opinion
AUGUST, 2018 | The HEALTH
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
A beauty pageant
entrant receives a
durian from master
of ceremony
Eric Tsang Chi-Wai.
03
Different
Strokes
by ADI SATRIA
A
T a beauty contest
to select Miss Chi-
natown World, the
emcee asked three
finalists to name a fruit
starting with the letter “L”
Durian fever
strikes again
Miss Chinatown Singapore:
Longan
Miss Chinatown Indonesia:
Langsat
Miss Chinatown Malaysia:
Lulian
Well, she of course meant the
durian, the king of fruits which
is currently in season and sold at
much lower prices everywhere. A
bountiful season indeed.
I for one was a consummate
durian eater until a few years back
when one whole fruit which I had
from Chow Kit resulted in a near
panic situation when I felt very
heaty at 4am and thought that I was
going to have a heart attack. Since
then, I limited my intake to three
seeds per session.
It has been scientifically found
that durians have good monounsat-
urated fats that can lower harmful
cholesterol levels and moderate
high blood pressure. It is also high
in calories and carbohydrates
which does not help improve one’s
waistline and thus moderation is
highly recommended. Of course it
has addictive tendencies and that
“Drinking
beer or
alcohol with
durians may
kill you.
Not really if
consumed in
moderation
but best to
avoid.”
PRESCRIPTIVE
LAUGHTER
A TEACHER is teaching a class
and she sees that Johnny isn’t paying
attention, so she asks him, “If there are
three ducks sitting on a fence, and you
shoot one, how many are left?”
Johnny says, “None.”
The teacher asks, “Why?”
Johnny says, “Because the shot scared
them all off.”
The teacher says, “No, two, but I like how
you’re thinking.”
Johnny asks the teacher, “If you see three
women walking out of an ice cream
parlour, one is licking, one is sucking and
the other is biting her ice cream, which
one is married?”
The teacher says, “The one sucking her
ice cream.”
Johnny says, “No, the one with the wed-
ding ring, but I like how you’re thinking!”
is the real issue.
Potassium, dietary fibre, iron,
vitamin C and vitamin B complex
is excellent for improving muscle
strength and blood pressure, bowel
movements, skin health, enhancing
red blood cell formation and sup-
porting the nervous and immune
system. It is the king of fruits.
As it contains high sugar, diabe-
tes sufferers must be careful. It is
therefore an instant energiser and
definitely a good way to destress.
No argument with that.
Usually to reduce the heaty
effect it is recommended that
mangosteens or rambutans are
consumed together as it has a
cooling effect. Well science says
no such thing. Coincidently, both
seasons happen at the same time.
Drinking beer or alcohol with
durians may kill you. Not really if
consumed in moderation but best
to avoid.
My durian fest began with durian
kampung in Kuantan where the
price was RM6 per kilo. The next
day, I continued in Jerantut where
the IOI variety was only RM10 per
kilo. A few days later, I was in Tapah
where I enjoyed other varieties in
the village.
I was told that on the way to
Cameron Highlands the durians
sold by the Orang Asal on the road
side are not from that area but was
brought up from Taiping or Kedah.
They have become a more com-
mercialised community now.
The idea of enjoying durians is to
consume it in moderation, just like
any other food. As a wise 93-year-
old man used to say, stop eating
before your stomach is full. It’s his
secret to longevity.
And to kill that gloriously pun-
gent smell, just pour some water
into the durian skin, wash your
fingers in it or simply drink it. Don’t
ask me how but it works.
As to improving the “lulian”
pronunciation of Miss Chinatown
Malaysia, that is another matter
altogether.
ADI SATRIA is a
veteran of marketing
communications. He
believes that food
makes a happy man but
everything should be
consumed in moderation.
Besides having parents
and grandparents who
lived beyond 90, the fact
that we hold the current
world record of the
oldest prime minister
proves that healthy and
moderate eating habits
can extend our life span
but not at the expense of
the quality of life.