Dietitian Tang

21/09/2021

https://www.sbs.com.au/chinese/cantonese/zh-hant/healthy-tips-of-eating-mooncake

SBS had published an article on mooncake for Mid-Autumn Festival. It's my pleasure to provide my opinion on this together with two other Dietitians.

Mooncake is a traditional Chinese sweet that people eat during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The main ingredients are lotus paste, egg yolk(s), wheat flour, sugar and oil. The egg yolk represents the moon and the full moon means reunion of families.

A mooncake (185g) has around 3000kJ and 70g of sugar which is equivalent to 17 teaspoons. It would be a good idea to share with family and friends instead of eating a whole cake by yourself.

There are some new styles snowy mooncake which has less KJ than the traditional one. They are more chewy and lighter in taste. Personally I prefer the traditional mooncake.

You can buy them in the Asian groceries in Australia.

下週二（9月21日）就是中秋佳節，當然少不了吃月餅，大家都知道月餅是多糖多油的小食，但到底月餅有多「邪惡」呢?...

24/03/2021

Celebrating Dietitians Week 2021! I am proud to be a Dietitian!

21/02/2021

Vitamin D and Us

I have seen a lot of elderly clients with vitamin D deficiency due to lacking in exposure to sunlight and poor dietary intake, especially during lockdown under COVID 19.

Even myself at one stage have low vitamin D level due to working in the office for a long time. I didn’t realise it until I had a blood test done.

How much do you know about vitamin D?

Vitamin D is an essential nutrient for our bodies. It’s common functions included:
Helps with calcium absorption – only 10-15% dietary calcium are absorbed without vitamin D.
Regular bone growth.
Maintaining immune system – it has some evidences on reducing respiratory infection.

Some evidences have shown benefits on medical conditions such as:
Heart diseases
Hypertension
Cancer
Type 2 diabetes
Obesity
Depression
Cognitive impairment

There are two forms of vitamin D

Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol)– produced by UV irradiation of yeast sterol ergosterol. Plant based.
Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol)– synthesis by human through skin under UV. Animal based.

Vitamins D2 and D3 require activation by the liver and kidneys. Activated form of Vitamin D is 5 times more potent that Vitamin D3.
Studies have shown that Vitamin D3 is more effective than vitamin D2 to raise the active form of Vitamin D.

Vitamin D in foods is fat soluble and is biologically less active. Food sources of vitamin D include:
Foods high in vitamin D2
Sun exposed mushroom
Fortified foods e.g. cereal, milk

Foods high in vitamin D3
Fatty fish – salmon, herring, mackerel, tuna
Cod liver oil
Eggs
Butter
Liver

Your sun is your best source of vitamin D
Vitamin D produced by the skin may last as least twice as long compared to dietary vitamin D.
When UV index is 3 or above (e.g. in summer), few minutes with direct exposure to sunlight is adequate to obtain enough vitamin D.
When UV index is less than 3 (e.g. autumn and winter), longer exposure to sunlight e.g. 10-30 mins is required.

Have you had your vitamin D level checked recently?

05/08/2020

Tang

27/07/2020

16/07/2020

https://www.insider.com/what-kids-eat-around-the-world-daily-bread-2019-8

Interesting read.

Gregg Segal photographed children surrounded by everything they eat in a week for his new book "Daily Bread: What Kids Eat Around the World."

09/07/2020

14/06/2020

Vegetables and fruits are the main sources of dietary fibre and we all know the importance of their roles in preventing constipation.

How are we doing as a nation for vegetables and fruits intake?
Here are some data from the National Health Survey 2017-2018:

In 2017-18, just over half (51.3%) of Australians aged 18 years and over met the guidelines for the recommended daily serves of fruit (2 or more serves), while one in thirteen (7.5%) met the guidelines for serves of vegetables (5-6 or more serves for men depending on age, and 5 or more for women). Only one in twenty (5.4%) adults met both guidelines. These rates have remained fairly consistent over time.

Women were more likely to meet the guidelines than men. In 2017-18, more than half (55.8%) of women met the fruit guidelines, compared with 46.6% of men. For women 10.9% met the vegetable guidelines and 7.7% met both guidelines, compared with 4.1% and 3.0% for men respectively. In general, older people were more likely to meet the guidelines than younger people. Of people aged 65-74 years, 8.3% met both the fruit and vegetable intake guidelines, compared with only 3.6% of 18-24 year olds.

As a Dietitian, I always encourage my clients to increase fruits and vegetables intake. To be honest, it is difficult to maintain the intake from day to day but I always do my best to fit in as much vegetables and fruits in my diet.
Are you meeting the daily recommendations?

10/06/2020

Dietitian Tang's kitchen
Sigaporean Noodles

Ingredients:
Rice noodles, soaked
Prawns, peeled
Ham, sliced into strips
Egg, whisked
Minced pork (to replace BBQ pork)
Carrot, sliced
Celery, sliced
Mushroom, sliced
Onion, sliced
Curry powders
Salt and sugar for seasoning

Simplified method:
1.Heat a teaspoon of oil in a wok and then add prawns, ham and minced pork. Stir fry until cooked. Set aside.
2.In the same wok, heat up a teaspoon of oil and stir fry the onion, carrot, celery and mushroom until tender. Set aside.
3.Heat another teaspoon of oil in the wok and add the egg. Then add the rice noodles to stir fry until slightly frangrance.
4.Add all the ingredients including the curry powders and seasonings to the rice noodles.
5.Stir fry until the all mixed evently.
6. Enjoy!

23/05/2020

Constipation and dietary fibre

From my last post, we talked about the criteria to diagnose constipation. This time I will explore the topic on dietary fibre.

What is dietary fibre?
Dietary fibre is a type of carbohydrates which are the edible portion of the plant that your body cannot be digested or absorbed. Some of these fibre are partially or completely fermented in the bowel. Some examples are cellulose, hemicelluloses, pectin and lignin

Dietary fibre not only can help with constipation but also stabilising the cholesterol and glucose levels.
We all know that Dietary fibre can help with constipation but do you know there are two types of fibre – Soluble and Insoluble which act differently on the bowel?

Soluble fibre soaks up water like a sponge, which helps to bulk out the faeces and allows it to pass through the gut more easily.

Insoluble fibre adds bulk to faeces and speeds up the time it takes food to pass through the gut which helps keep your bowels regular to prevent constipation.

Dietary fibre requirement
We will need to consume 30g of fibre for male and 25g of fibre for female/ 28g for pregnant female per day to meet the daily requirement. So what does this equivalent to?
If you follow the recommendation in The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating – 5 serves of vegetables (1/2 cup cooked = 1 serve) and 2 serves of fruits (1 medium size of fruit = 1 serve) daily, you are most likely meeting the daily requirement.
You can also focus on eating wholemeal and multigrain products such as high fibre cereal, pasta, rice and bread to increase your fibre intake.

02/05/2020

Is your bowel working perfectly or do you suffer from constipation? Chronic Constipation is a common medical symptom that affects many people especially the older adults. Constipation can have severe consequences on the quality of life.

Everybody’s bowel habit is different and there is no rule on how frequent you should open your bowel. If there is a changing habit from your normal bowel habit then you should investigate it further.

According to the ROME IV diagnostic criteria for chronic constipation:

Must include more than 2 out of 6 of the following symptoms:
1) Fewer than 3 bowel movements per week
2) Straining during >25% of the time
3) Lumpy or hard stools >25% of the time
4) Sensation of anorectal obstruction >25% of the time
5) Sensation of incomplete evacuation >25% of the time
6) Manual maneuvers required to aid defecation >25% of the time

The following there criteria should also be met in addition to the above:

(1) Loose stools are not achievable without laxatives.
(2) Symptoms do not fit the criteria for irritable bowel syndrome.
(3) Symptoms must be present for at least 3 months during a period of 6 months.

There several lifestyle factors that affect the bowel movement which include dietary fibre intake, fluid intake and physical activity. Of course there are other medical conditions that can cause constipation.

At my practice, I have seen many older clients who suffer from constipation and some of them are definitely diet related. For instance, they do not consume adequate amount of fluid and dietary fibre.

I will explore the role of dietary fibre and fluid intake in the next few articles. So please watch this space.

18/03/2020

My opinion on the recent article reported by BBC news on vegan diet and intelligence. The radio recording is in Cantonese.

https://www.sbs.com.au/language/cantonese/zh-hant/audio/vegan-diet-could-affect-intelligence

英國廣播公司BBC網站，早前的一篇報導，引起素食主義者甚至微生物學家的廣泛討論。BBC的報導指，素食缺乏大腦需要的英語元素，長期純素食vegan diet...

05/02/2020

For my Cantonese speaking friends. How to be a healthy vegan.

https://www.sbs.com.au/language/cantonese/zh-hant/audio/how-to-be-a-healthy-vegan

今天是農曆大年初二，亦是中國人開年的日子，而根據中國的新年習俗， 傳統上在大年初一是會吃素的。而在每年一月，亦是素食月（Veganuary）舉行的日子。 趁這個新年，亦有不少朋友想在新一年改善一下自己的身體而計劃吃....

20/12/2019

Merry Healthy Christmas

December is the time of the year to enjoy Christmas food but are you worrying about your diet will be out of control and getting unhealthy? Here are some tips for you.

Select your ingredients wisely
Instead of using too much salt to season the food. Try to add herbs and spices to your food.
Chicken matches well with garlic, rosemary, tarragon thyme and pepper
Lamb matches well with Rosemary, curry powder, onion and garlic
Beef matches well with bay leaf, black pepper, curry powder and basil
Pork matches well with sage, ginger, garlic and all spices
Leg ham matches well with cloves and cinnamon
Fish/ seafood match well with dill, basil, lemongrass and mint

Some of my favourite dishes
Roast chicken with garlic, thyme and hit of lemon
Roast lamb with rosemary, stuffed with garlic and onion
Stir fry beef with broccoli in black pepper sauce
Roast pork rubbed with all spices and soy sauce
Roast leg ham with cloves, cinnamon and glazed with honey
Pan seared salmon with creamy dill sauce

Try ‘a bit’ of everything
Too much food and don’t know what to choose? One good way is to try ‘a bit’, only ‘a bit’ of everything when there are many choices available. If you have a standard portion for each dish then you will end up with overflowed tummy. Remember, variety is the key to a healthy balance diet as long as you focus on the five food groups (grains, dairy products, meat products, vegetables and fruits).

Enjoy alcohol ‘responsibly’
Who will go to a party without alcohol?
One to two glasses of wines wouldn’t hurt. Try to have sparkling mineral water in between each drink. Flavoured sparkling mineral water (no added sugar) are available in the supermarket.
Always eat something before drinking alcohol.

Exercise but not ‘excuse’
Christmas is definitely not an excuse to stop exercising. Keep the exercise with your friends or family. I am assuring you that you will enjoy the food more if you go for a walk before lunch or dinner.

I hope you enjoy reading this article. Please feel free to share any Christmas dishes.

I wish you all a Merry Healthy Christmas!

21/09/2019

Beef mince
Potato
Cauliflower
Pumpkin
Mushroom
Zucchini
Curry powder


Prawns
Chicken thigh
Carrot
Mushroom
Zucchini
Lotus root
Fried rice with egg
Soy sauce
Dark soy sauce


Chicken pieces
Potato
Onion
Carrot
Zucchini
Eggplant
Capsicum
Beetroot
Smokey BBQ marinade

14/09/2019

Is the timing of dietary protein intake important in improving muscle strength, muscle protein synthesis and functional outcomes?

The current evidences:

A study in 2017 looked at older adults between 67 and 84yo (827 men and 914 women). They found that people with more evenly distributed daily protein intake across meals is independently associated with greater muscle strength, but not with the mobility score.

A randomised controlled trial in 2014 looked at eight healthy adults (mean age 36.9 years old). They divided these adults into two groups with different protein distribution at breakfast, lunch and dinner (Total protein intake = 1.2g/kg/day).
Group 1 – protein evenly distributed
(Breakfast 31.5 +/- 1.3, lunch 29.9 +/- 1.6, and dinner 32.7 +/- 1.6 g protein, respectively)
Group 2 – protein skewed towards the evening meal
(Breakfast 10.7 +/- 0.8, lunch 16.0 +/- 0.5, and dinner 63.4 +/- 3.7 g protein, respectively)

They found that the muscle protein fractional synthesis rate was 25% higher in group 1 than in group 2.

However, another randomised controlled trial in 2018 looked at fourteen older subjects (51-69 years old) with similar study design (1.1g/kg protein/day 15/20/65% VS 33/33/33%). They found no significant differences in lean body mass, muscle strength, and other functional outcomes between the two groups over 8-week intervention period.

In my opinion, it is easier to distribute the protein evenly into three meals instead of a higher protein meal (e.g. 60g) in one particular meal. An example of 60g protein is equivalent to a 200g of steak. The question remains if our body will utilise all the protein in a meal for muscle protein synthesis or not. Excess protein will be converted for energy use and form alternative body compounds instead of building up muscle. The total protein intake and protein quality are also the important factors in muscle protein synthesis.

21/08/2019

Heart Foundation has new advice for heart health on meat, dairy and eggs.

The summary is as follow:
They have removed the restriction for healthy Australians on eating full-fat milk, cheese and yogurt. Full fat dairy products were found to have no impact on your risks for heart disease or stroke.

For people who suffer from high cholesterol or heart disease, they recommend unflavoured reduced-fat milk, yogurt and cheese and eating less than seven eggs per week.

They have introduced a limit of less than 350 grams a week for unprocessed beef, lamb, pork and veal as it can increase the risks of heart disease and stroke.

The link to the full article is: https://www.heartfoundation.org.au/news/new-advice-from-the-heart-foundation-on-meat-dairy-and-eggs

My advice is stick with the low fat dairy products if you are concern with your weight (overweight/ obese). Increase your intake of plant based food (vegetables and fruits) as well as fish and seafood.

11/08/2019

From my previous article, we know that protein quality is important but how much protein do we actually need in a day?

The current Recommended Daily Intake by Department of Health and Ageing in Australia for protein intake is based on your body weight.

The recommendation for male is 0.84g/kg and for female is 0.75g/kg between 19-70 years old. When we age (>70 years old), our body requires higher protein and for male is 1.07g/kg and for female is 0.94g/kg.

What factors affect protein requirements?

The protein requirement increased when our body is under stress such as infection, inflammation, post-surgery, wounds, injuries, cancer and liver diseases etc.

Protein requirement also increases for professional athletes especially who regularly do resistance training. It can be ranged between 1.7g/kg and 2g/kg.

How much protein can we use in a single meal?

Study had reported that 0.4g/kg/meal would optimally stimulate muscle protein synthesis. For instant, you will need to have 24g of protein in a meal if you are 60kg.

If you are an older adult, approximately up to 40g of protein is required in a meal compared to younger adults which would be sufficient with up to 20g of protein to maximise skeletal muscle protein synthesis.

Excess protein will be converted for energy use and form alternative body compounds instead of building up muscle.