A Vietnam fruit, though Dragon fruit it is not - Milk fruit

People in Malaysia are blessed with the availability of a wide variety of local fruits. Someone at the office once commented that her diet of fruits at lunch is as effective as the best diet pills in the market. Talking about fruits, yesterday, I had the chance of tasting a fruit I have not ever tasted before.

What do you think is this fruit? A round green fruit. Seen anything like it locally? This fruit comes all the way from Vietnam, Saigon to be exact or rather Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC).

I have no idea what it's called but this friend said people in Vietnam refer to it as a milk fruit because the juice looks and tastes milky. How it's eaten over there is to sort of roll or squeeze the fruit to make the contents soft and juicy so that it can be sucked out with a straw. I tried that but to no avail as the pulp is too thick for a straw to go through so what I did was to cut the fruit into half, as in the picture, and scoop up the flesh with a spoon. Yum! It's sweet and aromatic but if you dig in deeper, it becomes sappy and you'll find sap on your lips as a result but nothing to worry about. It can be easily wiped off.

Here's how the fruits look like. The fruits are greenish with a tinge of pink at the base the more ripe they become. The skin is smooth and has a shine, almost glossy. It's round (totally) and fits snugly in your grasp. It feels like a mango, only a little softer and a lot smoother and nicer. I know, it's only a fruit.. The leaves are interesting. They are green on the top but brown on the underside. It's a seasonal fruit and they are available December onwards. It's in abundance right now. That's a Malaysian fifty sen coin for comparison.

Btw, any Vietnamese resident reading this? Would appreciate your first-hand insight on this delicious fruit.

Get Coupon Codes for Medifast Meals

Most of us have the notion that being on a diet is akin to just taking diet pills. It needn't be. There are specially-designed diet meal packages that have sufficient nutrients packed in at the same time maintaining a person's body weight. Take for instance, the meal package below. Doesn't the meal look healthful and delicious?


A pre-packaged Medifast diet meal is gaining popularity though it can be a little costly. With their coupon codes, one can realize substantial cost-savings.

Malaysians consume 26 teaspoons of sugar every day

Looks like all the posts I've written about diet pills and weight loss pills and such may not be in vain. Some people may be able to use the products afterall.

There is an article in The Star today that indicates Malaysians consume 26 teaspoons of sugar every day, says CAP (Consumer Assocation of Penang).

And this is on a DAILY basis mind you, as revealed in a 2005 survey. That's not the end. Early this year, the country was ranked the world’s eighth highest sugar user.

Here's balance of the article:

In the 70s, Malaysians only consumed 17 teaspoons of sugar per person per day.

Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) president S.M. Mohamed Idris said the consumption might have increased further by now, as the last research was done in 2005.

He said Malaysians consumed sugar in the form of, among others, soft drinks, condensed milk, flavoured drinks, junk food and even breakfast cereals. A CAP survey revealed that some drinks and food contained 10 teaspoons of sugar in one serving.

Idris said a brand of orange juice contained 40.8 teaspoons of sugar in a two-litre pack while a brand of cordial syrup had 200 teaspoons in a two-litre bottle.

He also said former Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad revealed earlier this year that Malaysia was the eighth highest sugar users in the world.

He said the International Diabetes Institute recorded Malaysia as having the fourth highest number of diabetics in Asia with 800,000 cases in 2007, which was expected to increase to 1.3 million in 2010.

“Sugar is linked to over 60 ailments such as cancer, diabetes, obesity, heart problems, osteoporosis, kidney problems, asthma and allergies.

“According to the Health Ministry’s statistics, 11.6 million of the 16 million adults nationwide are sick with a non-communicable disease like diabetes, hypertension or cancer.

“Malaysia has the most overweight and obese people in Asia with 54% of the adult population either being obese or overweight,” Idris told a press conference at CAP office yesterday.

“Thus, CAP calls on the Government to work with food manufacturers to avoid sugar in their products,” he added.

He also urged the Government to make it a requirement for manufacturers to graphically display the sugar content in their products by the number of teaspoons as well as colour labelling with red, orange and green indicating the sugar level as high, medium or low respectively.

“The Government should also stop advertisements of highly-sugared drinks and food during children’s television viewing hours, and educate schoolchildren and the public on the dangers of excessive sugar intake,” Idris said.


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Not All Diet Pills Are Bad

There is often a misconception that diet pills are not good for the body as they do more harm than good. But if you study the ingredients that make up the pills, you would realise it is clearly unfounded.

I happen to come across what goes into this diet pill, Orovo. Let’s take a look at the key ingredients found in Orovo:

• Green Tea
• Alpha Lipoic Acid
• DMAE
• Idebenone
• Acai
• Lactobacillus Acidophilus
• Soy
• Barley
• Cayenne Pepper
• Buckwheat
• Flaxseed
• Alfalfa Sprout
• Garlic
• Wheatgrass

See what I mean? I am not familiar with all of these ingredients but the ones I am familiar with are some of the very food items we make an effort to consume more of for their goodness or nutrients. I guess this does change our belief about diet pills, wouldn't you say, not that I need any. Well, if you do, just be sure to gather enough information so that you would be able to make an informed decision.

Are You On Twitter, yet?

These days, Twitter makes up a part of my online life and to think that I was reluctant to get on it in the first place! It has given me a wider perspective of what people do around the world or at least in the world of the people I follow. I even get to know what a cat is up to! I know. It's kinda silly but hey, a cat has every right to twitter too! LOL!

I get some wisdom from Tiny Buddha and some other insights and chuckles from people like Shaqquile O'Neil, Lance Armstrong, single moms, writers, actors, geeks, corporate co-founders, and other ordinary but interesting people. Al Gore, too. And yes, Obama as well. Yeah..

Zappos recently got an order from a customer shipping to McMurdo Station in Antarctica. Interesting. And someone got a good commision from his affiliate link on Amazon from an order for 5 $1000 Herman Miller Aeron chairs. That rings a bell because my office is fully furnished in Herman Miller.

Through Twitter, I get to see remarkable works of art, listen to new music, get tipped on books and other reading material, get to know events around the globe, and so much more. Frankly, I have a thirst for knowledge, so Twitter works great to satiate that thirst. Fortunately, one can't get overweight with knowledge, otherwise I will have to resort to some diet pill, alli, for instance, to shed the extra weight. LOL!

Are You On Phentermine?

Hey, I'm glad you people (who read my blog) are slim and trim. But, I don't think I can say the same (slim and trim) for most of the people I meet on the streets. I notice more and more young people are packing on those pounds, probably in part due to the vast variety of fastfood available. Yeah, blame it on something or other.

Our busy lifestyle is not helping. Lack of self-discipline is another. So what do we do? We want something quick and convenient. We turn to diet pills. But how do we know which brand is the one for us? If you are contemplating a purchase, it is only natural that you would want to know how each brand stacks up against the other. For example, Phentermine ranks at #35 out of the Top 200 Diet Pills reviewed. Where does your brand stand?