What’s white in colour and good for you? (Hint: It’s not rice)

WHITE rice will give you diabetes. That’s the alarming message on the front page of The Straits Times this morning, citing four studies put forward by the Health Promotion Board yesterday (May 5). The pronouncement follows the G’s own declaration last month of wanting to wage “war” against the disease, as related healthcare costs are expected to rocket from the current $1 billion annually to $2.5 billion by 2050.

White rice is high in refined carbohydrates, which triggers a higher blood sugar response and can increase the risk of diabetes over time. White bread and noodles are just as bad.

Tip? If you like eating rice, go for brown rice. Replacing about 20 per cent of a bowl of white rice with brown rice could reduce the risk of diabetes by 16 per cent. Brown rice has more protein, fibre, and is generally more healthy. Same for the varieties of red and “black” rice you may find in your supermarket.

Speaking of the colour white and alarming messages… Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam of the People’s Action Party (PAP) last night tore Dr Chee Soon Juan a new one, ripping into his assertions over the past week about the number of jobs created last year and missing funds from the national reserves.

You can play back the rally here, or just read Bertha’s round-up of Mr Tharman’s rally speech – here.

The senior politician and anchor minister of the neighbouring Jurong GRC also made his pitch for voters to elect his party’s candidate, Mr Murali Pillai. As with the speakers before him, Mr Tharman portrayed Mr Murali, a lawyer, as a quiet and modest man – someone with a reputation not for soaring rhetoric, but for serving the people.

On the Opposition side, Dr Chee continued to push back against being portrayed by the PAP as a man not to be trusted. He reiterated that his team was ready to run the constituency’s town council if elected, and that he would fight the establishment and speak up for ordinary Singaporeans in Parliament – something which he said his opponent Murali Pillai could not as a member of the dominant party.

For more reports on the Bukit Batok by-election, be sure to catch our latest stories published yesterday:

• PHOTOS FROM THE GROUND: Last look at the rallies
• PHOTOS FROM THE GROUND: Walkabouts with Mr Murali & Dr Chee
• BB BE: Bukit Batok tour guides bring on celebrity friends
• BB BE: Were you at the Bukit Batok by-election rallies?
• BB BE: Last call to book your tour guide
• BB BE: The final stretch
• BB BE: 50 voters in Bukit Batok
• BB BE: Scoring the campaign trail – on social media

(Yup, we’ve been busy.)

And what if you don’t really care about the by-election? Here are a few more pieces of “alarming” news for you in today’s headlines:

The Health Sciences Authority yesterday issued a warning against a product advertised as an herbal cure for itching. Called “Hai Leng Hai Beh Herbal Itch Removing Capsule”, the pills can be bought here and in Malaysia. The health authority said they contain a steroid used to treat inflammation which can cause Cushing’s syndrome, a hormonal disorder.

A total of 183 food poisoning cases have been linked to durian pastries sold at the Goodwood Park Hotel. Since the hotel’s bakery was suspended on April 22 with 76 cases of food poisoning, more people have stepped forward with similar experiences, said the Ministry of Health in a joint statement with the National Environment Agency and Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority yesterday.

The problem seems to be with the way the hotel staff were handling the food. The durian pulp was fine; checks with its suppliers came up clean, the authorities said.

Finally, a 52-year-old man drinking beer with his friends near his flat in Bishan has become the first person to be charged under a new law that prohibits people from drinking in public after 10.30pm. He was fined the maximum $1,000 yesterday after pleading guilty.

Tan Gak Hin said he wouldn’t do it again but it was the third time he had been caught. Called the Liquor Control Act, the bill was passed in Parliament and came into effect in April last year.

 

Featured image from TMG file. 

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