drugs for cancer.
But they are increasingly leaving the lab and entering the public domain, raising unresolved questions as to whether these novel materials are being vetted for safety, for workers in contact with them and people who use or consume them, FoEE said.
The group's nano-list included nutritional supplements, cling wrap and containers, antibacterial kitchenware, processed meats and chocolate drink.
"Europeans should not be exposed to potentially toxic materials in their food and food packaging until proper regulations are in place to ensure their safety," said Helen Holder, coordinator of the organisation's food and farming campaign.
"Policymakers must stop claiming that existing regulatory frameworks are adequate to deal with the emerging science of nanotechnology and address the gaps in current food safety legislation as soon as possible."
French scientists, speaking at a press conference in Paris last month, said the principal concerns over nanoparticles were about any effects on the lung, through inhalation, and of toxicity in the blood -- if for instance, sunscreen nanoparticles entered an open wound in the skin.
In a report presented to the press, Friends of the Earth Europe (FoEE) said it had identified "at least" 104 food or food-related products on sale in the EU that contained manufactured nanomaterials or were produced using nanotechnology and for which there was insufficient scrutiny under health and safety laws.
Internationally, several hundred nano-food products were likely to be on sale, it said.
Nanotechnology entails using materials on the scale of a nanometre, or a billionth of a metre.
Nanoparticles are being closely studied in fundamental research because of their potential in science and medicine -- for instance as new drugs for cancer.
But they are increasingly leaving the lab and entering the public domain, raising unresolved questions as to whether these novel materials are being vetted for safety, for workers in contact with them and people who use or consume them, FoEE said.
The group's nano-list included nutritional supplements, cling wrap and containers, antibacterial kitchenware, processed meats and chocolate drink.
"Europeans should not be exposed to potentially toxic materials in their food and food packaging until proper regulations are in place to ensure their safety," said Helen Holder, coordinator of the organisation's food and farming campaign.
"Policymakers must stop claiming that existing regulatory frameworks are adequate to deal with the emerging science of nanotechnology and address the gaps in current food safety legislation as soon as possible."
French scientists, speaking at a press conference in Paris last month, said the principal concerns over nanoparticles were about any effects on the lung, through inhalation, and of toxicity in the blood -- if for instance, sunscreen nanoparticles entered an open wound in the skin.
1 in 4 US teenage girls have had a sexually-transmitted disease: study
One in four teenage girls in the United Sates has been infected with at least one sexually transmitted disease, according to a study released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The first study to examine the combined national prevalence of common STDs among adolescent women in the United States estimates that at least 3.2 million teens aged 14 to 19 are currently infected.
Since the study only tested for the four most common sexually transmitted diseases, it is possible that the total prevalence among US teens is greater than the study's rate of 26 percent, the authors warned.
"Today's data demonstrate the significant health risk STDs pose to millions of young women in this country every year," said Kevin Fenton, director of the CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention.
"Given that the health effects of STDs for women -- from infertility to cervical cancer -- are particularly severe, STD screening, vaccination and other prevention strategies for sexually active women are among our highest public health priorities."
Half of the 838 girls who participated in the study reported ever having sex and of those, 40 percent were infected with an STD.
African American girls were particularly at risk: 48 percent of all African American girls were infected with an STD compared to 20 percent of white teens tested.
The most common STD overall was human papillomavirus, or HPV, with an infection rate of 18.3 percent.
Chlamydia was discovered in 3.9 percent of the teens, trichomoniasis in 2.5 percent and herpes in 1.9 percent.
Among teens who had an STD, 15 percent had more than one.
Infections rate rose to 50 percent among girls with three or more partners while 20 percent of those who had only had sex with one person had been infected.
"High STD infection rates among young women, particularly young African-American women, are clear signs that we must continue developing ways to reach those most at risk," said John Douglas, director of the CDC's Division of STD Prevention.
"STD screening and early treatment can prevent some of the most devastating effects of untreated STDs."
The CDC recommends HPV vaccination for all girls and women between the age of 11 and 26 and annual Chlamydia screening for sexually active women under the age of 25.
While most HPV infections will clear on their own, some will persist and can cause cervical cancer.
Two other studies released Tuesday found inadequate screening of high-risk teens.
The first found that just 27 percent of young women seeking emergency contraception were screened for chlamydia or gonorrhea.
The second found that only 38 percent of young women receiving contraceptive services associated with unprotected sex such as pregnancy tests were offered STD testing, counseling or treatment.
The first study to examine the combined national prevalence of common STDs among adolescent women in the United States estimates that at least 3.2 million teens aged 14 to 19 are currently infected.
Since the study only tested for the four most common sexually transmitted diseases, it is possible that the total prevalence among US teens is greater than the study's rate of 26 percent, the authors warned.
"Today's data demonstrate the significant health risk STDs pose to millions of young women in this country every year," said Kevin Fenton, director of the CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention.
"Given that the health effects of STDs for women -- from infertility to cervical cancer -- are particularly severe, STD screening, vaccination and other prevention strategies for sexually active women are among our highest public health priorities."
Half of the 838 girls who participated in the study reported ever having sex and of those, 40 percent were infected with an STD.
African American girls were particularly at risk: 48 percent of all African American girls were infected with an STD compared to 20 percent of white teens tested.
The most common STD overall was human papillomavirus, or HPV, with an infection rate of 18.3 percent.
Chlamydia was discovered in 3.9 percent of the teens, trichomoniasis in 2.5 percent and herpes in 1.9 percent.
Among teens who had an STD, 15 percent had more than one.
Infections rate rose to 50 percent among girls with three or more partners while 20 percent of those who had only had sex with one person had been infected.
"High STD infection rates among young women, particularly young African-American women, are clear signs that we must continue developing ways to reach those most at risk," said John Douglas, director of the CDC's Division of STD Prevention.
"STD screening and early treatment can prevent some of the most devastating effects of untreated STDs."
The CDC recommends HPV vaccination for all girls and women between the age of 11 and 26 and annual Chlamydia screening for sexually active women under the age of 25.
While most HPV infections will clear on their own, some will persist and can cause cervical cancer.
Two other studies released Tuesday found inadequate screening of high-risk teens.
The first found that just 27 percent of young women seeking emergency contraception were screened for chlamydia or gonorrhea.
The second found that only 38 percent of young women receiving contraceptive services associated with unprotected sex such as pregnancy tests were offered STD testing, counseling or treatment.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
谢国忠：政府不干预 股市泡沫也会破
巴菲特对中国人来说毫不陌生。最近，他的名字出现得更频繁了。因为很多人把他们在中国股市的成功，归因于运用了巴菲特的智慧。
中国真的出现了越来越多的巴菲特式的投资者吗？是不是这样的原因使市场创出新高？我思索许久，却得到相反的答案。很多自以为模仿巴菲特的人，其实是在投机。中国的股市正处在泡沫和过度的狂热之中，这是巴菲特最不愿投资的市场。
香港之鉴
很多人都在目前这轮牛市中大发其财。当然，这也是一种成就。不过，赚钱就意味着接近巴菲特了吗？我表示怀疑。
伟大的投资者需要经历时间的考验。巴菲特在他一生中创造了年均28%的收益水平，这相当于10年中增长11.8倍或30年中增长1645倍。我认识的一些投资者从2005年中开始的牛市里已经取得了6倍至10倍的收益。在这么短的时间内取得这样的回报是很不容易的，但这并不能把他们变成巴菲特。他们的成就可能来自技巧，也可能来自运气。事实上，一些强有力的证据表明，他们的成功完全得益于市场趋势，即运气，而不是个人的投资技巧。这样赚到的钱来得快，去得也快。
1997年，香港股市楼市飘红，投资气氛炽热。似乎每个人都投身股市或楼市，很少有人能在白天专心工作。有人不无嫉妒地跟我说，“起台风的时候，连猪都会飞。”的确，很多人都变得非常富有，至少当时是如此。但务实的香港人把他们挣的钱花在名牌服装之类的东西上，而不在意把自己标榜为巴菲特。尽管每个人都明白在这样的市场投资是走钢丝，但没有人相信泡沫破裂就在眼前。
当时，很少有人能想到，泰铢这样一种次要货币的崩溃会摧垮整个牛市。泰铢崩盘造成了“多米诺骨牌”效应。日本的银行是东南亚重要的债权人，他们在这场经济危机中损失惨重，资产负债表大幅缩水。他们也是香港的债主，在危机爆发五个月后，他们开始从香港市场撤资。
香港股市在1997年秋天开始暴跌，至1998年夏天到达底部，此时的恒生指数已较高点时跌去三分之二。而不动产的价格在一年中下跌了一半，在2000年高科技泡沫时经历短暂复苏后，又持续下跌，直到2003年的SARS时期才触底，累计跌幅达75%。
泡沫破灭给社会带来了巨大的痛苦。
整整一代香港人在熊市中长大，未来在他们眼中一片暗淡。他们在自己思维定型走向成熟的年纪里，经历着资产价格不断的缩水。这令他们在一生中都不敢冒大的风险。这就是为什么现在的香港楼市在种种狂热之中仍然表现温和，价格仅相当于1997年危机前水平的一半。
市场的反转非常迟缓。开发商不得不暗地里打折销售。只有在金融业集中的地段，地产价格才出现了明显的上涨。这其实是全球流动性泡沫的一部分，因为泡沫使得对冲基金和私募股权投资基金迅速壮大。这些基金在为他们的投资人赚取第一块钱之前，先要收取2%的管理费，这笔收入使他们居住的街区的房价猛涨。
中国故事
类似的故事可能正在中国的一些城市发生。飞涨的股市和十年前的香港市场惊人的相似。城市里不断流传着投资某只股票暴富的神话。其中，被谈论最多的一只股票是贵州茅台。传说的一个典型版本是：一个退休者把他所有的储蓄都买了茅台股票，现在成了亿万富翁。茅台股票的估值水平之高令人咋舌，其业务量也因为股市的繁荣而扩大——股市上涨带来的财富效应加大了对50年陈酿茅台的需求。
但我有点疑惑的是，究竟有多少50年陈酿的茅台酒？难道它们在“文革”时没有被红卫兵毁掉吗？不过，只要有大量资金竞相追逐，茅台的神话就会延续下去。
巴菲特也成为茅台故事的一部分。故事是这样讲的：
第一，茅台是中国的名牌；
第二，中国人喜欢茅台；
第三，随着经济发展和财富增长，人们会消费越来越多的茅台。
所以，根据巴菲特的原则，应当长期持有这只股票。
但是，这个故事缺少了巴菲特价值投资中的两个重要元素，一个是估值，另一个是盈利模式的可持续性。巴菲特的根本原则是在合适的价格买入一家好公司。但当一家好公司的股票以100倍市盈率交易时，这通常是一笔坏的投资。好公司和好股票并不能画等号。
对茅台酒的需求也存在疑问。茅台需求的一大部分是来自招待官员。当一种商品被政府官员相中之后，其价格就会飙升，因为商人会不惜代价地购买它。不过，茅台属于高度酒。全球范围内，考虑到健康的原因，高度酒的消费已连续20年下降。中国也会面临这一趋势。到医生告诫官员们不要再喝茅台酒的时候，再看看茅台的价格吧。尽管茅台有一个好的品牌，它的价值仍取决于公司未来能否不断调整自身以适应市场口味的变化。它的未来并不像多数投资者现在想的那么安全可靠。
金钱会改变人。
我注意到，新的暴富阶层有一些独特的地方。他们最新养成的两个生活习惯是饮茶和谈佛。
关于前者，我指的不是普通的喝茶，而是像法国人谈论葡萄酒那样谈论茶。这并没有什么不好，但这确实给市场带来了真实影响，陈年普洱茶的价格暴涨。你也许不会把某种茶叶的价格上涨和股市联系在一起。但是你会看到，当股市泡沫破裂时，普洱茶价会走向何方。
佛教是另一个热门话题。富人的精神需求本身并无任何坏处，但它造成了佛像等商品的价格上升。当看到如此众多的人都拥有罕见的佛教物品时，我免不了会想：这些东西以前都在哪儿呢？
巴菲特法则难有效
除了茶和佛，谈论巴菲特是最为时髦的。在发财以前，人们不会介意财富是来自遗产还是彩票。但发财以后，人们希望其他人相信，他们的富有是因为自己特殊的能力。自然地，那些在股市里淘到金的人们就把自己的故事描绘得像巴菲特那样。
有些人的确是因为聪明才智而发财，但大多数人只是运气好——碰巧在正确的时间入市。但我不能确信，有人已经做到巴菲特那样。中国股市还没有成熟到让巴菲特的法则有效地发挥作用。
首先，让我们来看看投资表现。在股权分置改革后，上证综指大约在2005年中到达800至900点的底部。从那以后，这一指数已经上涨了350%。这样的表现，部分原因是新股上市首日就被纳入指数计算。去年下半年，政府改变了这种做法。另外，由于新发行的大型国企的股份在指数中占有很大权重，目前的指数和两年前有较大的不可比性。所以，你手中的股票可能没有上涨350%那么多，我估计收益水平大约在200%。
如果市场涨到原来的三倍，很多高风险股票可能涨得更多。例如，细价股(small cap stocks)通常在牛市中涨幅更大，同时在熊市中跌幅更大。这种股票被称为高β值股票。
β系数是一只股票相对于整个市场的相对波动幅度。成熟市场细价股的β系数大约在1.5左右，也就是说，它们的波动比市场要大三分之一。我粗略估计的结果是，中国细价股的β值已经超过2。因此市场上涨2倍，它们会上涨5倍。
很多中国的投资者喜欢吹嘘他们的收益率。因为他们通常持有细价股，如果他们自2005年中以来收益超过500%，他们就跑赢了市场。如果持有风险更高的股票，他们的收益甚至可能更高。因此，高收益率并不意味着投资表现好。获得相对于市场整体更高的收益，也就承担着相对市场整体更大的风险。
与β值相对应的是α值。α是通过好的选股策略而非增加风险水平所带来的超过市场平均水平的收益。例如，如果两只钢铁股在同样的估值水平上交易，聪明的投资者会选取质量较好的那一家。假以时日，这只股票的表现会优于大势。这种超额回报就是α。很多对冲基金都宣称自己是α的创造者，从而收取更高的管理费(例如2%，而平均水平为0.5%)和利润分成(投资收益的20%)。
事实与此相去甚远。最近的学术研究表明，对冲基金的良好表现主要是β而非α的作用。例如，很多对冲基金都集中投资于热门大宗商品、细价股或新兴市场，这些部门在宏观趋势下表现强劲，这都属于β一类。不过，有人认为，基金经理选择了正确的行业，因此他们的表现不仅来自运气。这方面的辩论还会继续下去，但无论如何，他们的表现与选择了好公司关系不大，而这才是α的本质。
中国的投资者借用巴菲特来解释他们的成功，我想现在还为时过早。巴菲特的方法，是选择好的公司并在低价或合理价格时买入。这种方法通常排斥那些快速上涨的热门股，因为热门股的定义就是高估值。例如，巴菲特的方法在高科技行业就不大有用。苹果公司在五年前被乔布斯收购后，其股票上涨了10倍。这完全是因为他创造非凡新产品的能力。巴菲特的方法会忽略这一方面。这就是为什么巴菲特错过了20世纪90年代的科技股繁荣。
巴菲特方法选出的股票一般上涨得更稳健，而不是更快。相反，中国的投资者着迷于热门股。人们推荐股票时给出的目标价格通常是在一年内有数倍的涨幅，这很难成为一个巴菲特式的目标。
中国的股票经常是不论质地好坏，齐涨齐跌。市场中的股票总是不停地在变，巴菲特的方法少有用武之地。招商银行和万科是能够持续为股东带来回报的少有例子。占据市场的国有企业更多地凭政府政策实现盈利。从长期看，这种政府保护行业的风险是很高的。民营企业则通常依赖于某个创始人，如果这个人因某种原因离开，公司很快会陷入困境。这些特点使巴菲特方法在中国的市场上很难适用。这就是为什么很多投资者像巴菲特那样侃侃而谈，同时进行的却是短线操作。
巴菲特的方法只在于实现α。这需要有一个上市公司众多的成熟市场。美国股市有近万家上市公司。“二战”以后，美国经济还从未经历过萧条(即GDP负增长超过5%)。相反，美国经济在19世纪几乎每十年就经历一次萧条。那时，就算是巴菲特，也难以成功。经济的巨大稳定性给了巴菲特法则发挥作用的机会。在这个意义上说，他也是交了好运。
总之，我怀疑眼下对巴菲特的热议只是牛市的产物。当泡沫破灭时，不会再有多少人提起他。当上海A股超过2500点时，中国股市就进入了泡沫状态。泡沫也有它的自然寿命，它是由人的心理驱动的。一场股市泡沫持续三年也是可能的，并能让市盈率超过60倍，也就是正常估值水平的4倍。
中国投资者经常把泡沫破裂与政府干预联系起来，认为只要政府不干预，泡沫就可以永远存在下去。这是错误的。泡沫会自己破裂。美国在1929年、日本在1989年就是如此。香港的崩盘是由外部干扰引起的，科技股泡沫则因产能过剩在2000年破裂。你永远都不知道泡沫会怎样破，但它们总是会破的。
中国真的出现了越来越多的巴菲特式的投资者吗？是不是这样的原因使市场创出新高？我思索许久，却得到相反的答案。很多自以为模仿巴菲特的人，其实是在投机。中国的股市正处在泡沫和过度的狂热之中，这是巴菲特最不愿投资的市场。
香港之鉴
很多人都在目前这轮牛市中大发其财。当然，这也是一种成就。不过，赚钱就意味着接近巴菲特了吗？我表示怀疑。
伟大的投资者需要经历时间的考验。巴菲特在他一生中创造了年均28%的收益水平，这相当于10年中增长11.8倍或30年中增长1645倍。我认识的一些投资者从2005年中开始的牛市里已经取得了6倍至10倍的收益。在这么短的时间内取得这样的回报是很不容易的，但这并不能把他们变成巴菲特。他们的成就可能来自技巧，也可能来自运气。事实上，一些强有力的证据表明，他们的成功完全得益于市场趋势，即运气，而不是个人的投资技巧。这样赚到的钱来得快，去得也快。
1997年，香港股市楼市飘红，投资气氛炽热。似乎每个人都投身股市或楼市，很少有人能在白天专心工作。有人不无嫉妒地跟我说，“起台风的时候，连猪都会飞。”的确，很多人都变得非常富有，至少当时是如此。但务实的香港人把他们挣的钱花在名牌服装之类的东西上，而不在意把自己标榜为巴菲特。尽管每个人都明白在这样的市场投资是走钢丝，但没有人相信泡沫破裂就在眼前。
当时，很少有人能想到，泰铢这样一种次要货币的崩溃会摧垮整个牛市。泰铢崩盘造成了“多米诺骨牌”效应。日本的银行是东南亚重要的债权人，他们在这场经济危机中损失惨重，资产负债表大幅缩水。他们也是香港的债主，在危机爆发五个月后，他们开始从香港市场撤资。
香港股市在1997年秋天开始暴跌，至1998年夏天到达底部，此时的恒生指数已较高点时跌去三分之二。而不动产的价格在一年中下跌了一半，在2000年高科技泡沫时经历短暂复苏后，又持续下跌，直到2003年的SARS时期才触底，累计跌幅达75%。
泡沫破灭给社会带来了巨大的痛苦。
整整一代香港人在熊市中长大，未来在他们眼中一片暗淡。他们在自己思维定型走向成熟的年纪里，经历着资产价格不断的缩水。这令他们在一生中都不敢冒大的风险。这就是为什么现在的香港楼市在种种狂热之中仍然表现温和，价格仅相当于1997年危机前水平的一半。
市场的反转非常迟缓。开发商不得不暗地里打折销售。只有在金融业集中的地段，地产价格才出现了明显的上涨。这其实是全球流动性泡沫的一部分，因为泡沫使得对冲基金和私募股权投资基金迅速壮大。这些基金在为他们的投资人赚取第一块钱之前，先要收取2%的管理费，这笔收入使他们居住的街区的房价猛涨。
中国故事
类似的故事可能正在中国的一些城市发生。飞涨的股市和十年前的香港市场惊人的相似。城市里不断流传着投资某只股票暴富的神话。其中，被谈论最多的一只股票是贵州茅台。传说的一个典型版本是：一个退休者把他所有的储蓄都买了茅台股票，现在成了亿万富翁。茅台股票的估值水平之高令人咋舌，其业务量也因为股市的繁荣而扩大——股市上涨带来的财富效应加大了对50年陈酿茅台的需求。
但我有点疑惑的是，究竟有多少50年陈酿的茅台酒？难道它们在“文革”时没有被红卫兵毁掉吗？不过，只要有大量资金竞相追逐，茅台的神话就会延续下去。
巴菲特也成为茅台故事的一部分。故事是这样讲的：
第一，茅台是中国的名牌；
第二，中国人喜欢茅台；
第三，随着经济发展和财富增长，人们会消费越来越多的茅台。
所以，根据巴菲特的原则，应当长期持有这只股票。
但是，这个故事缺少了巴菲特价值投资中的两个重要元素，一个是估值，另一个是盈利模式的可持续性。巴菲特的根本原则是在合适的价格买入一家好公司。但当一家好公司的股票以100倍市盈率交易时，这通常是一笔坏的投资。好公司和好股票并不能画等号。
对茅台酒的需求也存在疑问。茅台需求的一大部分是来自招待官员。当一种商品被政府官员相中之后，其价格就会飙升，因为商人会不惜代价地购买它。不过，茅台属于高度酒。全球范围内，考虑到健康的原因，高度酒的消费已连续20年下降。中国也会面临这一趋势。到医生告诫官员们不要再喝茅台酒的时候，再看看茅台的价格吧。尽管茅台有一个好的品牌，它的价值仍取决于公司未来能否不断调整自身以适应市场口味的变化。它的未来并不像多数投资者现在想的那么安全可靠。
金钱会改变人。
我注意到，新的暴富阶层有一些独特的地方。他们最新养成的两个生活习惯是饮茶和谈佛。
关于前者，我指的不是普通的喝茶，而是像法国人谈论葡萄酒那样谈论茶。这并没有什么不好，但这确实给市场带来了真实影响，陈年普洱茶的价格暴涨。你也许不会把某种茶叶的价格上涨和股市联系在一起。但是你会看到，当股市泡沫破裂时，普洱茶价会走向何方。
佛教是另一个热门话题。富人的精神需求本身并无任何坏处，但它造成了佛像等商品的价格上升。当看到如此众多的人都拥有罕见的佛教物品时，我免不了会想：这些东西以前都在哪儿呢？
巴菲特法则难有效
除了茶和佛，谈论巴菲特是最为时髦的。在发财以前，人们不会介意财富是来自遗产还是彩票。但发财以后，人们希望其他人相信，他们的富有是因为自己特殊的能力。自然地，那些在股市里淘到金的人们就把自己的故事描绘得像巴菲特那样。
有些人的确是因为聪明才智而发财，但大多数人只是运气好——碰巧在正确的时间入市。但我不能确信，有人已经做到巴菲特那样。中国股市还没有成熟到让巴菲特的法则有效地发挥作用。
首先，让我们来看看投资表现。在股权分置改革后，上证综指大约在2005年中到达800至900点的底部。从那以后，这一指数已经上涨了350%。这样的表现，部分原因是新股上市首日就被纳入指数计算。去年下半年，政府改变了这种做法。另外，由于新发行的大型国企的股份在指数中占有很大权重，目前的指数和两年前有较大的不可比性。所以，你手中的股票可能没有上涨350%那么多，我估计收益水平大约在200%。
如果市场涨到原来的三倍，很多高风险股票可能涨得更多。例如，细价股(small cap stocks)通常在牛市中涨幅更大，同时在熊市中跌幅更大。这种股票被称为高β值股票。
β系数是一只股票相对于整个市场的相对波动幅度。成熟市场细价股的β系数大约在1.5左右，也就是说，它们的波动比市场要大三分之一。我粗略估计的结果是，中国细价股的β值已经超过2。因此市场上涨2倍，它们会上涨5倍。
很多中国的投资者喜欢吹嘘他们的收益率。因为他们通常持有细价股，如果他们自2005年中以来收益超过500%，他们就跑赢了市场。如果持有风险更高的股票，他们的收益甚至可能更高。因此，高收益率并不意味着投资表现好。获得相对于市场整体更高的收益，也就承担着相对市场整体更大的风险。
与β值相对应的是α值。α是通过好的选股策略而非增加风险水平所带来的超过市场平均水平的收益。例如，如果两只钢铁股在同样的估值水平上交易，聪明的投资者会选取质量较好的那一家。假以时日，这只股票的表现会优于大势。这种超额回报就是α。很多对冲基金都宣称自己是α的创造者，从而收取更高的管理费(例如2%，而平均水平为0.5%)和利润分成(投资收益的20%)。
事实与此相去甚远。最近的学术研究表明，对冲基金的良好表现主要是β而非α的作用。例如，很多对冲基金都集中投资于热门大宗商品、细价股或新兴市场，这些部门在宏观趋势下表现强劲，这都属于β一类。不过，有人认为，基金经理选择了正确的行业，因此他们的表现不仅来自运气。这方面的辩论还会继续下去，但无论如何，他们的表现与选择了好公司关系不大，而这才是α的本质。
中国的投资者借用巴菲特来解释他们的成功，我想现在还为时过早。巴菲特的方法，是选择好的公司并在低价或合理价格时买入。这种方法通常排斥那些快速上涨的热门股，因为热门股的定义就是高估值。例如，巴菲特的方法在高科技行业就不大有用。苹果公司在五年前被乔布斯收购后，其股票上涨了10倍。这完全是因为他创造非凡新产品的能力。巴菲特的方法会忽略这一方面。这就是为什么巴菲特错过了20世纪90年代的科技股繁荣。
巴菲特方法选出的股票一般上涨得更稳健，而不是更快。相反，中国的投资者着迷于热门股。人们推荐股票时给出的目标价格通常是在一年内有数倍的涨幅，这很难成为一个巴菲特式的目标。
中国的股票经常是不论质地好坏，齐涨齐跌。市场中的股票总是不停地在变，巴菲特的方法少有用武之地。招商银行和万科是能够持续为股东带来回报的少有例子。占据市场的国有企业更多地凭政府政策实现盈利。从长期看，这种政府保护行业的风险是很高的。民营企业则通常依赖于某个创始人，如果这个人因某种原因离开，公司很快会陷入困境。这些特点使巴菲特方法在中国的市场上很难适用。这就是为什么很多投资者像巴菲特那样侃侃而谈，同时进行的却是短线操作。
巴菲特的方法只在于实现α。这需要有一个上市公司众多的成熟市场。美国股市有近万家上市公司。“二战”以后，美国经济还从未经历过萧条(即GDP负增长超过5%)。相反，美国经济在19世纪几乎每十年就经历一次萧条。那时，就算是巴菲特，也难以成功。经济的巨大稳定性给了巴菲特法则发挥作用的机会。在这个意义上说，他也是交了好运。
总之，我怀疑眼下对巴菲特的热议只是牛市的产物。当泡沫破灭时，不会再有多少人提起他。当上海A股超过2500点时，中国股市就进入了泡沫状态。泡沫也有它的自然寿命，它是由人的心理驱动的。一场股市泡沫持续三年也是可能的，并能让市盈率超过60倍，也就是正常估值水平的4倍。
中国投资者经常把泡沫破裂与政府干预联系起来，认为只要政府不干预，泡沫就可以永远存在下去。这是错误的。泡沫会自己破裂。美国在1929年、日本在1989年就是如此。香港的崩盘是由外部干扰引起的，科技股泡沫则因产能过剩在2000年破裂。你永远都不知道泡沫会怎样破，但它们总是会破的。
Saturday, January 5, 2008
HEALTH Important notice
Reduce volume of "TEH TARIK";
Do not eat bread which JUST toasted;
Get a distance from charger;
Drink more water at the morning, less in the night;
Do not drink coffee twice a day;
Reduce volume of oily food;
Best sleeping time is fr om 10 at night to 6 at the morning;
Do not have HUGE meals after 5pm;
Do not take alcohol more than a cup daily;
Do not take capsule with cool water;
Do not lie down immediately after taking medicine before sleeping;
8 hours lack of sleep will make a person stupid;
People who get used of napping will not get old easily;
If you can't get on early morning runs, 5-8 at the afternoon is a great time for jogging;
When battery left last grid, do not answer the phone. The radiation is 1000 times;
Answer the phone by left ear. It'll s poil your brain directly by using right ear;
Do not use earphone for long time. Rest your ear awhile after 1 hour.
Do not eat bread which JUST toasted;
Get a distance from charger;
Drink more water at the morning, less in the night;
Do not drink coffee twice a day;
Reduce volume of oily food;
Best sleeping time is fr om 10 at night to 6 at the morning;
Do not have HUGE meals after 5pm;
Do not take alcohol more than a cup daily;
Do not take capsule with cool water;
Do not lie down immediately after taking medicine before sleeping;
8 hours lack of sleep will make a person stupid;
People who get used of napping will not get old easily;
If you can't get on early morning runs, 5-8 at the afternoon is a great time for jogging;
When battery left last grid, do not answer the phone. The radiation is 1000 times;
Answer the phone by left ear. It'll s poil your brain directly by using right ear;
Do not use earphone for long time. Rest your ear awhile after 1 hour.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Master Lim Analysis
Late Jan to early Feb 2008 - market move to 3850, due to good whole year report of 2007 result - workers receive bouns and pay rise
Late Feb 2008 - Market move down, workers spend all money, result over
May 2008- market still down
July 2008 -market dive, report result no good for 1q 2008, US banks write off losses
Sept 2008 -US market recover thanks to restructuring of banks, STI move to 4000
Nov 2008 - market move back to 3300
Late Feb 2008 - Market move down, workers spend all money, result over
May 2008- market still down
July 2008 -market dive, report result no good for 1q 2008, US banks write off losses
Sept 2008 -US market recover thanks to restructuring of banks, STI move to 4000
Nov 2008 - market move back to 3300
Sunday, December 9, 2007
積 極 減 持 等 位 再 買
繼 續 積 極 減 持 ， 沒 有 興 趣 在 接 近 30000 點 以 及 聯 儲 局 會 議 日 子 才 入 場 做 快 閃 黨 ， 自 問 身 手 不 夠 敏 捷 ， 膽 識 亦 大 不 如 前 。 總 要 有 人 提 供 貨 源 給 快 閃 黨 行 動 ， 就 蝕 底 少 收 一 點 ， 希 望 皆 大 歡 喜 。 在 股 市 作 戰 ， 不 外 是 貪 婪 和 恐 懼 兩 大 情 緒 所 主 宰 。 跌 市 時 博 繼 續 跌 ， 現 在 又 貪 心 想 在 幾 日 內 短 炒 ， 去 賺 盡 最 後 的 升 浪 ， 主 因 應 是 自 命 不 凡 。 叻 仔 在 賭 場 多 數 沒 有 好 結 果 ， 自 己 寧 願 做 仔 ， 捱 義 氣 接 貨 忍 受 心 理 折 磨 ， 回 升 則 賺 少 一 點 求 心 安 理 得 ， 可 能 才 是 克 服 貪 婪 和 恐 懼 的 最 佳 實 戰 方 法 。
順 勢 死 守 好 過 炒 出 炒 入
近 期 最 明 顯 的 轉 變 ， 是 美 元 轉 強 ， 這 一 點 令 自 己 相 當 不 舒 服 ， 甚 至 黃 金 長 倉 也 有 點 擔 心 ， 不 過 策 略 一 定 是 死 守 ， 頂 多 短 炒 跑 數 去 幫 補 。 美 元 的 強 勢 ， 應 是 市 場 在 平 淡 倉 ， 因 此 美 股 的 回 升 ， 同 樣 極 可 能 只 是 平 倉 盤 所 帶 動 ， 並 不 是 升 浪 的 開 始 。 港 股 形 勢 當 然 比 美 股 好 ， 可 是 本 地 地 產 股 及 銀 行 股 三 扒 兩 撥 勁 升 甚 多 ， 沒 有 理 由 冒 險 高 追 ， 中 資 股 氣 勢 只 一 般 ， 應 該 有 等 待 的 空 間 。 看 不 透 後 市 之 外 ， 時 近 年 尾 也 是 戰 意 下 降 的 主 因 ， 今 年 幾 上 幾 落 ， 連 場 大 戰 ， 身 心 都 相 當 勞 累 ， 而 且 在 賽 後 悟 出 一 個 道 理 ， 就 是 不 必 過 份 勤 力 ， 掌 握 一 些 大 趨 勢 ， 回 報 反 而 更 好 。 例 如 美 元 及 商 品 在 8 月 尾 後 根 本 是 單 邊 市 ， 只 不 過 順 勢 而 行 是 知 易 行 難 而 已 。 近 來 死 守 黃 金 好 倉 ， 便 是 一 個 策 略 上 的 調 節 。 短 線 投 機 也 不 必 太 多 行 動 ， 過 份 貼 市 只 會 被 市 況 牽 走 。 耐 心 等 待 下 一 次 出 擊 的 機 會 ， 勝 算 和 回 報 都 會 更 高 。 如 果 參 考 印 度 股 市 ， 甚 至 強 勢 藍 籌 如 生 （ 011 ） 、 新 地 （ 016 ） 等 ， 繼 續 上 升 並 非 機 會 太 低 ， 只 是 入 市 講 求 值 博 率 ， 最 大 利 好 因 素 已 反 映 甚 多 ， 客 觀 證 據 又 不 夠 強 。 股 市 日 日 開 ， 耐 心 等 待 總 有 機 會 ， 此 刻 絕 非 理 想 下 注 時 機 。
順 勢 死 守 好 過 炒 出 炒 入
近 期 最 明 顯 的 轉 變 ， 是 美 元 轉 強 ， 這 一 點 令 自 己 相 當 不 舒 服 ， 甚 至 黃 金 長 倉 也 有 點 擔 心 ， 不 過 策 略 一 定 是 死 守 ， 頂 多 短 炒 跑 數 去 幫 補 。 美 元 的 強 勢 ， 應 是 市 場 在 平 淡 倉 ， 因 此 美 股 的 回 升 ， 同 樣 極 可 能 只 是 平 倉 盤 所 帶 動 ， 並 不 是 升 浪 的 開 始 。 港 股 形 勢 當 然 比 美 股 好 ， 可 是 本 地 地 產 股 及 銀 行 股 三 扒 兩 撥 勁 升 甚 多 ， 沒 有 理 由 冒 險 高 追 ， 中 資 股 氣 勢 只 一 般 ， 應 該 有 等 待 的 空 間 。 看 不 透 後 市 之 外 ， 時 近 年 尾 也 是 戰 意 下 降 的 主 因 ， 今 年 幾 上 幾 落 ， 連 場 大 戰 ， 身 心 都 相 當 勞 累 ， 而 且 在 賽 後 悟 出 一 個 道 理 ， 就 是 不 必 過 份 勤 力 ， 掌 握 一 些 大 趨 勢 ， 回 報 反 而 更 好 。 例 如 美 元 及 商 品 在 8 月 尾 後 根 本 是 單 邊 市 ， 只 不 過 順 勢 而 行 是 知 易 行 難 而 已 。 近 來 死 守 黃 金 好 倉 ， 便 是 一 個 策 略 上 的 調 節 。 短 線 投 機 也 不 必 太 多 行 動 ， 過 份 貼 市 只 會 被 市 況 牽 走 。 耐 心 等 待 下 一 次 出 擊 的 機 會 ， 勝 算 和 回 報 都 會 更 高 。 如 果 參 考 印 度 股 市 ， 甚 至 強 勢 藍 籌 如 生 （ 011 ） 、 新 地 （ 016 ） 等 ， 繼 續 上 升 並 非 機 會 太 低 ， 只 是 入 市 講 求 值 博 率 ， 最 大 利 好 因 素 已 反 映 甚 多 ， 客 觀 證 據 又 不 夠 強 。 股 市 日 日 開 ， 耐 心 等 待 總 有 機 會 ， 此 刻 絕 非 理 想 下 注 時 機 。
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