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Oriental medicine doctor endorses vegetarianism

By Kelly Frances Oriental medicine doctor and nutritionist Sun Hyun-joo says the benefits of vegetarianism are numerous, including positive physical and emotional changes as well as a reduction in the potential for disease. As a vegan herself, who does not consume any animal products, Sun also condemns the unethical and environmentally harmful nature of the meat industry, emphasizing the heavy use of additives. “Most people are unaware of the large amounts of antibiotics, hormones and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in animal products,” she said. She also serves as an executive secretary of Vegedoctor, an organization of vegetarian doctors in Korea. Sun believes the perception of vegetarianism in Korea is changing. “Ten years ago, many of my colleagues were viewed as ‘eccentric,’” she said. “Nowadays, I feel that increased awareness has led to vegetarianism being regarded as ‘smart.’” In the wake of last year’s foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, media in Korea unintentionally created a remarkably effective advertising campaign for vegetarianism, causing a dramati

(149) No problem

By Janet Shin How many of you think that you don’t have any problems? Being awash with news of accidents and events may have driven us to believe that this world is full of problems, but most of you ― including those who read this article ― are just ordinary people. While many try to consult about their destiny to find answers, others just sit in as friends have their saju read, saying that they do not have specific issues to address. During the reading, some specific advice to their friends draws attention. They may want to have their lives read just for fun. This way, lots of ordinary people’s saju are also read. One doesn’t have to be a celebrity, politician or famous athlete to want to know their fate. It doesn’t always have to do with death, bankruptcy or divorce. We all have various curiosities about life. I usually see certain issues of one’s life while reading the saju but there are also many cases without specific agonies to advise on. But even for those who see themselves as ordinary, when one reads their saju closely, everybody has troubles. Some of my stud

(120) To win game by all means

How can we tell whether someone is trustworthy or not? Can we tell by saju? If one wants to win the game by hook or by crook, there is a high chance of getting off the regular course. We often see many people struggling to achieve what they aim for. This may be recognized by their passion of life, but when it is overly expressed, they may end up in a crisis losing the reputation they accumulated in life. Why and how does it happen? Looking at our lives, one may discover that some try really hard to gain what they want as quickly as possible. It is sometimes so excessive that they are even willing to sell their soul, whereas others do not care about the seemingly palpable quick success and take a detour. What makes this difference? In order to comprehend this, we need to see what the five elements of the generation and restriction cycle imply biologically and socially. This is based on your day master. If you were born with a wood day master, your expression star is fire, money star is earth, career star is metal and knowledge star is water. Biological significati

Tips for healthy skin in summer

By Lim Ju-won Sunburn develops when skin is burned by ultraviolet radiation, most often after being in the sun for too long. Common symptoms of sunburn include reddened skin that is hot to the touch and pain. Redness develops between three and five hours after being out in the sun, and peaks approximately 12 to 24 hours after sun exposure and fades over 72 hours. More severe sunburns cause skin swelling and blistering. Although most sunburn is not severe, long-time exposure to the sun or frequent sunburn is associated with eye problems, wrinkling, moles, skin-aging and skin cancer Sunburn treatment You should stay out of the sun until your skin redness and pain resolve while healing and take precautions to prevent future burns. For mild sunburns, there are some ways to reduce pain, including cold compresses, aloe lotions, and local anesthetic lotions or sprays. You can take pain-killers such as aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen. Mild sunburns heal completely within a few weeks. If you have severe sunburn, ask your healthcare provider to decide whether you can t

Miss Korea winner holds ’hanji’ exhibition

By Kwon Mee-yoo A beauty pageant winner is holding a traditional Korean paper-craft exhibition to celebrate the 55th anniversary of the Miss Korea beauty contest from Sunday. An Da-hye, the second runner-up of the 2010 Miss Korea, will show about 60 pieces made with “hanji,” or traditional Korean mulberry paper, at the lobby of the Life Sports Club, Hannam-dong, Seoul. Park Jin-yeol, president of the Hankook Ilbo, 54 candidates of 2011 Miss Korea pageant and winners of the 2009 and 2010 beauty contests attended the opening of the exhibition Sunday. For the exhibition, An created some 60 works to fete the 55th anniversary of Korea’s largest beauty pageant and to support this year’s candidates. The works on display include a rice container and a photo frame. A pair of shoes made from hanji symbolizes the first step as a beauty pageant participant, while the photo frame portrays memories of the 2010 Miss Korea contest. When she was announced as one of the winners of the 2010 Miss Korea beauty pageant, she said she wants to open an atelier for Korean traditional paper

She was pregnant

She was pregnant She was pregnant when she was a student of my saju class. It was a beginners’ class and we were studying the heavenly stems to compose the intangible energies of one’s saju. I was trying to teach how to comprehend the day master (day stem) in association with a month branch. I proposed they plot a saju of one student as a case study. Then she volunteered and presented her saju. You can see what her saju is like. She was born with a yang fire day master, with yang wood or a knowledge star in her month branch. The sun is often comparable to yang fire, so people with a yang fire day master have a distinct personality. They are chivalrous and cheerful. They also boast about themselves. They can’t hide their emotions. I could see that she took great pride in herself and would be straightforward in expressing her emotions. Owing to the clash between her day and time branches, which are earth elements and her expression stars, I asked my first question about her pregnancy. The pregnancy is usually read by the expression stars of women’s saju. For example,

Beauty queens cheer for PyeongChang

Where is my soulmate?

By Janet Shin We often forget the innocence of our younger days, days when we looked for true love. To my disappointment, I have seen many people become blinded with avarice, power, reputation or wealth, and forsaking their true happiness of love. On the other hand, some very successful people are still looking for their true love, realizing that no amount of success can compensate. It’s not rare to hear such a thing happen nowadays, that a billionaire has relinquished his fortune to elope with a lover. This is just like a recent story of a successful Chinese investor in his late 40s. He was married and had accumulated a huge wealth but eloped with his lover, who was his business partner. He left a message that he had decided to renounce all his right in order to be with his true love. Marriage, one of the most important events in our life, is regarded as a sacred ritual so a marriage agreement is considered binding for life. Needless to say, there is no happiness like a marriage of a truly loving couple. However, we also admit that it is always probable to find another love

Small changes, big gains in health

By Kelly Frances Personal trainers at gyms say small changes in their exercise habits can bring people big gains in health. The following are tips from famous trainer Kim Seong-min at LIG Fitness Company, which has gained fame through televised “Diet Wars,” chic facilities and celebrity clientele. 1. Don’t ‘starve and run’ “Many women literally starve themselves and engage in high volume cardio ― such as running ― in order to lose weight. This is counterproductive,” he said. “In the beginning, it may seem effective, but the loss is muscle mass. Additionally, the body’s basal metabolic rate slows, setting the stage for further weight gain. This begins a vicious circle; the body will adjust to fewer calories even if food intake remains the same.” Kim added that women often avoid weight training, believing they’ll develop a masculine physique. “The fear of manly muscles is unfounded,” he explained. “Unlike men, women lack testosterone, the hormone that stimulates muscle growth. By properly combining weight training with proper nutrition and cardio, anyone is capab

408th Turtle Marathon

408th Turtle Marathon: From left front row, Choi Chang-sik, head of Jung-gu ward office; Rep. Na Kyung-won of the Grand National Party; and Park Jin-yeol, president of The Korea Times’ sister paper the Hankook Ilbo, take part in the monthly Turtle Marathon, Sunday, at Mt. Nam, central Seoul. The 54 contestants of the 2011 Miss Korea beauty pageant as well as some 2,500 citizens joined in the event. /Korea Times photo by Kim Ju-sung