PETALING JAYA: Despite the hype about the goodness of dietary supplements, a dietician says that it is the eating habit that makes or breaks one’s health.

Advocating that there is no good or bad food, Assunta Hospital dietician manager Ho Shiau Fen(pic) said that the key to good health is a balanced lifestyle and to eat a variety of foods in moderate portions.

She added that there were no better substitutes for obtaining optimum nutritional benefits than from natural food sources.

“Good nutrition should be based on taking the right (natural) foods,” Ho said at a public talk on cardiovascular health at the hospital yesterday.

It was held in conjunction with World Health Day, an initiative led by the World Heart Federation, which is tasked to lead the global fight against heart diseases and stroke.

The hospital’s chief dietitian also called on Malaysians to look at using alternative natural ingredients in their food.

“Use garlic and onions to add taste to the food, instead of seasoning products like salt and sugar, which are high in fat content,” she added.

Burning some calories: Participants doing some exercises during the talk on cardiovascular health at Assunta Hospital in Petaling Jaya yesterday.

Cardiologist Dr Lam Kai Huat (pic) said that a World Health Organisation analysis had projected that cardiovascular disease would continue to be the leading cause of deaths worldwide in 2020.

“This is supported by an escalating trend in diabetes, hypertension and obesity cases,” he said. “For as long as our lifestyle and eating habits do not change, heart disease will continue to be the number one killer, even in Malaysia.”

He added that coronary heart diseases were responsible for about 52% of deaths worldwide, while another 24% were caused by cancer.

Dr Lam said about 35,000 Malaysians suffer from heart disease every year.

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