An egg a day to keep the doctor away? 

Eggs may not be as bad for us as we used to think. 

An article in the web site BabaMail reports on new research by scientists in the United Kingdom and China that suggests an egg a day may help keep the doctor away and may ward off a heart attack. 

The story, edited by Sheldon O., said the researchers used data from an ongoing study, which included more than half a million adults (aged 30-79) from 10 different locations in China. Around 416,000 participants who were free of prior health issues such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes were chosen.  

Participants were asked how often they ate eggs. Around 13 percent of the participants said they had eggs every day, while 9 percent said they never or rarely consumed eggs.  

The researchers caught up with the participants 8.9 years later. It was found that 83,977 had cardiovascular disease, 9,985 of whom had died, and there were 5,103 major coronary events such as stroke or heart attacks.  

The results showed that those who ate eggs daily had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease. Just one egg per day was linked to a 26 percent lower risk of hemorrhagic stroke, 28 percent lower risk of dying from hemorrhagic stroke, and 18 percent lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. There was also a 12 percent reduced risk of ischemic heart disease for those who ate five eggs a week.  

The team of researchers, which was led by Professor Liming Li and Dr. Canqing Yu from the School of Public Health, Peking University Health Science Center, wanted to observe whether there was a link between eating eggs and developing cardiovascular disease. 

Eggs have had a complicated history. As a major source of dietary cholesterol, they are often assumed to be bad for people. But more recent research found that they actually helped raise good cholesterol, an important component of the cells. It was also found that they helped eliminate other harmful types of cholesterol from the bloodstream. Eggs are full of proteins, vitamins and bioactive components, such as phospholipids, which are found in all cell membranes. One egg contains 35 percent of the  daily choline requirement, a very important nutrient for cognitive function and might even protect against Alzheimer’s disease.   (Source: sciencealert) (https://www.ba-bamail.com/content.aspx?emailid=29752) 

Rice at P20 per kilo 

Only with government subsidy, said Joji Co, chair of the Philippine Confederation of Grains Associations. And only if the low-cost rice is made available only to those most in need. 

Co was reacting to presumptive president Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.’s declaration during the campaign that he would bring the price of rice down to P20 or P30 a kilo. 

Co, in an interview with ABS-CBN News, said the low-cost rice should be intended for the poorest of the poor. Right now, he said, cheap, subsidized rice from the National Food Administration (NFA) was being bought by the rich to feed their pets. 

He added that, without government subsidy, farmers would suffer because to sell rice at P20, the grain had to be acquired at P10-11, which would not cover the cost of production. 

Agriculture Secretary William Dar said P20 per kilo rice was possible if the cost of production was lowered and the NFA’s rice buffer stock was increased. 

Dar told ABS-CBN News the NFA’s budget should be increased from the current P7 billion to P30 billion to raise the country’s rice buffer stock from seven days to a month. 

The farm gate and procurement prices should be maintained at P20 per kilo. Dar also suggested concessional loans to the top 20 rice-producing  provinces to help increase rice production. 

Like Co, Dar said the P20 rice should only be sold by NFA retailers to beneficiaries of the 4Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program).