Health Check

Health Check Ep 8: Can munching on half a plate of mushrooms a week slow mental decline?

9:46 mins

Synopsis: In this fortnightly podcast series on Wednesdays, The Straits Times guides you to healthier living and debunks the myths with expert guests.

ST correspondent Joyce Teo and podcasting head Ernest Luis host two experts from the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore to discuss the results of the six-year study they had conducted on more than 600 Singaporeans aged 60 and above, to see the relation between consuming mushrooms and mental decline.

The study's principal investigator, Assistant Professor Feng Lei, who is from NUS' Department of Psychological Medicine, and Dr Irwin Cheah - a senior research fellow at the NUS Department of Biochemistry - are asked the following questions:

1. Can consuming more than two portions (300g or half a plate) of mushrooms each week, reduce the risk of having mild cognitive impairment?

2. It can help with Alzheimer's, but how about Parkinson's disease? 

3. The study focused on six types of mushrooms commonly eaten in Singapore. How about others like portobello? 

Mushrooms contain high levels of a compound known as ergothioneine. The compound acts as an antioxidant and an anti-inflammatory agent, and can protect brain cells from damage.

Produced by: Joyce Teo and Ernest Luis

Edited by: Adam Azlee

Follow Health Check Podcast here and rate us:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWaN

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWRX

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaQ

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/J6Wv 

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected]

Read Joyce Teo's stories: https://str.sg/JbxN

---

Discover ST's special edition podcasts:

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia: https://str.sg/wuZ2

Stop Scams: https://str.sg/wuZB

Singapore's War On Covid: https://str.sg/wuJa

Invisible Asia: https://str.sg/wuZn

---

Discover more ST podcast series:

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad

ST Sports Talk: https://str.sg/JWRE

Bookmark This!: https://str.sg/JWas

Lunch With Sumiko: https://str.sg/J6hQ

Discover ST Podcasts: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL

Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

#healthcheck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Check Ep 7: Should you limit your child's screen time?

8:04 mins

Synopsis: In this fortnightly podcast series on Wednesdays, The Straits Times guides you to healthier living and debunks the myths with expert guests.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health said in January 2019, that it would not recommend any age-appropriate time limits because there is not enough evidence that screen time harms a child's health at any age. Instead, it recommends that families negotiate screen time limits with their children based on their needs.

However, the college did recommend that children refrain from using digital devices in the hour before bedtime because of evidence that they can harm sleep. (1:20)

Dr Ong Say How, a senior consultant and chief of the department of developmental psychiatry at the Institute of Mental Health, said problems arise when screen time displaces physical activity and face-to-face social interaction as well as affects sleep and school performance.

Should you as a parent, be concerned when excessive screen time for your child displaces face-to-face social engagement and physical activity? (1:37)

Should a child below 18 months of age should not be exposed to any screen time at all, even if they are watching educational videos on mobile phones. (2:45)

Key recommendations on screen time from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health:

Families can ask these four key questions as a guide:

1. Is screen time in your household controlled?

2. Does screen use interfere with what your family wants to do?

3. Does screen use interfere with sleep?

4. Are you able to control snacking during screen time?

Key recommendations on screen time from the American Academy of Pediatrics:

1. For children younger than 18 months, avoid the use of screen media other than video-chatting.

2. Parents of children aged 18 to 24 months who want to introduce digital media should choose high-quality programming and watch it with their children to help them understand what they are seeing.

3. For those aged two to five, limit screen use to one hour a day of high-quality programmes. Parents should watch the programmes with children to help them understand what they are seeing and apply it to the world around them. (3:40)

Video games: Is that considered good or bad screen time? (5:00)

Produced by: Joyce Teo and Ernest Luis

Edited by: Adam Azlee

Follow Health Check Podcast here and rate us:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWaN

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWRX

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaQ

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/J6Wv 

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected]

Read Joyce Teo's stories: https://str.sg/JbxN

---

Discover ST's special edition podcasts:

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia: https://str.sg/wuZ2

Stop Scams: https://str.sg/wuZB

Singapore's War On Covid: https://str.sg/wuJa

Invisible Asia: https://str.sg/wuZn

---

Discover more ST podcast series:

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad

ST Sports Talk: https://str.sg/JWRE

Bookmark This!: https://str.sg/JWas

Lunch With Sumiko: https://str.sg/J6hQ

Discover ST Podcasts: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL

Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

#healthcheck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Check Ep 6: Can soursop or ketogenic diets be used to treat and control cancer?

11:20 mins

Synopsis: In this fortnightly podcast series on Wednesdays, The Straits Times guides you to healthier living and debunks the myths with expert guests.

Dr Wong Seng Weng - medical director and consultant medical oncologist at The Cancer Centre - answers the following questions about alternative therapies to treat cancer.

Can soursop be used to treat cancer? Also, is there potential harm from taking large quantities of soursop or soursop extracts that are made from the fruit, leaves, roots or bark?

Dr Wong explains how some of the substances found in soursop can cross over from the bloodstream into the brain and cause nerve damage.

How about using a ketogenic or keto diet to control cancer?

A keto diet is essentially a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet. This is certainly not the normal diet here, as a typical diet in the Asian community consists of nearly 60 per cent carbohydrates.

Dr Wong advises us if this keto diet is a viable alternative therapy to treat cancer.

Produced by: Joyce Teo and Ernest Luis

Edited by: Adam Azlee

Follow Health Check Podcast here and rate us:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWaN

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWRX

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaQ

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/J6Wv 

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected]

Read Joyce Teo's stories: https://str.sg/JbxN

---

Discover ST's special edition podcasts:

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia: https://str.sg/wuZ2

Stop Scams: https://str.sg/wuZB

Singapore's War On Covid: https://str.sg/wuJa

Invisible Asia: https://str.sg/wuZn

---

Discover more ST podcast series:

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad

ST Sports Talk: https://str.sg/JWRE

Bookmark This!: https://str.sg/JWas

Lunch With Sumiko: https://str.sg/J6hQ

Discover ST Podcasts: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL

Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

#healthcheck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Check Season 1: Can coffee or a piping hot cup of tea increase your risk of cancer?

10:01 mins

Synopsis: In this fortnightly podcast series on Wednesdays, The Straits Times guides you to healthier living and debunks the myths with expert guests.

Dr Wong Seng Weng - medical director and consultant medical oncologist at The Cancer Centre - answers the following questions.

Can drinking coffee increase the risk of getting cancer? What's a safe amount of coffee to drink daily? Four cups? Or is that considered too many?

To help prevent an increased risk of oesophageal cancer, how long should you let that piping hot beverage cool before you drink it?

Produced by: Joyce Teo and Ernest Luis

Edited by: Adam Azlee

Follow Health Check Podcast here and rate us:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWaN

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWRX

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaQ

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/J6Wv 

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected]

Read Joyce Teo's stories: https://str.sg/JbxN

---

Discover ST's special edition podcasts:

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia: https://str.sg/wuZ2

Stop Scams: https://str.sg/wuZB

Singapore's War On Covid: https://str.sg/wuJa

Invisible Asia: https://str.sg/wuZn

---

Discover more ST podcast series:

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad

ST Sports Talk: https://str.sg/JWRE

Bookmark This!: https://str.sg/JWas

Lunch With Sumiko: https://str.sg/J6hQ

Discover ST Podcasts: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL

Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

#healthcheck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Check Ep 4

8:40 mins

Synopsis: In this fortnightly podcast series on Tuesdays, The Straits Times guides you to healthier living and debunks the myths with expert guests.

This episode debunks three myths on gestational diabetes, and looks at how expectant mothers here and their spouses should take this topic more seriously, including those planning a family.  

Co-hosts Joyce Teo, a correspondent with The Straits Times, and head of podcasting Ernest Luis, tackle the myths with Dr Ben Ng, an endocrinologist at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital.

He explains that gestational diabetes is a condition where your blood sugars are abnormal during the course of pregnancy, which is caused by physiological changes and stress during the term.

What is the risk factor of someone developing diabetes after gestational diabetes?  

Follow Health Check Podcast here and rate us:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWaN

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWRX

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaQ

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/J6Wv 

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected]

Read Joyce Teo's stories: https://str.sg/JbxN

---

Discover ST's special edition podcasts:

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia: https://str.sg/wuZ2

Stop Scams: https://str.sg/wuZB

Singapore's War On Covid: https://str.sg/wuJa

Invisible Asia: https://str.sg/wuZn

---

Discover more ST podcast series:

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad

ST Sports Talk: https://str.sg/JWRE

Bookmark This!: https://str.sg/JWas

Lunch With Sumiko: https://str.sg/J6hQ

Discover ST Podcasts: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL

Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

#healthcheck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Check

Episode 3

Duration: 10 mins

Synopsis: In this fortnightly podcast series on Tuesdays, The Straits Times guides you to healthier living and debunks the myths with expert guests.

This episode targets newly-diagnosed diabetics. How they can work in an exercise routine and balance it with their new condition, or even if they had been very active marathoners previously for example.

Host Ernest Luis, together with The Straits Times' correspondent Joyce Teo and assistant news editor Poon Chian Hui, discuss various tips with Dr Fadzil Hamzah, a Senior Staff Registrar with the Changi Sports Medicine Centre at Changi General Hospital, and a visiting clinician at the Singapore Sports Institute. 

He is also the Director of Community Programmes for Exercise Is Medicine Singapore (EIMS).

Produced by: Ernest Luis, Joyce Teo and Poon Chian Hui

Follow Health Check Podcast here and rate us:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWaN

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWRX

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaQ

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/J6Wv 

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected]

Read Joyce Teo's stories: https://str.sg/JbxN

---

Discover ST's special edition podcasts:

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia: https://str.sg/wuZ2

Stop Scams: https://str.sg/wuZB

Singapore's War On Covid: https://str.sg/wuJa

Invisible Asia: https://str.sg/wuZn

---

Discover more ST podcast series:

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad

ST Sports Talk: https://str.sg/JWRE

Bookmark This!: https://str.sg/JWas

Lunch With Sumiko: https://str.sg/J6hQ

Discover ST Podcasts: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL

Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

#healthcheck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Check

Episode 2

Duration: 11 mins

Synopsis: In this fortnightly podcast series on Tuesdays, The Straits Times guides you to healthier living and debunks the myths with expert guests.

This episode targets diabetics and the general public as well, if they want to avoid diabetes. Get practical dieting tips especially if you have been recently diagnosed with diabetes.

How do you navigate when eating out or at hawker centres? How do you keep your portions controlled, to avoid blood glucose levels shooting up? What vegetables should you go for?

When it comes to one of Singapore's favourite breakfast sets - the kaya toast meal and its accompanying drink - what can you tweak, to make it a healthier set?

Join Ernest Luis, head of podcasting, and Linette Lai, a health correspondent with The Straits Times, as they host Dr Kalpana Bhaskaran, head of the Glycaemic Index Research Unit at Temasek Polytechnic, and vice-president of Diabetes Singapore.

Produced by: Ernest Luis and Linette Lai

Follow Health Check Podcast here and rate us:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWaN

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWRX

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaQ

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/J6Wv 

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected]

Read Joyce Teo's stories: https://str.sg/JbxN

---

Discover ST's special edition podcasts:

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia: https://str.sg/wuZ2

Stop Scams: https://str.sg/wuZB

Singapore's War On Covid: https://str.sg/wuJa

Invisible Asia: https://str.sg/wuZn

---

Discover more ST podcast series:

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad

ST Sports Talk: https://str.sg/JWRE

Bookmark This!: https://str.sg/JWas

Lunch With Sumiko: https://str.sg/J6hQ

Discover ST Podcasts: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL

Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

#healthcheck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Check

Episode 1

Duration: 12 mins

Synopsis: In this fortnightly podcast series on Tuesdays, The Straits Times guides you to healthier living and debunks the myths with expert guests.

How has Singapore's war against diabetes panned out so far? Has public awareness increased? Have commercial outlets responded favourably? What more can be done to better engage Singaporeans and help them make more informed decisions on the ground?

Join ST's senior health correspondent Salma Khalik as she hosts Singapore's Health Minister Gan Kim Yong. They dissect national numbers and the various key aspects of this war against diabetes. They also discuss the kinds of sugar tax measures that might be considered.

Mr Gan also reveals his own love for chicken rice and his own personal "3Rs" strategy on how to adapt and choose healthier options when eating out. He also reveals a favourite new sporting pastime, to keep fit.

Produced by: Salma Khalik and Ernest Luis

Follow Health Check Podcast here and rate us:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWaN

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWRX

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaQ

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/J6Wv 

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected]

Read Joyce Teo's stories: https://str.sg/JbxN

---

Discover ST's special edition podcasts:

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia: https://str.sg/wuZ2

Stop Scams: https://str.sg/wuZB

Singapore's War On Covid: https://str.sg/wuJa

Invisible Asia: https://str.sg/wuZn

---

Discover more ST podcast series:

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad

ST Sports Talk: https://str.sg/JWRE

Bookmark This!: https://str.sg/JWas

Lunch With Sumiko: https://str.sg/J6hQ

Discover ST Podcasts: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL

Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

#healthcheck

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.