Wednesday July 13, 2011

Centenarian’s secret recipe to longevity

Compiled by SHAUN HO, WINNIE YEOH and A. RAMAN

NO fried food and coffee that is centenarian Saad Jasin's secret to his longevity, reported Kosmo!

“I only eat rice with side dishes and drink plain water or tea every day.

“To avoid my back from hunching over, I stand up slowly.

“This avoids stress on my bones,” he said during his 100th birthday.

He said despite some loss of hearing, his appetite, eyesight and body were still in good condition, adding that he took frequent walks in order to remain healthy.

Saad claimed that although he was born on July 7, 1911, his birth was only registered seven years later.

The man, who married only once, has eight children, 21 grandchildren, 39 great-grandchildren and eight great-great grandchildren.

> Berita Harian reported that the National Fatwa Council has ruled that Muslims were not allowed to eat geckos or use them for medicinal purposes.

After a two-day consultation, the council ruled that geckos fell within the khabis (filthy) category of animals for Muslims and it urged them not to make eating the reptiles a habit.

The reptiles, which had gained popularity among the public, could fetch up to thousands of ringgit each for their purported medicinal value, including supposedly being a remedy for diseases like AIDS.

However, the newspaper said Chinese medical practitioners believed that the lizards' dried organs, such as the heart and skin, could be used to treat skin diseases but not AIDS.

“Medical use of geckos is only allowed if the health benefits are scientifically proven and there is no other alternative,” said the council.

Other News & Views is compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.

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