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Blue collar workers more likely to smoke

By Yoon Ja-youngBlue collar workers are more likely to be heavy smokers than white collar ones, according to research published recently. It suggested developing anti-smoking programs tailored to the type of smoker.The report by professors Jang Tae-won and Kim Hyoung-ryoul at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital said the ratio of smokers among blue collar males was 1.8 times higher than that of white collar people. In the case of females, blue collar workers were 3.3 time more likely to be smokers than white collar females.The report showed a general decrease in smokers. In 1998 seven out of ten males were smoking, but the ratio fell to 50.1 percent in 2009. While the ratio of smokers among white collar workers dropped from 63 percent to 42.6 percent, blue collar males saw the ratio fall from 70.8 percent to 55.7 percent.One out of 20 women were smoking in 1998, but the ratio fell to 3.9 percent in 2001. However, it surged to 6.1 percent in 2009. While 3.5 percent of white collar females were smoking in 2009, rising from 1.3 percent in 1998, the ratio was as high as 10.6 percent for blue

Dec 7, 2012By Yoon Ja-young

Recipe for diabetes patients: vegetables rolled with sesame leaf

IngredientsYou will need three sesame leaves, 30 grams of sliced beef, 15 grams of yellow paprika, 15 grams of orange paprika, 15 grams of cucumber, 6 grams of radish sprouts and oil.For seasoning of the beef, you will need soy sauce, crushed garlic and black pepper.For doubanjiang sauce, you will need 5 grams of doubanjiang and 15 grams of chopped onion.Step by step1. Wash sesame leaves2. Season beef and stir-fry in a pan with oil3. Slice paprika and cucumber and prepare radish sprouts4. Roll stir-fried beef, paprika, cucumber and radish sprouts with sesame leaf5. Prepare doubanjiang sauce and serve with the rollThis is an excerpt from “Best Recipes to Fight Diabetes” by professor Cha Bong-soo at the Severance Hospital of Yonsei University Health System, the Nutrition Team at the hospital, and CJ Freshway, published by Vita Books.

Dec 7, 2012
Recipe for diabetes patients: vegetables rolled with sesame leaf

Fighting atopic dermatitis in winter

By Yoon Ja-youngJin-hyuk, a nine year old boy in Seoul, has been suffering from atopic dermatitis for four years now. As it becomes itchier at night, he would toss and turn until dawn, scratching all over. He can’t even play football as the symptoms worsen when he sweats. He turned sensitive and cries at trivial things. He can’t concentrate in classes. His atopic dermatitis has created enormous stress not only for Jin-hyuk but for the whole family.“Atopic dermatitis often worsens when the weather suddenly becomes cold and dry. It is important to control the disease at this time of the year as itchiness and dryness are likely to get extreme in winter,” said professor Choi In-wha of Kyunghee University Hospital at Gangdong in Seoul.The number of atopic dermatitis patients has been growing in the country. According to 2011 statistics, 12.9 percent of children and teenagers were suffering from the disease. Heredity, environment, immunity or irregularities in skin barriers are known to be reasons for atopic dermatitis but not much has been proved as of yet, accordi

Dec 7, 2012By Yoon Ja-young

(215) Can we change our destiny?

By Janet Shin An awkward truth about saju is that it is often mentioned as “human’s lethargy.” It must be a great frustration that humans cannot take the lead in their lives, considering they have been the main driving force in the progress of civilization. We can easily become feckless blaming ascribed destiny for failure under saju’s reasoning.We are all given four pillars or eight letters of destiny from birth, according to Oriental philosophy. And we cannot alter them. The eight letters, or “palja” in Korean, last throughout one’s life from birth to death without transition. This fatalism has caused pusillanimity and passivity for those who experienced continuous failure and found it impossible to elevate their social status.Many scholars have studied saju. By digging into it, they have endeavored to know their lives. Their major concern was to improve their destiny but ended up realizing that they cannot correct their saju palja. After a lengthy period of study, they concluded that humans would rather conform to palja than resist. I

Dec 6, 2012
(215) Can we change our destiny?

Corporate culture crushes joy of life

By Rachel Lee, Jun Ji-hye, Baek Byung-yeulA nine-to-five existence and a two-week annual holiday, regarded as a humdrum life in some countries, remains a pipedream for most Korean workers. Rather than being able to keep regular hours, many office workers here must remain at their desks if their boss stays late, even if they lack anything to do. In Korea, people simply can’t switch off and call it a day. Koreans are among those working the longest hours in industrialized countries.According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the average annual working hours of a Korean worker was 2,090 hours in 2011, the second highest after Mexico's 2,250 hours. This compares with an average of 1,776 hours across OECD countries.South Korea is ranked 32nd among 34 OECD countries in terms of “Work-Life Balance”, which measures “how much work and how much play” people enjoyed in 2012. The result shows the difficulties for Korean workers in terms of finding a balance between their work and free time.‘Too tired‘"I have t

Dec 4, 2012
Corporate culture crushes joy of life

Is 'one meal a day' good for you? Koreans on fad diet after Japanese doctor says hunger brings health

Japanese doctor, in an event organized by the publisher Wisdom House in estern Seoul, Tuesday.Koreans on fad diet after Japanese doctor says hunger brings healthReaders of the book “Being Hungry Makes You Healthy” listen to the presentation by the author Yoshinori Nagumo.By Yoon Ja-youngLee, who heads the marketing team at a local publisher, shed 17 kilograms in 52 days to now weigh 109 kilograms. The only change he made was discarding the long-term belief that one should eat three meals a day to be healthy. “I only have lunch now. I used to have three meals a day but no matter how much exercise I took, I didn’t lose any weight,” Lee recollects.He is one of many Koreans who are trying the one meal a day diet, currently the most popular method in Korea. The craze started with the book “Being Hungry Makes You Healthy” by Yoshinori Nagumo, a Japanese doctor, which was released here in September.It has been receiving wild acclaim since then. It entered the top 10 best-seller list at major bookstores only two weeks after hitting the shelves a

Nov 30, 2012By Yoon Ja-young
Is 'one meal a day' good for you? Koreans on fad diet after Japanese doctor says hunger brings health

Adult survivor of child abuse

Hi, Dr. P,I am single, female and in my 30s. Growing up, my mother displayed all the symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder, and I was subject to physical, psychological, and emotional abuse as well as neglect throughout my childhood and adolescence.As an adult, I have had trouble maintaining healthy relationships at work and in my personal life and have also struggled with low self-esteem. After a succession of career setbacks and failed romantic relationships — most of them having resulted in either self-sabotage or feeling manipulated by a trusted person — I find myself scared of trusting others. I fear at times that even other family members and my trusted friends may be narcissists who use me to their advantage, and I often find myself stressed and drained of emotional energy after having acted as a “listener” or “fixer” to them. I also find that I become particularly stressed, anxious, and controlling in the face of disorder or uncertainty, and that I still engage in many behavioral habits I must have developed as a kid — i.e., d

Nov 30, 2012
Adult survivor of child abuse

Recipe for diabetes patients: Bibimbap with chicken breast and tofu

Courtesy of Vita BooksIngredientsYou will need 210 grams of boiled barley and rice (80 grams of rice and 10 grams of barley), 40 grams of chicken breast, 40 grams of tofu, 10 grams each of shiitake mushroom, zucchini and broccoli, and a little oil. You will also need five grams each of cabbage, red cabbage and cucumber.For seasoning of the chicken breast, you will  need salt, minced garlic and pepper.For Bibimbap sauce, you will need 10 grams of soy sauce, five grams of lemon juice, five grams of cooking wine, three grams of pear juice and a little black sesame.Step by step1. Dice the chicken breast and season it.2. Dice tofu and roast it until it turns yellowish in a pan with oil.3. Slice shiitake mushroom and zucchini, and cut broccoli into small clusters4. Oil the pan and fry 1 and 3, separately.5. Slice cabbage, red cabbage and cucumber. 6. Make Bibimbap sauce by mixing the ingredients.7. Put the ingredients prepared above on the boiled barley and rice and offer with the Bibimbap sauce.TipZucchini falls behind squash innutrition, but it has a lot of water and abundant b

Nov 30, 2012By Yoon Ja-young
Recipe for diabetes patients: Bibimbap with chicken breast and tofu

'Lose killer heels'

By Song Sang-hoWinter is just around the corner and everyone is wearing heavy clothes. However, women who care about fashion will hardly give up on clothes that reveal their “great body shape.” That is why killer-heeled boots sell like hot cakes every winter. With winter almost here, shoe companies are now introducing their new line to attract consumers.These boots, however, are the archenemy of joints. As women are well aware of how dangerous it is to fall down in high-heeled boots, they walk with great effort, making their muscles get stressed and worn out. If you wear high-heeled shoes for too long, you not only strain your joints and spine but also deform your feet.When we walk on high heels, over 90 percent of our weight is put on the top of the foot and the big toes, which can in turn cause “hallux valgus” with the big toe bent inwards. When your big toe is bent at the angle of more than 20 degrees, you are diagnosed with hallux valgus. If you wear shoes with crooked toes, it may cause inflammation to the toes, leading to pain when you wear them.You shou

Nov 30, 2012
'Lose killer heels'

Quit smoking for healthy vessels

By Yoon Ja-youngAs the temperature is falling, the risk of cardio-cerebrovascular disease is increasing.Koreans are not safe from the disease — one out of three people had high blood pressure as of 2009, spending 2.1 trillion won for treatment. The ratio of diabetes patients neared 10 percent, incurring over 1 trillion won in medical costs. According to statistics, cardio-cerebrovascular disease caused one quarter of all deaths in 2009. However, it can be prevented. According to 2005 data from the World Health Organization (WHO), 80 percent of deaths caused by myocardial infarction or strokes were preventable through measures such as quitting smoking or controlling high blood pressure, diabetes or hyperlipidemia.The Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention has announced tips on how to prevent cardio-cerebrovascular disease.— Quit smoking.Smokers face twice the risk of having a myocardial infarction or stroke than non-smokers. Indirect smoking also increases the risk, and diabetes patients who smoke face complications earlier than non-smoking diabetes patients.&mdas

Nov 30, 2012By Yoon Ja-young
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