Alert Level 1 maintained in most parts of PH

MANILA. A man, wearing a mask to protect against the coronavirus, carries rugs in Quezon City, Philippines as restrictions continue to ease due to a decline in Covid-19 cases in the country on December 3, 2021. (AP)

By THIRD ANNE PERALTA-MALONZO, SunStar

April 29, 2022

AMID discussions on the possible resurgence of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) after the May 9, 2022 elections, the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) has maintained the Alert Level 1, the lowest quarantine classification so far in the country, in most of the regions, including Metro Manila.

From May 1 to 15, 2022, the following areas will be under Alert Level 1:

Luzon

* Cordillera Administrative Region: Abra, Apayao, Kalinga, Mountain Province, and Baguio City

* Region 1 (Ilocos): Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, and Dagupan City

* Region 2 (Cagayan Valley): Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Quirino, and City of Santiago

* Region 3 (Central Luzon): Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac, Zambales, Angeles City, and Olongapo City

* Region 4-A (Calabarzon): Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, and Lucena City

* Region 4-B (Mimaropa): Marinduque, Oriental Mindoro, Romblon, and Puerto Princesa City

* Region 5 (Bicol): Albay, Catanduanes, and Naga City

Visayas

* Region 6 (Western Visayas): Aklan, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo Province, Bacolod City, and Iloilo City

* Region 7 (Central Visayas): Siquijor, Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu City, and Mandaue City

* Region 8 (Eastern Visayas): Biliran, Eastern Samar, Southern Leyte, Ormoc City, and Tacloban City

Mindanao

* Region 9 (Zamboanga Peninsula): Zamboanga City

Can I eat rice if I have high cholesterol?

 

Lucia Garcia

My name is Lucia Garcia, 36 years old. I was graduated from the Pritzker School of Medicine at University of Chicago, my major is clinical medicine. I have been working at Hospitals. I am fully committed to helping people take control of their health and realize their potential as human beings. As a doctor, my motto is “Knowledge not shared is wasted”.

Eating rice is not a healthy choice if you have high cholesterol.

Although rice is cholesterol-free, but rice is a whopping 70% carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates are one of the three major nutrients, which can provide heat for the body. 1 gram of carbohydrates provides 4 calories.

For decades, many health experts have recommended that people with high cholesterol should reduce their intake of saturated fat.

However, many new studies prove that people with high cholesterol need to reduce their carbohydrate intake, not saturated fat.

Excess carbohydrates are converted into glucose in the body and absorbed into the bloodstream, resulting in high blood sugar, high blood lipids and high cholesterol.

Clinical studies have proven that a more healthy diet is a low-carb diet rather than a low-saturated fat diet.

Therefore, people with high cholesterol need to limit the intake of high carbohydrate foods, such as: rice, wheat, steamed bread, noodles, bread, biscuits, corn, oats, sweet potatoes, potatoes, bananas, etc.

Never doubt God’s love for us

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

“JESUS said to Philip, ‘Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?’ He said this to test Philip, because he himself knew what he was going to do.” (Jn 6,5-6)

With these words, we should realize that we should never doubt God’s constant love for us, especially when we encounter difficulties and severe trials in our life. God allows these things to happen if only to test us, that is, to see if we also truly love him in return, a love that is expressed in complete trust in God’s will and ways.

Yes, we have to be clear that there is nothing in our life, no moment or situation where God does not test us. We have to explode the myth that consists in the thinking that there are times when we are freed from this test. Even in our moments of rest and recreation, we are being tested.

And that’s simply because the only purpose of these tests is to see if we keep ourselves always with God as we should. In this regard, let’s remember these relevant words of Christ. “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.” (Mt 12,30) There is no neutral ground in our relationship with God. We are either for him or against him.

And being created in the image and likeness of God, we are meant to be always with God, much like what Christ himself said about the vine and branches. (cfr. Jn 15,5) Otherwise, we die in the sense of living a life that is not proper to us, like the branches that are separated from the vine.

So, we cannot overemphasize our need to do everything to always be with God. We know very well how easily we can think and live as if we can simply be by ourselves. Especially when life seems to be going well for us, we easily tend to take God for granted. We usually go to him only when we find ourselves with difficulties.

Yes, we have to understand that God tests us not only in our difficulties, but also in our good and easy moments of our life. In fact, the latter tests can be more difficult to tackle. 

It’s always good to frequently meditate on what God has done for us, if only to enjoy the confidence he has put in us. This is to help us repay his love with our love. Thus, Christ told us, “Without cost you have received. Without cost you are to give.” (Mt 10,8) 

For sure, with these words of Christ, we are strongly reminded to be generous, to give ourselves completely to God and to others, sparing and keeping nothing for ourselves, because God has been generous with us. He gave nothing less than himself to us. And he wants to share what we have with everybody else.

Thus, in Christ’s commissioning of his disciples that should include all of us, his believers and followers, he encourages us not to worry so much about what to have or what to bring. “Do not take gold or silver or copper for your belts; no sack for the journey, or a second tunic, or sandals or walking stick. The laborer deserves his keep.” We need to develop a keen sense of generosity and self-giving that is also a result of detachment. 

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐧𝐮𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐀𝐝𝐨𝐩𝐭-𝐀-𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦

 

Rhealyn, a 4-year-old little girl sat beside her mother. Her eyes in awe wandered around, puzzled by what was happening around her. Excitement was evident as she looked at her mom, all she wanted that day were the colorful balloon decorations on stage, not knowing her life will change after 120 days.

Rhealyn is among the thirty-three (33) children identified by the Provincial Health Office (PHO) of Davao de Oro as the beneficiary of the Adopt-A-Child Program of the provincial government. Anchored on the “People Agenda” of Governor Tyron Uy’s 4Ps Plus blueprint in governance, the program is among the people-centered, end hunger chain programs which focus on the welfare of the people, especially children.

The Adopt-A-Child Program officially launched way back in 2008, during the time of former governor, now Senior Board Member Arturo “Chiongkee” Uy and continues in the present. The program targets children beneficiaries, who are wasted, severely wasted, and severely underweight who will undergo rehabilitation for a period of one-hundred twenty (120) days.

For the whole duration of the program, employees of the provincial government will sponsor the need of every child beneficiary through the provision of goods, services, and other nutrition interventions. Through the program, the existing nutrition programs of the government will be amplified, ending hunger and malnutrition one step at a time.

This year, the municipality of Laak is the chosen beneficiary of the program after having a great impact in Mabini, Montevista, Mawab, and Maco in the past few years.

On April 27, 2022, employees of PLGU-Davao de Oro converged at Laak Central Elementary school to officially start the quest to bring significant changes in the life of Rhealyn and the other thirty-two (32) children. A free-medical check-up is also conducted on the same day.

Hunger and malnutrition are silent killers, it impairs children, and lessen their school productivity, grabbing their future away from them. Plenty of ways exist to counter this great, yet solvable problem, but in Davao de Oro, it's innovative governance and Bayanihan ways will make the job done.

  (JA PAO-IPRD, photos by G. Mativo)

FISH AND OCEAN

Religion and music belong together like fishes and the ocean - like light and life, like a voice and ears... .

In the entire universe, we humans  are probably the only beings capable of creating and listening to music. The ability to hear is one of the specific gifts that our Creator gave us. Our fragile blue planet is surrounded by a thin layer of gases only a few kilometers high. Only this atmosphere is the reason why sound waves can spread through the air. Everything behind this atmosphere is ruled by the sheer endless vacuum of outer space, where galaxies and stars explode and implode in impenetrable silence.

According to the biblical narrative, the world began when God broke through this deadly quiet: "And God said: Let there be light!" (Genesis 1:1). God spoke - and light and life resulted from his audible voice. Because life was created by the word. That is why it is in the nature of every person to listen. Like a parabolic mirror, our souls are created to listen to the eternal space of the hereafter, to try and sense whether a word, a sound or a voice is trying to reach us from there, in order to fill us with a meaning.

It's nothing new that I love music. And, I know that Filipinos also love big tunes with great words and beautiful melodies, especially when it comes to classical music.

Omicron sub-variant detected in Baguio

US. This undated, colorized electron microscope image made available by the US National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the novel coronavirus Sars-CoV-2, indicated in yellow, emerging from the surface of cells, indicated in blue/pink, cultured in the lab. (AP)

By THIRD ANNE PERALTA-MALONZO, SunStar Philippines

HEALTH authorities detected the first case of Omicron sub-variant BA 2.12 in Baguio City.

Karen Lonogan from the Department of Health-Cordillera said the variant was detected from a 52-year-old foreign visitor from Finland.

The person’s purpose of visit in the country was to conduct lecture on digital loom weaving.

She was already tagged as recovered and had already traveled back to her home country.

The BA 2.12 caused resurgence of Covid-19 cases in South Korea and United States.

Lonogan said, however, that Covid-19 cases in Baguio City remained low. (SunStar Philippines)

Stocks fall on concerns over slowing economy

by James A. Loyola, Manila Bulletin

Local share prices fell on continuing concerns over China’s economy and risks posed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The main index dropped 116.11 points or 1.66 percent to close at 6,863.91 as the Mining and Oil counter led all sectors in the retreat. Volume jumped to 816 million shares worth P8.78 billion due to a block sale of ALI shares as losers swept gainers 138 to 49 with 43 unchanged.

“Philippine shares again closed in the red on global economic slowdown concerns brought by surging COVID19 cases in China, a high inflationary environment, and a statement from a top Russian official that the threat of nuclear war is real,” said Regina Capital Development Corporation Managing Director Luis Limlingan.

He added that sentiment also suffered after “Moody’s Analytics trimmed its Philippine GDP forecast this year to 6.1 percent (versus 6.4 percent March projection) due to the impact of slower global demand and faster inflation on the economy.”

Philstocks Financial Senior Supervisor for Research Japhet Tantiangco said “The local market declined further on the back of the negative spillovers from Wall Street.“

He explained that “This comes amid global economic slowdown worries as China’s economy continues to deal with its worsening COVID-19 situation, while the Russia – Ukraine war poses risks of further escalation.“

“Wednesday’s decline is also attributed to investors’ reaction over the earlier rate hike signals from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas” Tantiangco added.

The role of gastrodiplomacy and tourism in preserving culinary traditions

Image by Nhick Ramiro Pacis from Pixabay.

by Vina Medenilla, Manila Bulletin

The Philippines has a rich culinary heritage that deserves to be preserved and recognized in the international scene.

However, today, many aspects of Filipino cuisine and culture are disappearing and are no longer practiced or consumed.

In order to keep them, identifying and understanding food and culture is vital. How can we accomplish this? One is to communicate with the culture bearers or those who practice and pass down cultural values, traits, and knowledge within their communities.

More important than simply knowing Filipino cuisine and the food culture of various regions is promoting it both in and out of the country.

Gastrodiplomacy and tourism are two powerful tools that can help protect and promote Filipino food and culinary traditions.

This is what Clang Garcia, a Philippine culinary heritage explorer and TV host, spoke about in the second episode of the KainCon webinar series, which is part of the Filipino Food Month (FFM) festivities.

Initiatives of neighboring countries

During the webinar, Garcia shared an example of how Thailand launched a gastronomy branding for their food industry called “Thailand: Kitchen of the World.”

“It’s meant to put the cuisines of Thailand to the world, but more than that, they pushed gastronomy branding to create a demand for their agricultural produce,” Garcia said.

A part of Thailand’s efforts in promoting the Thai food industry is allocating a budget for international ventures.

“If you are an entrepreneur and you want to put up a Thai restaurant in different parts of the world, they will finance you, provided that you conform to the uniformity of the ingredients, hygiene, precautions, look, and branding,” says Garcia. 

These restaurants become an avenue for foreign entrepreneurs and customers to be more familiar with Thai cuisine without having to travel to its origin.

In some ways, it piques the diners’ interest to explore not just Thai food, but also the country’s destinations and culture.

This is where tourism promotion comes in.

Thailand has millions of international travelers, and according to Garcia, most of them go there for food and culture. Traveling is not complete without keepsakes, so the Thai government also made beautifully-packaged products available for tourists. 

“That‘s the beauty of gastronomy, diplomacy, and tourism. If you have the government with you, working side by side with you, then it becomes a very powerful and organized campaign.”

Budget, government alignment, and private sectors are three necessities for the implementation of such gastrodiplomacy campaigns.

Following Thailand’s lead, South Korea also launched the “Kimchi Diplomacy” campaign to promote their cuisine and culture. They began producing and publicizing Korean movies, stars, music, and more.

“They just have to follow the same example. Suddenly, Korean restaurants are dominating different parts of the world.” 

Seeing the efforts of these two countries, Garcia explained, “If you present the traditions [to the world], there will be a sense of appreciation. If you start sponsoring international food and travel shows above it, then it will create curiosity among viewers. They would want to go where you’ve featured kimchi and learn the process, and meet the people they see on the screen.”

Embracing Filipino culinary heritage 

In our case, events like Filipino Food Month give every region in the Philippines a reason to celebrate our culinary heritage, which is expected to develop in time, says Garcia.

When it comes to preserving and promoting Filipino cuisine and culture through gastronomy and tourism, Garcia remains optimistic, adding, “We can do so much more collectively.” 

Traveling locally and supporting local businesses is one way we can help, especially in the midst of the epidemic.

As a local tourism champion, Garcia says, “Sustainability has never been more relevant than now. We have to take care of our environment [and of our heritage] because it defines us as a people and as a destination. If we lose that, who are we going to be? Who are you as a Filipino?”

The KainCon or Kain Conference webinar series covers a variety of themes and features local food industry champions. It goes live online every Tuesday and Thursday from April 7-28, 2022. 

KainCon also includes cookfest and culinary films that aim to raise awareness of preserving Filipino heritage and traditions. This event is led by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), Philippine Culinary Heritage Movement (PCHM), and Slow Food Youth Network Philippines (SFYN).

Preaching the gospel to the whole world

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

THE feast of St. Mark, the Evangelist, on April 25, reminds us that we have the duty to preach the Good News about Christ to the whole world. Christ said it very clearly: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned.” (Mk 16,15-16)

And that mandate was accompanied by some privileges and benefits: “In my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (Mk 16,17-18)

We should take this mandate from Christ seriously and do whatever we can to carry it out. We have to realize that preaching the living Word of God is a task entrusted to his apostles and shared by all of us in different ways. The clergy, of course, takes a leading role in this affair, but this task is incumbent on everyone. It’s a serious business that involves our whole being, and not just our talents and powers.

First, we need to examine our understanding and attitude toward God’s word, especially the Gospel. This basic understanding would depend on what we do with the Gospel and how we handle it.

Do we really know the true nature of the Gospel? Or do we take it as just one more book, perhaps with certain importance, but definitely not as the living word of God, in spite of its human dimensions?

The Gospel is actually the proclamation of Christ as the Emmanuel, that is, God with us. This is an on-going affair that did not stop with the death of Christ. Christ lives with us up to now, and continues to do things with us.

All these affirmations are captured in the last lines of the Gospel of St. Matthew where our Lord said:

“Go, therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them…. And behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world.” (28,19-20)

Our Catechism tells us that “We must continue to accomplish in ourselves the stages of Jesus’ life and his mysteries and often to beg him to perfect and realize them in us and in his whole Church” (521)

Obviously, to carry out this mission, we need to know our Lord and his teachings. We have to go to him and read the Gospel. Reading and meditating on it should be a regular practice for us, a habit meant to keep us in touch with him.

Thus, every time we read the Gospel, we have to understand by our faith that we are engaging with our Lord in an actual and living way. We are listening to him, and somehow seeing him. We can use our imagination to make ourselves as one more character in any scene depicted by the Gospel.

For this, we need to look for the appropriate time and place. We have to be wary of our tendency to be dominated by a lifestyle of activism and pragmatism that would blunt our need for recollection and immersion in the life of Christ.

The drama of Christ’s life here on earth has to continue in our own life. Thus, we need to continually conform our mind and heart to the Gospel, an affair that demands everything from us.

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

Actress, pageant veterans among 40 official candidates of Binibining Pilipinas 2022

 Part of the 40 official candidates of Binibining Pilipinas 2022 presented at the New Frontier Theater in Cubao, Quezon City on Friday, April 22. Actress Nicole ‘Hipon Girl’ Budol is candidate No. 67.

by Robert Requintina, Manila Bulletin

An actress, models, and pageant veterans were among the 40 official candidates of Binibining Pilipinas 2022 who were presented at the New Frontier Theater in Cubao, Quezon City on Friday, April 22.

Actress Nicole “Hipon Girl” Budol, and models and pageant veterans Francesca Taruc, Roberta Tamondong, Cyrille Payumo, Diana Mackey, Gabrielle Basiano, Jasmine Omay, etc. were among the hopefuls who will vie for the prestigious Binibining Pilipinas crowns.

This year’s 40 official candidates:

ANNA VALENCIA

LAKRINIANNE DE MESA

CHELSEA FERNANDEZ

CHRISTINE JULIANE OPIAZA

CYRILLE D. PAYUMO

DIANA MACKEY

DIANA PINTO

EIFFEL ROSALITA

ELDA LOUISE AZNAR

ESEL MAE P. PABILARAN

ETHEL ABELLANOSA

FATIMA KATE BISAN

GABRIELLE BASIANO

GRACIA ELIZABETH MENDOZA

GRACIELLA LEHMAN

GWENDOLINE MELIZ F. SORIANO

IMAN FRANCHESCA M. CRISTALINA

PATRCIA MALALUAN

JANE DARREN GENOBISA

JANINE NAVARRO

JASHMIN DIMACULANGAN

JASMINE OMAY

JERIZA B. UY

JESSICA ROSE MCEWEN

JOANNA DAY

JOANNA RICCI ALAJAR

KAREN LAURRIE MENDOZA

KRIZZIA LYNN O. MORENO

LESLIE B. AVILAMA

FRANCESCA TARUC

MARIELLA V. ESGUERRA

MARY JUSTINNE PUNSALANG

NATASHA ELLEMA JUNG

NICOLE BORROMEO

NICOLE BUDOL

NYCA MAE O. BERNARDO

PATRICIA GO

ROBERTA TAMONDONG

STACEY DANIELLA B. GABRIEL

YLLANA MARIE S. ADUANA

One of the official activities of the Binibining Pilipinas 2022 is the Santacruzan which will be held on Saturday, May 14. Other activities will be announced soon.