Medical: How environmental temperature affected #SARS outbreak?

How environmental temperature affected #SARS outbreak and how might this affect #WARS? Let's have a read.

#StandWithMedics

References:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1733040/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2870397/

Medical: Size of #SARS vs #WARS virions

Is WARS virions really bigger than SARS'? If so, by how much? The following references will give us some clues.

#StandWithMedics

References:
https://www.jbc.org/content/281/25/17134.full

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/immunology-and-microbiology/sars-related-coronavirus

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30211-7/fulltext

Charged Hong Kong Members' Stories #012 -- Dr. Philip Kwong

Dr. Phil Kwong

Charged Hong Kong members are talented individuals. It is my honour to have invited one of the most respectable doctors in Hong Kong to tell his Member’s’ Story. Welcome Dr. Philip Kwong Wai Kay -- Consultant Clinical Oncologist, Queen Mary Hospital and President of Hong Kong Society of Uro-Oncology.

Locky Law (LL): Hello Phil, pleasure to have you with us today.

Dr. Philip Kwong (DPK): Hello Locky. Hello guys.

Phil (3rd from the right)
Image from Hong Kong Society of Uro-Oncology

LL: You are the very first doctor to appear in our Members’ Stories series, and I have so many questions to ask you, ranging from medicine to the environment. But since we have time, let’s start off with some personal question about you. In your 營廚駕到 video, the one you did for www.cancerinformation.com.hk, you shared how you have become a doctor, how about why you chose to focus in oncology?

DPK: It’s more by chance than by choice. I was assigned to the Department of Oncology under the late Prof HC Ho, who was regarded as the father of oncology in Hong Kong. He’s the aspiration that got me going in the field of oncology, and I never looked back since.

LL: I see. I am no expert in cancer, so… how is cancer manifested actually?

DPK: It’s multifactorial - genetics; environmental exposures to different types of chemicals and radiations; lifestyle factors such as tobacco use, diet and physical activities; and certain infections.

LL: And is that in any ways related to your EV ownership, and why you choose the EV you now own?

DPK: Yes. Pollution is a major cause of health problems including cancer and owning an EV instead of an ICE car is one of my steps to contribute to environmental protection. I have been watching EV development for quite some time and finally decided to buy the Tesla Model S in 2015 because it’s the real practical EV that met my need.

LL: I have always had this question in my mind -- Do doctors generally believe that EVs are good for the environment? And do you think doctors often consider the “health” factor when they choose to buy their own ride?

DPK: Most of the doctors that I know understand the importance of environmental protection but many still think that EVs are slow, have short range, lack of features and not practical. The good thing is doctors are eager to learn and very adaptive to new technology so once they know the truth about the advancement of EV, they are very enthusiastic about it.

Phil and his Tesla Model S

LL: As we both know that Hong Kong’s clean air has been seriously affected by smog from the north. Like the forest fires that brought smog to Singapore once a year, Hong Kong citizens seem to think there is little they can do. Do you have any suggestions for us (as to what we can do to alleviate the problem)?

DPK: what we can do personally is have a greener life and cut down our damage to environment, and teach our children. As a group, we should advocate different methods of environmental protection and work with other groups and organizations as a force.

LL: Alright, here comes the sharper questions. Ready? Question 1) Some people argue that EV isn’t worth the FRT waiver because the effect of cutting air pollution is hard to be seen. From a doctor’s point of view, what’s your view on this? And by the way, it could end on 31st March this year if it isn’t extended.

DPK: The fact is on the road, EV is zero emission, and it’s quieter and generates less heat when running. So it has less air, sound and temperature pollution on the streets where we live. People always argue that there is still pollution in generating electricity but that is definitely less than the production of petroleum, and the emission is in a controlled environment, unlike ICE car exhausts that pollute the air all over urban areas. And when more renewable energy is used to generate electricity, which is happening in many countries, the total pollution by EV will become lower.

LL: So you are FOR the EV FRT waiver extension for another 1, 2, 3 or more than 3 years?

DPK: Yes, FRT is not a benefit or privilege to EV buyers but a government policy to promote EV. EV is still a minority in HK so the policy should not be changes in the coming few years.

LL: Question 2) Some say offering EV FRT waiver extension simply means the Government has less income, so the Government does not have enough money to spend on healthcare, which is why there aren’t enough hospital beds for patients. Would you agree with this?

DPK: Government does not have less income because of EV. Many people, including myself, will not buy a Tesla if the price is almost doubled. People will either not buying a car or buy a cheaper car so the difference in tax income is more less. The small decrease is not a factor in less budget in healthcare. Moreover, the expense in healthcare in dealing with diseases associated with pollution and the amount of man-hour loss because of these diseases will be huge if more and more ICE vehicles are running on the street.

LL: Question 3) Let say that, if it was so unfortunate that, EV FRT waiver came to an end on 31st March 2017, would kind of impact would you expect to see in the city’s EV development, the air quality and the health of Hong Kong citizens? Disastrous or nothing much?

DPK: It will halt transition from ICE to EV in HK. The effect on health of citizens is not apparent immediately but we are going to see more and more pollution-related diseases.

LL: Thank you, and that was the last of the harsh questions, but I do have one more easy one for you. What would you say to the doctors who are still driving their gas-guzzling ICEVs (Internal Combustion Engines Vehicles) who might be interested in switching to EVs?

DPK: I think as responsible citizens and particularly ones who understand the relationship of environmental pollutions and diseases, we should take the lead and set examples.

LL: Well, that’s all the time we have with Phil today. Phil, thank you so much for your time and it has been my honour to have you here with us today. We hope to have more chances to learn from you in the future. It’s never enough for us to be able to speak to the President of Hong Kong Society of Uro-Oncology.

DPK: Thank you very much.

LL: Thank everyone for tuning in and see you all in our next Charged Hong Kong Members’ Story!

References:

Staff List @ Queen Mary Hospital

http://www3.ha.org.hk/qmh/department/clinical%20department/cod/COD_Webpag_20101019_files/Page1607.htm

香港泌尿腫瘤科學會

http://www.hksuo.org/

營廚駕到 @癌症資訊網

https://youtu.be/SuSny3Zrz8E?t=5m31s

癌症資訊網

http://www.cancerinformation.com.hk/

TV, Medical & Science: Heart, Skin, Lungs, Sklungs? House M.D. Prophecy Of A Fluidless Organ Preservation Box!!!

Lung in a box, in House M.D. Season 8 Episode 2 Transplant
Image from Fox

You all know how much I love House M.D., hence my PhD research subject. That said, I used to always visit and revisit Polite Dissent after every episode to get some professional medical knowledge, so that I do not get carried away by the awesomeness of the show. One episode which I remember particularly well, Season 8 Episode 2 Transplant, carried a fatal "design flaw" in their production, and that was the printine plexiglass organ preservation box shown in the above photo.

Polite Dissent has the following comments which I highlighted in the screen capture below:

Screencap of Polite Dissent
Image from Polite Dissent

I agreed with Polite Dissent. How can an organ survive without blood and fluid around the organ to keep it from drying up? Until today, I realised I was wrong when I saw the image below,

Heart beating in the organ preservation box.
Image from IFL Science

Here's direct quotation of parts of the IFL Science article:

"In the short term they’ll open the field," commented Korkut Uygun, a transplant surgeon from Massachusetts General Hospital, to the Technology Review. Uygun thinks that one day we'll have the technology to restore other organs, such as livers, up to an hour after they have undergone circulatory death, not minutes. And so far, there are 15 cases of the "heart in a box" successfully reanimating a heart from a donor after they've died.

The system could increase the number of hearts that are transported, overcoming issues such as the time limit heart porters have when transporting a chilled heart. Typically, an organ is cooled to about 4°C (39°F) to slow down the tissue's metabolic rate and the rate of degenerative processes. Lungs, for example, only last three to six hours on ice – whereas the Transmedics device preserves lungs for 24 hours without needing to cool the organ down.

There is no blood flow around a cooled organ so it is susceptible to damage, and there is no way to test its function. This is especially critical for a patient about to undergo the invasive surgery to receive it, and the months of adapting to the new organ afterwards. 

So yeah, that House M.D. prophecy has come true, again!!! After that black president of the United States one, which I will share in the near future.


Resources:
House — Episode 2 (Season 8): “Transplant” @Polite Dissent
http://www.politedissent.com/archives/8064

New Device Could Revive Dead Hearts +I fucking love science
http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/heart-box-revives-dead-hearts

Medical: Vasovagal Syncope -- Girl Collapsed Before My Eyes!!!

Have you ever dealt with a fainted person?

This happened in early March, I was waiting outside a clinic for a doctor to check on my left ear (I had been having ear blockage for about 3 weeks and it was getting worse, with pain with every little pressure change and my hearing was down 80%) when a girl about 16 or so collapsed in a cross-shaped posture in front of me. The back of her head banged onto the floor and her mum couldn't get her up. All she could do was to sit on her daughter's lap, looking helplessly frightened as she hugged her daughter's powerless upper body.

Image from Oxford journals

Immediately I went over to drag her to the wall and away from the static crowd for a quick rest. She was at least as heavy as I am and her face as pale as sheet. Nurses at the clinic that I was waiting came out to check her up. Her mum said she just had her teeth scaled and stitches in her mouth removed, she also said she ate before the visit but the nurses gave her candies anyway. The nurses didn't inform the doctor. Maybe they would had the girl completely lost consciousness. The dentist came out soon after the girl collapsed and the mum asked him about the treatment her girl received. The dentist denied that there was anything to do with drugs or sedatives used and I believe so. He asked if the girl saw her own blood but the girl said no. After a few pats on her head telling her she will be okay, the dentist returned to his clinic and so did the nurses to theirs. The girl and the mum later moved to the sofas as they sat down and murmured among themselves.

I suggested her mum to get another adult to come in case she collapses again but her dad went on business trip and she had no relatives nearby, then I told her mum to give her a cup of water as she was sweating quite a bit, and make sure she get enough rest before leaving.

Running in my head were thought processes and questions of how this girl managed to collapse in free-fall style. There is a possibility that blood loss during dental scaling has weakened her, or that she might have had low blood pressure in the first place. She is a teenager, so blood loss during her period could be possible but that is something I cannot confirm. Blood loss is just one suspect. What I can confirm is that the teenage girl was taller than me and probably heavier than me, adding sudden sweating, complete loss of balance and consciousness, and regaining of consciousness after collapsing onto the floor, we get something called vasovagal syncope.

Definition from Wikipedia goes,

Vagus nerve
Image from Wikipedia

"A vagal episode or vasovagal response or vasovagal attack (also called neurocardiogenic syncope) is a malaise mediated by the vagus nerve. When it leads to syncope or "fainting", it is called a vasovagal syncope, which is the most common type of fainting. Vasovagal syncope is most commonly discovered in adolescents and in older adults."

I shared this incident with my uncle who happens to be an expert in emergency medicine, girls collapse often and vasovagal syncope is related to stress, pain, anxious, hunger and many others, may or may not due to amount of blood loss. I am not sure about her stress or pain level but she should be in good mood enough to get teeth scaling. People who feel very upset don't go to make their teeth look better, they will just cancel the appointment. Then again, even if it was because of pain and anxiety, nothing a doctor or I could do to help at that point.

After about 15 mins or so, the mother and the daughter decided to leave. I gave them a final reminder that they should both hold the handrails at the staircases when they leave the building and soon I was called to enter the room to see the doctor myself, who referred me to a specialist to have my earwax removed as he did not have the equipment to help me. I paid $360 in exchange for an eardrop and a referral letter, but that is another story.


Vocabulary:
murmur -- (vb)[I or T] to speak or say very quietly
vasovagal syncope -- (n)[U] please refer to definition in the passage


Resources:
Vasovagal response @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasovagal_response

How to Deal With Fainting @  WikiHow
www.wikihow.com/Deal-With-Fainting


http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english-chinese-traditional/murmur_1
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/syncope

Event: Locky's Ice Bucket Challenge!!!

Me VS Ice in the Ice Bucket Challenge
Image from Locky's English Playground

The following video will be slightly poor in quality at times, due to the sacrifice of a lower resolution for a higher frame rate.

I know the Ice Bucket Challenge is very much meant solely for Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) fundraising now, but tracing the root of the event, it all started with cancer fundraising. Through this post I would like to bring your attention to a couple more non-profit organisations (NGO) such that you may consider making your donations more frequent to many more NGOs so as to benefit more people and animals.

Image from Cancer Fund

First off, the Cancer Fund may be quite well-known in Hong Kong, but as the number of cancer patients increases, support is continuously needed. I will never forget the day -- the day I returned from overseas studies, I was broken the news that my brother-like cousin had passed away from brain cancer months before. I was heartbroken, pieces turned to dust and dust get washed away by icy cold rain......

While we are still healthy, we can all do the Cancer Fund a bit more help.

bbSharky
Image from bbSharky @ Facebook

I have always been a wildlife conservationist, though may not be as active as I have wished I can, I have always worked hard in lessons to convey the message of conservations to the people I teach, particularly the future generations. This is the reason and goal why I created bbSharky, such that the children can understand the importance and preciousness of these amazing creatures to the world and especially to us, our very own existence.

Image from WWF Hong Kong

WWF Hong Kong again is a famous NGO and people might think because they are wealthy enough to get the job done, the fact is that they have so many projects on hand and so many animals to save that they are in constant need of support as well. 

Pink Dolphin
Image from Hong Kong DolphinWatch Ltd.

Heard of the impact of the new airport runway the Hong Kong government is trying to force construct? The government claims that they will 'borrow' the pink dolphin's home for the constructions and repay them with a 'new', 'relocated' living habitat after all is completed. Even a child can tell the flaw of this argument. Obviously, the government  is either lack of intelligence and knowledge about pink dolphin conservation, or it is too money-minded. If it is the former, maybe WWF can help them. The Hong Kong DolphinWatch Ltd. is not a charity but they do educate the general public with all their might.

Blackfish
Image from OPS

If you still think WWF is too popular, here's another one I have donated money to for their filming of the Oscar Award winning documentary "The Cove" -- Oceanic Preservation Society. Oceanic Preservation Society (OPS) is a non-profit organization that creates film, photography and media, inspiring people to save the oceans. Their work keeps shocking the world by exposing horrific truth of human cruelty and animal abuse. If you care about education and want our future generations to be able to see these beautiful living creatures in the wild, then OPS is surely worth your donation.


Donation is made to CancerFund and Oceanic Preservation Society.


Vocabulary:
break the news (to sb) -- to tell someone some important news, usually bad news.
flaw -- (n)[C] a fault, mistake or weakness, especially one that happens while something is being planned or made, or which causes something not to be perfect
might -- (n)[U] power, strength or force


Resources:
Movie: Documentary -- The Cove @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.hk/2010/06/movie-documentary-cove.html

Documentary: The Cove @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.hk/2011/01/documentary-cove.html

Ice Bucket Challenge 2014 @ YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=momsI5DbT_M

Ice Bucket Challenge @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_Bucket_Challenge

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amyotrophic_lateral_sclerosis

Cancer Fund
http://www.cancer-fund.org/en/cancer-donation.html

bbSharky @ Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/bbSharky

City advisers blast runway environmental report as 'wishful thinking' @ SCMP
http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1571451/airport-authority-experts-fairy-tale-predictions-about-marine-park

Hong Kong DolphinWatch Ltd.
http://www.hkdolphinwatch.com/faq.php

WWF Hong Kong
http://www.wwf.org.hk/en/

The Cove @ IMDb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1313104/

Oceanic Preservation Society
https://opsociety.worldsecuresystems.com/home.htm


http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/break+the+news
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english-chinese-traditional/flaw_1?q=flaw
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english-chinese-traditional/might_7

News: "Olds" That Shock The World This Week!

Child infected with smallpox. Bangladesh, 1973
Image from Wikipedia

As the title goes, here are some "olds" that shock the world in the past few days!

Employees at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) discovered 6 forgotten vials of the horrific, catastrophic smallpox virus in an unused storage room in early July, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said.

Smallpox virus under microscope
Image from nbcnews

Smallpox structure
Image from scq.ubc.ca

A disease believed to have originated over 3,000 years ago in India or Egypt, smallpox killed an estimated 300–500 million people during the last century. Typically characterised by dense dimpled pustules rash filled with thick, opaque fluid, smallpox has a very high case-fatality rate ranging from 20% to 60% in adults and near 80% in London and 98% in Berlin during the late 1800s  in infants.

Image from Wikipedia

One of the minor differences between smallpox and chickenpox is the distribution of the rash, as chicken pox rash appears mainly on the face and the torso, whereas smallpox focuses attack on the face and limbs.

Since the introduction of vaccination in the 1800, smallpox was officially eradicated worldwide in 1979, except for samples stored in 2 highly secure laboratories, consisting of CDC and Russia. The vials concerned in this "olds" which should have been destroyed have been left unsecured for decades. The fact that the virus did not end in a massive outbreak and "rebirth" of smallpox, we are all very lucky.

This image of Steven Spielberg following what appears to be a triceratops poaching has gone viral.
Photo: Jay Branscomb, Facebook. Caption by KSDK.com

Sarcasm and humour at work. A Facebook jokester posted an image of Steven Spielberg sitting in front of a Jurassic Park Triceratop prop with the caption:

"Disgraceful photo of recreational hunter happily posing next to a Triceratops he just slaughtered. Please share so the world can name and shame this despicable man."

The comments are the best part.

"Steven Spielberg, I'm disappointed in you. I'm not watching any of your movies again ANIMAL KILLER," one commenter wrote.

"Disgraceful. No wonder dinosaurs became extinct. Sickos like this kill every last one of them as soon as they are discovered. He should be in prison," another said.

"He should be killed instead. Beautiful creature innocently living millions of years ago then this monster comes along," the commenter said.

"That's Steven Spielberg, director of Jurassic Park!" one person wrote.

"I don't care who he is, he should not have shot that animal!" a defender all of animals (even extinct ones) wrote back.

Do you think they really do not know what is happening, or are they just being funny and play along?

Google Glass crossover Brainwave detection?
Image from ddmcdn

Loved or hated, Google Glass can now be controlled using brainwave!!! How? The video below will tell.

In the future, the patients with locked-in syndrome (LIS) may be able to communicate! Awesome technology!


Finally, scientists have come up with another theory on how massive pyramid rocks were moved, and they say -- water.

What do you think?



Vocabulary:
pustule -- (n)[C] 
jokester -- (n)[C] 


Resources:
'Holy Toledo': Smallpox Discovery Opens Painful Scabs @ NBC News.com
http://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/holy-toledo-smallpox-discovery-opens-painful-scabs-n153141

David A. Koplow (2004) Smallpox: The Fight to Eradicate a Global Scourge
http://books.google.com.hk/books/ucpress?vid=ISBN9780520242203&redir_esc=y

Smallpox at @ WHO
http://web.archive.org/web/20070921235036/http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/smallpox/en/

Edward Jenner and the history of smallpox and vaccination @ NCBI
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1200696/

Steven Spielberg: Triceratops murderer? @ KSDK.com
http://www.ksdk.com/story/life/2014/07/11/steven-spielberg-triceratops-murder/12551901/

Good Thinking! Brain-Control Google Glass @ Discovery News
http://news.discovery.com/tech/gear-and-gadgets/good-thinking-brain-control-google-glass-140710.htm?utm_source=googleplus.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=DNewsSocial

MindRDR @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJQZtxlLaG0

Locked-in syndrome @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locked-in_syndrome

We Finally Know How The Pyramids Were Made! @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRvtVrXcC3Y

Message: Letter To My Lovely Baby Girl!!!

My Daughter -- Muse Law
Image from Locky's English Playground

Locky's English Playground has been a bit lazy all week because I have been busying with the arrival of my lovely daughter, Muse! She was born yesterday on 18th November 2013 after midnight. From the start of the contraction at 9pm on the 16th through the amniotomy at 7am on the 17th till Muse was born at 1am on the 18th, in that 28 hours of labour, her mummy had to be administered almost every form of pain relief possible including a morphine shot, epidural analgesia, then epidural anaesthesia in an attempt to have a natural-cum-induced labour before finally undergoing a Caesarean section.

"What does milk taste like?"
Image from Locky's English Playground

Muse, do you know? Your mummy was being cut opened, pulled, squashed and pumped severely in the tummy like a Scale 8 earthquake by 3 surgeons for a whole 10 minutes before getting you out? The anaesthetic was so strong that your mummy's body shuddered violently even when my hands were pressing her shoulders down hard, yet she was shouting through her gritted teeth with every clobber.

"I'm also called BB Chu and I am adorable!"
Image from Locky's English Playground

It was traumatising to watch your mummy in pain as such, gave me bad dreams every night since your birth. You had better be really really good to your mummy once you know who she is.

"You can't see me~ You can't see me~mummy!"
and mummy is just in the background
Image from Locky's English Playground

That's not all! When the doctors urgently called for nurses to "come up to rescue the B", I acted calm in front of your mum and kept telling her that everything will be okay, but I feared real badly that we were going to lose you. I think you mum did not hear what the doctors said due to the anaesthetic in her body so she was still asking me why you were not crying. Luckily, soon enough, I heard you giggling and told your mummy that you were born a happy girl. Then after another couple of minutes or so, we finally heard you crying.

You were brought to us and your mummy immediately gave you a kiss on the face while she was still shaking. Obstetric forceps were used and your head had a cut, but to me, those forceps pulled you and your mummy out from death.

"Muse maybe the youngest Facebook holder, " says Aunt Winnie Li
Muse owns a Facebook account in less than 1-day-old
Image from Locky's English Playground

We are both very proud of you as you have already fought so many battles even before you were born, and we wish that you will continue to be strong in face of danger, illness, sadness and pressure. Daddy and mummy will do our best to give you a delightful childhood, and you can almost guarantee that you will not be forced to take many interest classes and subjects because we are not monster parents and we'll never be. We will assist you in finding your dreams and guide you to achieving them should you need our help. As for now, let's not worry too much and just enjoy every moment with your families and friends.

Daddy and mummy loves you the most, and so do all your relatives and friends. You are very lucky to have come to this part of the world where food and basic needs are not a concern, and you are especially lucky to have 6 grandparents to love you.

So please!
Don't forget, be healthy and be a good girl!
Don't forget, nothing comes easy in this world, so never take anything for granted.
Don't forget, to love the world, all animals and plants, because they will help you grow,
and lastly,
Don't forget, you must always love you mummy, Muse, because she loves you the most!


With Immense Love,
Daddy Locky & Mummy Ceci

(00:41am, 20th Nov 2013)

Vocabulary:
amniotomy -- (n)[U]
morphine -- (n)[U]
epidural analgesia -- (n)[U]
epidural anaesthesia -- (n)[U]
induced labour -- (n)[U]
Caesarean section -- (n)[C]
anaesthetic -- (n)[C] 
shudder -- (vb)[I] When something shudders, it shakes violently and quickly:
grit (your) teeth -- (idiom)  to press your top and bottom teeth together, often in anger:
clobber -- (vb) informal to hit someone or something hard and repeatedly:
traumatise -- (vb)  [T usually passive] (UK usually traumatise)  to shock and upset someone severely and for a long time:
Obstetric forceps -- (n)[C] 


Resources:
Muse Law @ Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/muse.law.16

Hello World My Baby Girl! Muse Law @ YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExJqD9St4Wc

Amniotomy @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amniotomy

Using Narcotics for Pain Relief During Childbirth @ APA on Narcotics
http://americanpregnancy.org/labornbirth/narcotics.html

Epidural @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epidural

Induced Labour @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induced_labour

Caesarean section @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cesarean_section

Anaesthetic @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anaesthetic

Obstetric Forceps @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obstetric_forceps

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/anaesthetic?q=anaesthetic+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/shudder_1?q=shudder+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/grit-your-teeth
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/clobber_1?q=Clobber
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/traumatize?q=traumatise+

Medical, Health & Fitness: Which Honeys and Manuka Honeys Are The Best?

Consumer Council head Wong Yuk-shan. Photo: David Wong
Image and caption from SCMP

I have always enjoyed reading researches, and the Consumer Council of Hong Kong has often impressed me the most.

In Issue 441, the Consumer Council released the findings of their research on 40 General Honeys and 15 Manuka Honeys available in Hong Kong's supermarkets, department stores and retail shops. According to the labels, these honeys are made in New Zealand, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, UK, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan.

Is Cheap Always Bad?
Image from Locky's English Playground

All 55 samples were subjected to multiple tests carried out by labs in Belgium, Germany and UK, namely,

1. Safety Test: Test for the presence of Chloramphenicol, Nitrofurans, Streptomycins, Sulfonamides, Tetracyclines, Quinolones and Macrolides.
2. Added Sugar Test: AOAC998.12 test for C4 Sugar (corn syrup and cane syrup) and C3 Sugar (rice syrup, wheat syrup, chicory syrup).
3. Origin Analysis: Use pollen to recover plant types thus the origins of the honeys and compare with the labelled origin.
4. Common Quality Test: Test for the amount of moisture content, Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), diastase, invertase, sugar content and the level of fermentation.
5. Manuka Honey Anti-bacterial Activity Test: Test for Methylglyoxal, MGO content and  (Non-Peroxide Activity, NPA; Total Activity, TA) as compared with the NPA and TA of a phenol solution.

All tests are based on the Codex Standard for Honey, CODEX. and full documentation can be downloaded from here.

EXTRACT OF DOCUMENTATION

Content	Threshold
Moisture	Not > 20%; Heather honey (Calluna): Not > 23%
Total Fructose & Glucose	Not < 60%; Honeydew honey, blends of honeydew honey with blossom honey, Not < 45%
Sucrose	Not > 5g/100g Alfalfa (Medicago sativa), Citrus spp., False Acacia (Robinia pseudoacacia), French Honeysuckle (Hedysarum), Menzies Banksia (Banksia menziesii),Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), Leatherwood (Eucryphia lucida), Eucryphia milligani, Not > 10g/100g Lavender (Lavandula spp),Borage (Borago officinalis), Not > 15g / 100g
HMF	Not > 40mg / kg honey of declared origin from countries or regions with tropical ambient temperatures, and blends of these honeys, the HMF content shall Not be > 80 mg/kg
Diastase Activity	Not < 8 Schade units honeys with a low natural enzyme content Not < 3 Schade Units
Others	3.1      Honey sold as such shall not have added to it any food ingredient, including food additives, nor shall any other additions be made other than honey. Honey shall not have any objectionable matter, flavour, aroma, or taint absorbed from foreign matter during its processing and storage. The honey shall not have begun to ferment or effervesce. No pollen or constituent particular to honey may be removed except where this is unavoidable in the removal of foreign inorganic or organic matter. 6.1.8  Where honey has been designated according to floral, plant source, or by the name of a geographical or topological region, then the name of the country where the honey has been produced shall be declared.

The findings are truly amazing!!! For those of you who can read Chinese or knows someone who can, it is highly recommended that you purchase a soft copy of the report from the Consumer Council website to support what they do (I do!).

But for our English Playground readers, you definitely can benefit from the core of the matter.

First Choice (left) and Select (right)
Image from Consumer Council

For general honeys, among 40 samples, 16 samples earned a rating of 5-star, 12 others earned 4.5-star and 5 earned 4-star.

The best and cheapest of the 5 stars are:

1. First Choice Pure Australian Honey, 400g, HK$8.4 / 100g
2. Select Pure Honey, 400g, HK$8.5 / 100g

I live closer to ParkNShop than to Wellcome so I bought Select Pure Honey.

5 Star Waitemata (left), 4.5 Star Airborne (center) and 4.5 Star hnz (right)
Image from Consumer Council

As for Manuka honeys, among 15 samples, only 1 sample earned a rating of 5-star, 7 others earned 4.5-star and 5 earned 4 stars.

The 5 star Manuka is:

1. Waitemata Manuka UMF®15 New Zealand Honey, 500g, HK$107.6 / 100g

But the cheapest among the 4.5 stars are:

1. Airborne Manuka Honey Active NPA 8+, 500g, HK$39.6 / 100g
2. hnz New Zealand Manuka Honey UMF®10+, 500g, HK$45.6 / 100g

Airborne Manuka Honey Active NPA 8+ couldn't earn a 5-star because it has been tested with an NPA lower than 8 while hnz New Zealand Manuka Honey UMF®10+ has an invertase lower than 28 units.

FYI, Active Manuka Honey Association, AMHA provides a rough conversion table for UMF : MGO.

NPA	UMF	MGO
3	3	30
6	6	100
10	10	250
13	13	400
16	16	550

Source from Consumer Council

So if you are not a big fan of bigger NPA / UMF / MGO numbers, you can simply go for the cheaper 4.5-star ones.

Last but not least, I have some facts from the research article for you.

Some Facts of Manuka Honey from the Consumer Council's Research Article There isn't enough evidence to show that the consumption of general honeys or Manuka honeys heals / cures / prevent diseases or strengthen our immune system. Diabetes patients should go easy on honeys. Honeys and its ingredients might cause allergic reactions to some people. Tonnes of evidence shows that honey helps curing wounds and cuts mainly due to its anti-bacterial properties. Manuka Honeys with MGO do have anti-bacterial properties, but it is not a property solely possessed by Manuka Honey, for example, certain medicinal honeys. The viability of honey for external use should not be equated to that for internal use, that is, its anti-bacterial properties may not sustain inside our body. Evidence from large double-blinded clinical trial experiments are absent at the moment. The level of nutrients in honey isn't of much difference from normal sugar. Overconsumption of honey will increase the risk of obesity, similar to that of normal sugar. Infants below the age of 1 should not consume honey, as infection by Clostridium botulinum pores causing infant botulism is possible. Baby with Infant Botulism Image from botulismsymptoms.org

This report on honeys by the Consumer Council has stirred massive responses from the honey companies. If you want to read them, please see Resources below.

Vocabulary:
Chloramphenicol
Nitrofurans
Streptomycins
Sulfonamides
Tetracyclines
Quinolones
Macrolides
Hydroxymethylfurfural, HMF
Diastase
Invertase
Methylglyoxal, MGO
Non-Peroxide Activity, NPA
Unique Manuka Factor, UMF
phenol
viability -- (n) ability to work as intended or to succeed 
equate to sth -- (phrasal verb) to be the same in amount, number, or size:
Clostridium botulinum -- (n)[S] a Gram-positive, rod-shaped bacterium that produces several toxins. The best known are its neurotoxins, subdivided in types A-G, that cause the flaccid muscular paralysis seen in botulism. They are also the main paralytic agent in botox. C. botulinum is an anaerobic spore-former, which produces oval, subterminal endospores and is commonly found in soil.
Infant botulism -- (n) n humans, a rare but sometimes fatal paralytic illness. Foodborne botulism is an intoxication caused by consuming food contaminated with the botulinum toxin;



Resources:
Health and Fitness: Manuka Honey (1st Suggested Cure for Mouth Ulcers) @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.hk/2010/01/health-and-fitness-manuka-honey-1st.html

List of standards @ CODEX Alimentarius
http://www.codexalimentarius.org/standards/list-of-standards/en/?provide=standards&orderField=fullReference&sort=asc&num1=CODEX

Standard for Honey @ CODEX Alimentarius
http://www.codexalimentarius.org/download/standards/310/cxs_012e.pdf

Calluna @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calluna

Consumer Council
http://www.consumer.org.hk/website/ws_en/

NZ vows to look into Hong Kong's manuka honey test findings @ South China Morning Post
http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1287903/nz-vows-look-hong-kongs-manuka-honey-test-findings

There's something funny going on with honey, says Consumer Council @ South China Morning Post
http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1283519/consumer-watchdog-says-some-honey-brands-contain-rogue-sugar

News : National : Hong Kong consumer body questions NZ manuka honey @ Radio New Zealand
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/214689/hong-kong-consumer-body-questions-nz-manuka-honey

Manuka Honey Test Finds Rogue Ingredients @ Stuff.co.nz
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/8928858/Manuka-honey-fall-fouls-of-overseas-tests

Worrying manuka honey test brings call for action @ Otago Daily Times Online News : Otago, South Island, New Zealand & International News
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/farming/266065/worrying-manuka-honey-test-brings-call-action

NZ Honey Comes under Scrutiny in Hong Kong @ Scoop News
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU1307/S00648/nz-honey-comes-under-scrutiny-in-hong-kong.htm

No Sugar Added @ Comvita
http://www.comvita.co.nz/news-media/general-news/no-sugar-added.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chloramphenicol
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitrofurans
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streptomycin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulfonamides
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetracyclines
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinolones
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrolides
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroxymethylfurfural
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diastase
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invertase
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylglyoxal
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenol

Clostridium botulinum @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clostridium_botulinum

Infant botulism @ Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infant_botulism

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/viability?q=viability+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/equate-to-sth