SHAMELESS! Just look at his CB face, as if rejoicing in JBJ's passing away!
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>How I avoided heart attack
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><TR>Former minister Yeo Ning Hong shares dieting tips in new book </TR><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By April Chong
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LIANHE WANBAO FILE PHOTO
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->IT IS a book that starts off arrestingly enough.
In the preface of his latest effort at putting pen to paper, former Cabinet minister Yeo Ning Hong wrote: 'About 25 years ago, I almost gave my cardiologist a heart attack.'
<TABLE width=200 align=left valign="top"><TBODY><TR><TD class=padr8><!-- Vodcast --><!-- Background Story --><STYLE type=text/css> #related .quote {background-color:#E7F7FF; padding:8px;margin:0px 0px 5px 0px;} #related .quote .headline {font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:10px;font-weight:bold; border-bottom:3px double #007BFF; color:#036; text-transform:uppercase; padding-bottom:5px;} #related .quote .text {font-size:11px;color:#036;padding:5px 0px;} </STYLE>Dieting nuggets
Some tips from T.H.E A2z Diet:
Load up on fruits and greens. They are made up mainly of water and fibre, which have no calories.
NOW IN PRINT
'Now, they can just go read the book.'
Dr Yeo, who has been dispensing dieting advice to friends
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>With that, Dr Yeo, who served as Communications and Defence Minister, among other things, from 1984 to 1994, launches into a tale of how he came to be an expert of sorts on healthy dieting habits.
The new book, T.H.E A2z Diet: Dieting made as simple as possible, was launched yesterday.
It contains tips that Dr Yeo has followed for the last 25 years, ever since that fateful trip to the doctor.
The 65-year-old had penned several other books on the lighter side of mathematics before this, but sets a lofty target for his latest effort.
'It cuts through the mountain of information on dieting, nutrition and healthy living, which has so far not been able to help the 100 million people in the world who are overweight or obese,' he says in the introduction.
Recounting what led him down this path, Dr Yeo said that in his late 30s, he was running on a treadmill in his cardiologist's office as part of a battery of tests on his heart.
Suddenly, the doctor stopped the routine exam and told his patient that he appeared to be on the verge of a heart attack.
Further tests revealed that he suffered from blocked blood vessels and abnormal circulation, and the die was cast.
Forced to get serious about his health, Dr Yeo 'read everything on nutrition that crossed his path', and adopted a strict diet and exercise regime.
He halved the size of his meals, staving off hunger pangs by drinking 10 glasses of water a day. He also walks at least 10,000 steps daily, among other things.
He has also not had butter or margarine for the last 40 years, and eats three pieces of fruit before meals.
It shows, too. At the event yesterday, a trim and fit-looking Dr Yeo - according to the book, his BMI is below 25, and his total cholesterol level is way below 200 - said: 'I am a potential heart attack victim, so I have to be a little more careful.'
But many others can benefit from his experience as well, he said.
Increasing affluence, sedentary lifestyles and an explosion of processed foods make it important to watch one's diet, he said. 'Somehow, society has moved in this direction...We're glued to the screen in the office and at home.'
Dr Yeo, who now sits on the boards of several organisations, including Singapore Press Holdings, is no fan of expensive fad diets.
'You want a diet you can practise on a long-term basis which gives you results that are gradual and consistent,' he said.
He also pushes the healthy lifestyle to his family, and has a rule for his grandchildren when it comes to processed food and hidden fat: 'Never eat anything you can't see!'
Yesterday, he quipped that there was another reason for the book.
He has been dispensing dieting advice to friends, he said. 'Now, they can just go read the book.'
T.H.E A2z Diet, published by World Scientific, retails at major bookstores for $24.95 before GST. [email protected]
