Archive for the ‘Lifestyle’ Category

Stigma on Hepatitis B Carriers

How it feels like to be stigmatized on the society wherein people in the society look down on you as if you are a “yuck!” living being that needs not to be respected and treated rightly and equally? Yes, if you are weakling, a different race, have exotic and peculiar physical feature, a criminal, a drug addict, an ex-convict, have leprosy, an animal, a homosexual, and HIV positive individual; you will felt the stigma casted by people in the society against your existence. But in the Philippines, there is one more to add on the list that is if you have Hepatitis B

Hepatitis B is a virus that can be caught similar to the modes of transfer in HIV virus that attacks the liver and even the pancreas of the inflicted person that causes liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. The distinct symptom that one has caught this virus is the yellowing of the white spot of the eyes or having jaundice.

Hepatitis B is one of the major diseases that inflicts many Filipinos in the Philippines today and have social stigma similar to HIV virus or AIDS. Thus, anyone who is diagnosed to be a Hepatitis B positive is already cast as someone that is dirty, denied of medical attention from a medical practitioner, and rejected for employment. Thus, adding more burden to the disease carried by the Hepatitis B carriers; not only to them but also to their respective families or beloved ones as well.

However, the Department of Health (DOH) and Hepatology Society of the Philippines (HSP), as well as the Yellow Warriors Society of the Philippines are doing their best to scrap away the social stigma marked on the disease so that Hepatitis B carriers could fully enjoy a normal life and not be considered outcast only because they have Hepatitis B virus. For Hepatitis B like HIV virus is not contagious through normal interaction or using some utensils used by the inflicted person, rather it can be transfer through sex, transfer of blood, or similar modes of transfer similar to AIDS.

The Department of Health (DOH) is doing awareness campaign regarding the disease and condemnation to those who discriminate their fellow Filipinos who have a Hepatitis B virus especially on workplace or on regards to employment capability.

The Hepatitis B virus can be caught anywhere since it is a virus if someone is not making sexual contacts or close contacts with someone who has the virus already. Its whereabouts where it originates is still unknown and was just discovered because of the attack of this virus on human liver and even on human pancreas that feeds on the toxins clinging on the liver and pancreas.

Yes, the toxins could brought by an individual’s eating lifestyle; that is if an individual or person eats daily toxic-infested food like processed foods, one could accumulate toxins on one’s liver that could feed viruses that enters the human body from the air we breathe around us sometimes.

Thus, it is advisable and recommended to eat healthy and non-toxic foods and drinks to avoid being caught by a Hepatitis B virus lurking around our air surroundings. However, in our modern fast lifestyle nowadays, fast foods and processed foods are everywhere replacing a healthy natural organic lifestyle.

Thus, it is not surprising that it is already more than one million Filipinos were infected with Hepatitis B virus and it is still counting. I think, actually, it is already Sixteen (16) million Filipinos are already suffering from this Hepatitis B virus and the number is still counting though the Department of Health and Hepatology Society of the Philippines (HSP) are doing their best to provide proper medication through pharmaceutical drugging to these million Filipino Hepatitis B sufferers.

Actually, a pharmaceutical drug is not really helpful for the numbers are growing and not decreasing but rather a herbal remedy in recent study shows to be the best cure for Hepatitis B. That is, an extract of the milk thistle (or silymarin) could flush out toxins and viruses from the human liver. Thus, healing and curing the disease, for it brings back and enhances the normal functioning of the liver, according to test conducted on this herbal plant.

Fortunately, there is already an instant silymarin capsules available on the leading drugstores in the Philippines wherein every Filipinos could avail of. But, perhaps the natural extract of natural organic milk thistle or silymarin is more effective on eliminating toxins and viruses that squatters on the liver an even on pancreas.

Therefore, since everyone do not know where the Hepatitis B virus is lurking in our surroundings, the best line of defense is eat and drink the right healthy natural organic foods and drinks, respectively daily and avoid too much consumption of toxic infested foods like dirty street foods and processed manufactured foods we bought in supermarkets.

On Gays and Non-Gays

Hate Crimes? They are crimes motivated by a just mere bias motivated hatred and disgust toward either single person or a group of people. Hate crimes in the Philippines sometimes hide in the guise of crimes so-called “Summary execution” just only to show to the public that the helpless dead victim[s] was or were bad people deserving to die in the hands of an indignant vigilantes, which is indeed unfair to the dead victim[s].Moreover, these killings were not investigated by the Philippine government itself, as if the government have connivance to these “hate crimes” and have unjust and unfair conclusive judgment that the dead victim[s] might just be “bad person”;thus, dismissing lightly to probe it and do a detailed investigation regarding the crimes.

These hate crimes is most prevalent among the lesbian and gay community in the Philippines where gays are the main victims of such unjust criminal act and the government do nothing about it, for the hypocrite religious sector of the society (largely, Christianity and Islam) have preconditioned the mindset of the people that gays and lesbians are evil and sinful people that needs not to be respected and treated fairly as human because “God says so” which consequently the foolish government do nothing about it for the government subscribe too to this evil religious propaganda against the third sex.
According to a report, only this year, there are already 28 cases of hate crimes against LGBT Filipinos but the government is not doing anything about it because of the religious stigma cast against LGBT community by the hypocrite religious sector of the society. Since 1996, according to LGBT Hate Crime Watch there are already 103 cases of hate crimes that resulted to gruesome deaths and the number still continue growing.

“The brutalities done to the murdered LGBT Filipinos are also suggestive that they were victims of hate crime. Thirty-six of the victims were stabbed multiple times. Twenty of them died of gunshots. Six were tortured before they were killed. Others were raped, or killed with a blunt object, or suffocated, or dismembered, or burned alive,”

Such example of these heinous hate crimes against LGBT Filipinos is the case of the trial judge of Laog City Philippines who was found lying in a pool of his own blood with his head almost decapitated with semen found on his anus. Another example is the University of the East gay professor Winton Lou Ynion was stabbed 40 times by an unknown homophobic assailant.

Admit or not, it is the religious sectors in the Philippines (not only in the Philippines) that shapes the mindset of the society and that influence the government’s own constitution though there is a concept that church and state should be separated. For government officials make an oath on a religious book or scripture like the Bible and Koran during their oath-taking ceremony before they seat on a government office they are voted for by the people to seat. Moreover, what about the prayers to God before starting an event, a ceremony, a session, a class, breakfast or any meal; the state and the church beliefs are united here. The concept that Church and State should be separated is not actually in effect; it is just a mere deceitful cover-up to hide the reality on the society and to brainwash unsuspecting mass.

Hate crimes were really indeed brought by a respective religious orientation on how one will perceive and treat other people in the society. Actually, the Bible of Christianity is filled with racism that teaches to hate non-Jewish nation as well a great Hatred and fury against one single being the Christians and Muslims alike called “Satan”. That is just a tip of the iceberg of the hate crimes promotes and advocates by the respective “gods” of these two major world religions.

If organized religions in the world like Christianity and Islam are really religion that promotes peace and love for humanity, why history is filled with religious wars headed by Christianity and Islam? Sadly, up to this time, these two major religions continue to infest the mindsets of the people to act this and that because as their favorite excuse, ”God says so..” and “..It is written…”
Thus, gays and lesbians are continually zapped of their rights and even treated inhumanly primarily on countries predominantly dominated by the two major world religions I mentioned, like in the Philippines.
Furthermore, even on non-gays and lesbians, hate crimes is also perpetrated by one’s own subscribe religion. The Killings of the members of opposing religious cults in the Philippines is one example of it wherein they accused one another as “satanic cults” that needs to be eliminated.

Actually, even personal religious beliefs causes hate crimes, such an example of a simple braggart man was killed brutally by vigilantes only because the man is just loudly boastful and the man’s braggart attitude was perceived to be evil that needs to be silence without being fair and just consideration why the man is acting that way.
It seems killing brutally a person or a group of person without fair and just consideration is considered “good” than a mere loud boasting in the society, for the government in the Philippines as if it nodded an approval to this hate crimes by not acting immediately to it and dismiss the dead victims to be a victims of “summary execution” with a public connotation that the dead victim might be a bad/evil person why the dead victim is killed through that kind of execution.

The Bigger Big Dome Is Coming

It seems there are three ways to watch a performer, that is (1) watch the performer[s] or an artist on an elevated platform or stage while the audience were on the ground level watching upward toward the stage, (2) vice-versa or watch the performer[s] or an artist on the ground level while the audience were on the elevated seats or elevated platform watching downward toward the ground level where the performer[s] performs, and (3) watch the performer[s] or an artist on the same ground level just like the audience watching the performer[s] also on the same ground level together with the performer. But this third type of how to watch a performer is not quite recommended if there are many audience watching the performer[s],for only those who are on the front could watch the performer[s] on the same level and those audience behind could not behold the performance of the performer[s] because those audience watching behind are covered by the backs of those audience watching in front of them.

Thus, amphitheaters, coliseums and stadiums business infrastructure are hit and successful business ventures like the Araneta Coliseum in the Philippines wherein the Araneta Group who owns it gains large revenues from the various organizations who wanted to rent their coliseum for their respective upcoming events or activities or shows that requires a lot of audience or that requires large audience to see their events they would like to show off to the people and gain profit from the people watching their shows.

It is a hit business to own a modern day stadium, coliseum and theaters, nowadays: but you must have a large sum of money to invest to erect your own. Moreover, upgrading and updating and maintenance of your own coliseum also requires a lot of money and it is a must if you want to establish a sustain revenues from various organizations that would like to use your coliseum every so often.

This is what the Araneta Group plans to do with their famous Araneta Coliseum in the Philippines; in the coming years, a new modernized and well upgraded and updated coliseum will be unveiled to the Filipino public; new name, new facade, new buildings and new and upgraded seats and facilities.

According to Araneta Group CEO Jorge L. Araneta, the Araneta Coliseum or widely known in the Philippines as “The Big Dome” will be rename into now “Smart Araneta Coliseum” in partnership of Smart Communications.

A brand new upgraded seats now with cup holders will replace all the old 20,000 seats of the coliseum; escalators will also be installed and modernized new toilet facilities will also amazed and comfort the audience when they need to go to the restrooms.

There will be also new parking facility that will be built beside the coliseum and it will be a “green parking facility’ where plants are around the parking building. This parking facility will have a direct access to the Upper Box areas of the coliseum and indirect access to the Patron and Lower Box areas and will have escalators to the General Admission section.

A new private VIP boxes will be open and will be called “virtual boxes” that will provide VIP seatings for celebrities and that will offer top class food and beverages. Moreover, there will be a lounge bar where special guests or VIP persons could relax before and after the show. There would be also hotels that will be erected near the coliseum that will house international performer, businessmen, and local tourists.

Furthermore, there would be also a free Wi-fi access for those who would like to blog, tweet, share on facebook or whatever they wanted to share on the internet while they are on the show on the coliseum.
A giant LED walls will also be erected that will display schedules of shows and some video clips.

Most of all, the safety features of the coliseum will be improved to ensure more the safety of the people inside the coliseum.

Filipinos as Market Consumers

How does a Filipino shop? Extravagant? Mindless Buyer? Panic buyer? Loyal Consumer? or picky, savvy and wise shopper or buyer?

Latest world consumer survey company Kantar Worldpanel, reveals how does a Filipino shop from past to present year, that is, Filipino consumers remain loyal and faithful buyer to their brand they used to buy and trusted. Moreover, Filipino consumers become even wiser in buying items and products and love to avail on promotional items and products, most especially on their trusted brands.

Most products and items on the top list of Filipino consumers according to Kantar Worldpanel, are products and items related to health and beauty packed on convenient manner like ready to drink teas or health and beauty products that are convenient to eat, cook and prepare and apply, respectively and love to buy these items on Sari-sari stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets.

The statistics last year 2010 according to Kantar Worldpanel :

1. Sixty eight percent (68 %) of Filipino household consumers bought products on promotion.

2. Seventy two percent (72 %) of Filipino consumers canvassed first for the best promotion before buying or purchasing a product or item in the market.

3. Seventy Nine percent (79 %) of Filipino consumers compare prices first before buying or purchasing a product or item.

4. Seventy Nine percent (79%) of Filipino consumers remained loyal to their favorite trusted brands.

5. Sixty two percent (62 %) of Filipino consumers loves to stock up their favorite trusted brand when on sale.

6. Nineteen to Twenty One percent (19-21 %) of Filipino consumers prioritized buying beauty products that improve the complexion of the skin.

7. Ninety Three percent (93%) of Filipino consumers buy or purchase healthy foods and beverages.

8. Ninety percent (90 %) of Filipino consumers read first the label to ensure they are really buying a true healthy food.

9. Thirteen to Seventeen percent (13- 17 %) of Filipino consumers prioritized purchasing items related to physical fitness.

10. Seventy eight to eighty percent (78-80 %) of Filipino consumers loves to buy healthy foods that give them convenience on eating, cooking and preparing it.

Furthermore, the top retail stores in the Philippines which most Filipino consumers loves to buy and shop, aside from nearby sari-sari stores in their respective areas, are:

1. SM (Shoemart) Malls

2. Mercury Drug stores

3. Gaisano Malls

4. Puregold

5. Robinson Malls

Therefore, according to the results obtain by Kantar Worldpanel, Filipino consumers nowadays are indeed wise shopper and a loyal consumer.

Hazardous To Health If Recycled

Who among you loves to buy cheap recycled cooking oil on wet market? And who among you loves to store used cooking oil on cups and small containers or bottles on their kitchen for another future round of usage? Beware!

Recent studies revealed that recycled cooking oil or cooking oil that has been used and reuse for cooking again is known to release harmful toxins that could cause health diseases on the body though it is heated. Yes, it is on heating, the harmful toxins were released. So, therefore forget buying cheap recycled cooking oil on wet market and recycling your used cooking oil for a long time if you want to avoid the harmful effects brought by it.

Actually, buy and sell and usage of recycled cooking oil was already ban at San Juan Philippines only this year by the creation of city ordinance No.15 that prohibits the recycling of used cooking oil and the selling of it in public markets. The city ordinance also prohibits the disposal of used cooking oil on waterways, sewerages, and drainage system within the city but rather advise the homeowners of the city to dispose their used cooking oil on a separate container which the city’s authorized collectors will collect on a regular basis to be processed instead as a bio-diesel that could generate city revenues.

Anyone in the city of San Juan caught in the act of violating this city ordinance will be penalized with Php.5, 000 and revocation of business permits for business establishments within the city that violates the bill.

Recycled cooking oil being sold at every wet market in the Philippines or even by an individual vendor draw their source of cooking oil which they recycled from food establishments that uses cooking oil, like Jollibee, McDonald, KFC, etc. from the used cooking oil which these mentioned food establishments have used in their cooking which is already considered waste product.

So these unscrupulous traders of recycled used cooking oil buy the used cooking oil from these food establishments which these food establishments already throw into their garbage bin as a waste product to solve the problem of these food establishments of how they could dispose their used cooking oil without clogging the sewerage systems near their establishment.

The unscrupulous traders of recycled used cooking oil then allegedly filter and bleach the waste used cooking oil and repack it into smaller plastic bags and sell it on a lower cheaper price on the wet markets which often than not, financially poor people are the prime victims of these cheap recycled cooking oil; as well as those customers who are looking for cheap products or how could they make a thrifty shopping.

This kind of trade is already going on before the city ordinance at San Juan Philippines is imposed in the entire Philippines ever since but none is bold enough to tell that recycled cooking oil though they are cheap in budget but could wreck a major havoc on one’s health and could bring forth hole on one’s pocket.

Plague With Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) Virus?

Blood is very important in maintaining our physical existence in the physical world we live in for it is the life-force of our physical body manufactured by our physical bodies itself through the food and beverages we daily eat and drink, respectively. Thus, on hospitals, blood is needed to sustain the lives of the patients in critical need of blood. Thus also, blood donations and blood banks were created.
But not everybody could donate their blood or are force to donate their blood on blood banks, for not all people are capable of donating their blood. That is because some have health problems like being anemic or have AIDS. Thus, only very healthy people are required or allowable to donate a blood on blood banks.

Therefore, if this is so, why does the blood bank in the Philippines was recently reported to be plague with blood that has Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection? According to the reports, 32 out of the 118 donated blood packs were contaminated with Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) virus as confirmed by Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) who conducted the test. Moreover, the plague started since January as the report said and every month this year, they found a number of blood units that are infected with Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) virus.

The highest number of infected blood units, according to the report, was last month –July 2011, having 102 units of blood packs were contaminated with HIV virus.

Therefore, why does this happening if a blood donor is tested first if one is healthy or not before one could donate one’s blood? How come the Department of Health fails to assess properly the blood donors of their health before getting blood from them? Is not it, only healthy blood donors are allowed to donate blood.

Perhaps, the negligence was brought by the recent high demands of blood transfer to those infected with dengue disease in the Philippines, thus those who attend to get blood from blood donors don’t mind meticulously assessed the health situation of the blood donors? Or the screening for donating blood in the Philippines is less advanced or erroneously low quality handling or poor and less educated administration of screening properly the blood donors?
It is indeed impossible that those who handle the blood donating procedure do not even able to detect that a blood donor’s blood is infected with Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) virus unless the blood screening procedure being taught to them is wrong or erroneous.

Toxic To be Toys

After discovering that improper disposal of used ordinary electric light bulbs and batteries and even played by children could lead to lethal intoxication because it has been found that light bulbs and batteries constitute a toxic chemical called Mercury and have a drive to have a proper handling of their disposal especially in Makati city Philippines, recently, another toxic issue emerged.

That is, a group of pro-environmentalists in the Philippines have discovered through their testing that majority of children’s toys in Metro Manila especially on bargain stores where most Filipinos buy cheap items and products constitutes toxic chemicals that may put at risk children’s health. The toxic chemicals which they have found within the toys they have tested and have bought from the major bargain stores in the Philippines like Divisoria, Baclaran and Ukay-ukay stores or secondhand stores were Mercury, Lead, Chromium, Arsenic, Cadmium and Antimony. These harmful toxic chemicals were present on the toys like dolls, action figures, toy cars, and cosmetic toys like make-up and lipstick; according to the pro-environmentalist group.

The group is urging the government to do an action on the matter as well as to local toy manufacturers to ban these toxic toys and avoid using harmful chemicals on manufacturing their toys, respectively. The group also urged the Filipino public to choose toys for their children that are made from natural materials which can be seen on the labels of the toys. But for me, however, that is difficult to determine now that counterfeit activities are always in the house creeping everyday unnoticed.

To conclude, it is always proven by laboratory testing that any item[s] or products, whether it may be toys, gadgets, appliances or processed food products that are manufactured and made using chemical substances and not with natural substances are indeed harmful to human’s health.

However, still because of greed for money, some manufacturers continue to manufacture items and products that have harmful chemicals in them.

Nestled in the Philippines

After 100 years of successful doing business in the Philippines, Nestle Philippines promise to spend more 100 years in the Philippines or even more than 100 years serving the Filipinos with their delicious and nutritious products; and as proof of their promise Nestle Philippines have invested Php.4.8 billion pesos to erect a coffee creamer manufacturing facility in Tanaun Batangas that will make it as one of the most important manufacturing sites of Nestle in the world.

It is Nestle way of giving back to the Filipinos who all the way supported their products and become their way of life for about 100 years. Nestle have been in the Philippines since 1911 selling not only their products to the Filipinos but also helping the Filipinos in nation-building by providing the Filipinos good health by their products. Their products have become part of every Filipinos’ house for 100 years and still counting and will be for another 100 years or more.

Thus also though Nestle is not an original homegrown business company in the Philippines, Nestle Philippines have become like a true homegrown Filipino business company because of its 100 years closeness to the lives of Filipinos then and now.

Recently, they celebrated their 100 years and by showing how Nestle Philippines have become grafted into Filipino culture, Nestle have created a 100 minute Film anthology entitled “Sine Kasambuhay Film Anthology” as their tribute of gratitude for Filipinos with various film genre and is now currently showing over selected Philippine theatres in the Philippines. The film anthology will only last up this month of July.

Meralco Recognized

If there is indeed an award or recognition for best national governance or award for best governed countries, for sure the Philippines in its current status will not be included even as one of the nominees for there is no need to elaborate why.

However, on business corporate governance, the Philippines have greater chances of winning an international recognition as its homegrown Filipino business companies already making waves and great impressions internationally. The recent one is Meralco which has been recognized internationally as one of the Best in Asia on Corporate Governance for this year 2011.Wow; the most intrigued company in the Philippines by Filipinos themselves was recognized internationally as one of the best company in Asia that practices best and Excellent Corporate Governance.

The recognition was done by the Corporate Governance Asia which awards or recognized companies in Asia that displays excellence in terms of Corporate Governance.

I am wishing if national governance is only similar to Corporate governance perhaps the Philippines is now a progressive country with best and excellent management and man power resources because Filipinos are expert on Corporate Management or Corporate governance evidently certified by international recognition. Is not it?

But is national governance and corporate governance not the same, the only difference is corporate governance just focused on small business realm within a country while national governance concentrate on a larger scale of realm or territory? Moreover, the Business Company is owned by a single owner or even by two or more people while the country is owned by all who resides naturally within its lands and islands.

Realm/Territory = Business realm/Business company
Head of state = Chairman/President/Owner of the Business
Executive Secretary = Secretary of the Chairman/President
Senators/Judge = Board of Directors
Cabinet Staffs = Department Managers (like HR manager,
Marketing Manager, etc.)

Working Class = Working Class and Personnel

By the way, Meralco is the leading Energy company in the Philippines that provides electricity on Metro Manila area of the Philippines.

Go Negosyo Hero

In our current world that is full of egotism and egolamaniac tendencies of world leaders, only few have philanthropic inclinations that desire to help their needy fellow humans without any exchange of payment. However, there are some who pretend to be philanthropist but are just a mere egoistic counterfeit jerks, like the self-righteous and hypocrite ones who always show-off on the public eyes or on others to have a desire to help fellow humans yet they eagerly expect something in return for the good works they have done to their neighbors wherein if the neighbors they have helped unable to reciprocate what they have done to them, they begin to boil in anger and wrath and name call the neighbor they have helped to be “ingrate(unthankful; in tagalong “Walang utang na loob” and “walang hiya”),”evil” and “selfish”.
There are only few who help their fellow humans truly without any complain and expectation of reciprocation from the good works they have done to their needing neighbors. These few are the true workers of good and true philanthropists and hero.

But though the Forbes Magazine list Heroes of Philanthropy on every country just picked successful rich men and women who do charitable and philanthropist endeavors and not others though they were not rich financially, also do a true philanthropist act, I still concur to their list.
Recently, they include Filipinos in their list of “Heroes of Philanthropy” and these include Lucio Tan, Jesus Tambunting, Stephen Zuellig and Joey Concepcion who is the founder of the “Go Negosyo” business community that aims to solve unemployment and poverty in the Philippines through helping fellow Filipinos help themselves through going into own business enterprise (or Go Negosyo)

But according to Joey Concepcion, he is not the real hero but rather the men and women behind the Go Negosyo community who spend their time, talents, money and resources to help their fellow Filipinos help themselves. According to him, they are the true hero of Philanthropist and not him, which is indeed a humble attitude and true that unknown Filipinos who have no name in the world yet do true philanthropist acts should be the one be recognized and awarded for their philanthropist acts.

Go Negosyo have already help many Filipinos gain an income through helping them how to exploit resources in their surroundings which they could transmute into life changing source of income. However, it is still not yet minimized poverty in the Philippines though it is one of its prime objectives, this is because many families in the Philippines especially the poor ones were incline to “go on and multiply” sexual mindset without any awareness and control the consequences of begetting many children without any financial stability.