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Smoke-Free & Happy WINNER AWARD OF EXCELLENCE APEX 2013 May/Jun 2014 HONOURABLE Issue 51 MENTION CONTENT MARKETING AWARDS Pioneer Perks What the Pioneer Generation Package means, health-wise smoke-free & happy Kicking the habit means having more cash in hand to do as they please On the Road Travel tips to keeping well when exercise is bad • apps cut waiting times • understanding x-rays 2007-0387-H Lifewise MAY-JUN issue 51 contents features 08 cover story Off THe HOOK Everybody knows smoking is bad, yet smokers find it hard to quit. What are the ways to get help in kicking the habit? 12 GOiNG sMOKe-fRee Through sheer willpower or via medical intervention, these three individuals were able to stub out their cigarette addiction. 14 MODeRN TAlKiNG How Tan Tock Seng Hospital’s Speech Therapy Department helps patients regain the ability to speak and eat properly. 16 GAiN eMPlOYMeNT, GAiN weiGHT 8 A survey by employment portal JobsCentral finds that most workers put on the pounds when starting their careers. 18 sHOUlD sUiCiDe Be illeGAl? Criminalising it may not help at-risk persons in getting the care they need. 16 20 20 UP All NiGHT Tossing and turning past your bedtime? Some tips for getting a good night’s rest. May - Jun 2014 lifewise 1 Lifewise MAY-JUN issue 51 contents iN PeRsON 23 A/Prof Daniel Fung and Dr Karen Ng share how they 28 effectively divide their time between work and play. 26 sUPPORTiNG A GeNeRATiON Lifewise examines how the Pioneer generation Package announced in the 2014 Budget benefits eligible seniors. 28 eN ROUTe TO GOOD HeAlTH going on a driving holiday? Read our tips on staying well on the road. 30 eXeRCisiNG CAUTiON Sometimes, working out can be bad for you. 32 eATiNG fOR A CeNTURY Okinawa has the largest proportion of residents aged 100 or more. What is it they are eating over there? 32 regulars EDITOR’S NOTE 03 NEWSROOM 04 ASK THE EXPERTS 34 SpotlIgHT/NHg news 37 30 SpotlIgHT/NHg directory 48 2 lifewise May - Jun 2014 ON THe coveR: (fROM lefT) oLivia nG, naJadi aBu BaKar and Guo XinHui stub it out for pHotoGrapHer eAlBert HO art direction DON lee styLinG sHeH GrooMinG MANisA TAN cLotHes OliviA: CAMisOle AND KNiTTeD top by UNiqlO. health’s sake PANTs by GAP. Najadi AND XiNHUi: All Clothes BY GAP everyBody Knows tHat sMoKinG is Bad but statistics indicate a recent rise in the number of regular smokers in Singapore. Initiatives like the Health Promotion Board’s I Quit campaign as well as international movements like World No Tobacco Day (which falls on 31 May) are well-publicised, but smokers nationaL HeaLtHcare Group still find it difficult to give up the habit. The first step to quitting — thereby potentially adding EDITORIAL years of healthy life — is to recognise the many downsides of wong fong Tze, lim Phay-ling, eleanor Toh, Jason Chiew, Praveen Nayago, smoking. On the upside, there are many avenues to seek help Ng si Jia, Audrey wong, shirlene wong, evon Teo if a smoker is trying to quit. In fact, within National Healthcare group (NHg) institutions, help is available at Tan Tock LIfEwIsE ADvIsORy PAnEL Seng Hospital (TTSH), the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), A/Prof lim Tock Han, A/Prof Thomas lew, A/Prof Chua Hong Choon, National Skin Centre (NSC) and at National Healthcare group A/Prof Chong Phui-Nah, Prof Roy Chan Polyclinics. Consultations are inexpensive — certainly less wallet-damaging than a lifetime spent buying cigarettes! So if you smoke or know someone who does, read about the Mediacorp pte Ltd quit-smoking options available on page 8. At TTSH too, there is something more specialised — EDITORIAL & DEsIGn treatment for speech and swallowing problems. As you will senior editor agatha Koh Brazil read on page 14, the Speech Therapy department diagnoses supervising editor ronald rajan editor amir ali and treats a range of life-altering conditions. Art Directors don Lee Speaking of life-altering, it seems our bodies undergo samuel ng significant changes once we enter the workforce. The majority Designer carol chan writers Gene Khor of us put on weight, but which professions are most linked to alex ngai weight gain? Find out on page 16 as we present the findings Photographer ealbert Ho of a survey by JobsCentral. Hong chee yan For many of the survey’s respondents, the duties of COnTRIBUTORs work have been detrimental. But for passionate doctors like wanda Tan, Nirmala sivanathan, elisabeth lee Associate Professor Daniel Fung of IMH, the line between BUsInEss DEvELOPmEnT work and play is blurred as he combines his love of video senior Business games with his research (page 23). Meanwhile, Dr Karen Ng Relationship Manager Michele Kho (page 24) successfully divides her time between being a family physician, being there for her own family and setting For advertisement enquiries, please email: [email protected] aside time to exercise. And while most of us work out for health reasons, it For subscription enquiries, please email: seems there are reasons for some people not to exercise. [email protected] For them, exercise can be bad in that their blood pressure and cholesterol levels go up rather than down as a result of working out. Read about this and other ways exercise can be harmful on page 30. every care has been taken in the production of this magazine, but National Healthcare Group (NHG), the But before you use that as an excuse, note that it is only publisher, editor and employees assume no responsibility for any errors, inaccuracies or omission arising thereof. a small minority who experience these effects. For most, Opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers are not necessarily those of NHG, the publisher or the editor. working out is just one of the many things we would be wise to include in our weekly schedules. After all, with the school The information produced is for reference and educational purposes only. As each person’s medical condition is holidays coming up, it might be a good idea to get into shape unique, you should not rely on the information contained in this magazine as a substitute for personal medical to best enjoy that road trip (see page 28 for driving holiday attention, diagnosis or hands-on treatment. if you are concerned about your health or that of your child, please tips) or family vacation! consult your family physician or healthcare professional. Copyright © is held by the publishers. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Printed in singapore by Times Printers, www.timesprinters.com. MCi (P) 056/11/2013. tHe editoriaL teaM May - Jun 2014 lifewise 3 (newsroom) sNippets fRom tHe HealtHCaRe woRld // CaleNdaR of eveNts ONCOLOGY exercise Helps ease swelling women who suffer from lymphoedema — swelling that can cause pain and loss of mobility following breast cancer treatment — should be encouraged to exercise, say experts from Britain’s National institute for Health and Care excellence (NiCe). some women are wary of exercise, believing that it can aggravate the swelling. one in five breast cancer patients develop lymphoedema following surgical or radiotherapy treatment. it occurs when the body’s lymphatic system becomes damaged and is unable to drain fluid normally, often resulting in pain and loss of mobility. the new advice from NiCe says that exercise can actually help to reduce swelling by keeping joints supple and aiding lymph drainage. it adds that healthcare professionals should discuss with patients how regular movement can improve their quality of life as some might still be SOMNOLOGY afraid to exercise. LosE Sleep, LosE BRaIn CELLs leep loss may be more serious than previously thought. It may result in a permanent loss of brain cells, say Sscientists from the University of Pennsylvania in the Sleep-DepriveD United States. The new study, published in The Journal of lab mice loSt Neuroscience, was conducted on lab mice and found that a prolonged lack of sleep led to 25 per cent of certain brain a quarter of cells dying. the brain cellS es The mice were kept awake to replicate the kind of sleep in a part of G loss that is common in modern life, through night shifts or long hours in the office. The mice were put on three days of the brain Stem ‘night shifts’ with only four to five hours sleep in 24 hours. , Getty ima is The researchers said that if the effects are similar in RB o humans, it may be futile to try to catch up on missed sleep. But they added that more work needs to be done to find out otos: C otos: H if sleep-deprived people are at risk of permanent damage. p 4 lifewise May - Jun 2014 BACTERIOLOGY anoThER calendar REason MAY/JUN To EnJoy ChoCoLaTE Bacteria in our stomach ferments Gp’S aSSiStant courSe chocolate into useful anti- inflammatory compounds that are — founDation topics covered include: good for the heart, say researchers An overview of healthcare from Louisiana state university in organisations in singapore the united states. The role of a General practitioner’s assistant The scientists, reporting their Fundamental concepts of findings at a meeting of thea merican patient care Chemical society, explained that Basic communication skills microbes found in the gut such Basic measurement skills (height, weight, tympanic as Bifidobacterium, feast on the and digital axillary temperature chocolate and release beneficial taking, Bmi calculation and polyphenolic compounds in a waist circumference) Fundamentals of infection process akin to fermentation. several control in clinical settings studies have strongly suggested that Basics on how medication works the long-term consumption of a diet and avoiding medication errors rich in plant-based polyphenolic DATE & TIME compounds offers protection against cancer, 22 and 23 May 2014, 1.30pm – 5pm cardiovascular disease, diabetes, osteoporosis lonG-term conSumption VENUE primary Care academy Learning and neurodegenerative diseases.
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