Do you prefer coffee or tea? For me, I always go for tea as it's easier and lighter on my palate, without leaving the strong lingering taste that coffee gives after swallowing.

Recently, I learnt something worrying about tea leaves. I was told that many unscrupulous tea plantation owners maximise their profits by making sure every leaf is used. How do they ensure that? By spraying a lot of pesticides on their plants so that none of the leaves are "lost" to the insects and pests. Regular consumption of such tea will definitely cause harm to our body and our liver.

You will be glad to know there is a tea formulation which is safe from such "crime". What is this tea? It's called Lu Chun Lingzhi Tea.


The base of this beverage is Oolong Tea, also called Camellia Sinensis. It gives off a sweet, mellow aroma without bitterness. The tea polyphenols in its formulation promote:

• Fat metabolism.
• Reduce greasiness and sense of oiliness.
• Have antioxidant effects, helping to neutralize excess free radicals consumed from rich foods.

This functional Tea also contains 3 other ingredients which together, give a uniquely rich flavour and are health-enhancing in their own ways. They are:

What are sinuses? They are hollow spaces in the skull located behind the nasal cavities and eyes. Under normal circumstances, mucous is able to drain out of these sinuses and air is able to circulate. When the sinus cavities around our nose is inflamed and swollen, this will interfere with the drainage, causing mucous build-up. This is called sinusitis.

Sinusitis is a common problem worldwide, and affects about 12.8% Malaysians.

Common Sinus Conditions

• Acute sinusitis - sinus infection that lasts between 7 and 10 days. Most often caused by the common cold.
• Chronic sinusitis - long term sinus inflammation lasting more than 12 weeks. Keeps recurring despite treatment.

Causes of Sinusitis

• viral, bacterial or fungal infection
• allergies eg. hay fever, food allergies, pollutants
• nasal polyps or tumours
• deviated nasal septum
• enlarged or infected adenoids in children
• tooth infection
• immune system disorders

Symptoms of Sinusitis
If a common cold worsens after 5 to 7 days, one may suffer from acute sinusitis. Symptoms include:

• bad breath or loss of sense of smell
• cough, often worse at night
• fatigue and generally not feeling well
• fever
• headache - pressure-like pain behind the eyes, toothache, facial tenderness
• nasal congestion and discharge
• sore throat and postnasal drip

Symptoms of chronic sinusitis are the same as above (no fever), but tend to be milder.

Complications Arising from Acute Sinusitis

• It can trigger an asthmatic attack or it could flare into chronic sinusitis. 
• It can occur with an ear infection.
• It can cause reduced vision or even blindness.
• It may cause infection of the brain. When the brain is infected by the invasion of anaerobic bacteria through the bones or blood vessels, it can cause abscesses, meningitis, and other life-threatening conditions.

How to Reduce the Risk of Getting Sinusitis

Pelvic pain or discomfort is a common occurrence in women. Pain in the pelvic or lower abdomen area is actually a very general symptom that can be a sign of many conditions, not just premenstrual syndrome.

Pelvic pain refers to any sort of pain or discomfort in the abdomen below the belly button. As this is a rather large area, the pain could originate from several sources. Some of the main causes of pelvic pain are:-

1. Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) and Menstruation

The most common cause of pelvic pain in women is PMS. Before our monthly menstrual cycle begins, our hormones start to go through changes to prepare our body for ovulation and conception. These hormonal fluctuations can cause PMS symptoms, starting from 5 to 11 days before menstruation. Some symptoms are:-

• abdominal cramps
• low back pain
• headache
• tender breasts
• acne
• mood swings

Some of us experience cramps in our lower abdomen or back during our menstrual period, caused by our uterus contracting to push out the menstrual blood.

2. Ovulation

Between our periods, our ovaries will release an egg, along with some fluid and blood, which may cause us to feel a painful twinge in our abdomen. This pain may be experienced midway through our menstrual cycle, and it may switch from left to right side during different months (depending on which ovary releases the egg). This pain goes away within a few hours.

3. Appendicitis

This is when our appendix becomes infected and inflamed. It could potentially burst and cause complications or death. If it's a sudden sharp pain in our lower abdomen, on the lower right area of our stomach, accompanied by vomiting and fever, it may be appendicitis.

4. Ectopic pregnancy

This is a life-threatening condition where the embryo implants outside of the uterus, usually in the fallopian tubes. The symptoms are:

• a sharp pain in the lower abdomen or pelvic area
• cramps on 1 side of the pelvic
• abnormal vaginal bleeding
• nausea
• dizziness

This may occur during early stages of pregnancy.

5. Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)

The 2 most common STDs that affect women are chlamydia and gonorrhea. The symptoms are:

• pelvic pain
• painful urination
• bleeding between periods
• abnormal vaginal discharge

6. Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)

STDs can go on to cause PID. The symptoms are:

• pelvic pain
• fever
• abnormal vaginal discharge
• pain during sex
• pain during urination

PID is a serious consequence of untreated STDs and can cause permanent damage to the uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes, leading to infertility.

7. Ovarian cysts

This forms during ovulation when the ovary doesn't release the egg, or the follicle (sac in the ovary) recloses after releasing the egg and swells with fluid. A large size cyst can cause:

• pelvic pain
• weight gain 
• frequent urination.

Some cysts don't cause any pain and resolve on their own.

8. Fibroids

Uterine fibroids are non-cancerous tumours or growths that grow on the wall of the uterus. Fibroids are very common and many women develop them during their childbearing years without suffering from any pain or symptoms. However, some fibroids can cause:

• pelvic cramping
• pain during menstruation
• pressure in the lower abdomen
• pain during sexual intercourse
• lower back pain
• abnormal menstrual bleeding

(Source: StarFit4Life, What's That Pain? by Dr Nor Ashikin Mokhtar 25 December 2011)

Oh No.. Any Solution?

Yes. Yung Kien Lingzhi / Ganoderma together with Yung Kien Pollen have a history of being able to regulate our body's hormonal system so they are able to successfully reduce PMS symptoms and menstrual cramps. I can certainly vouch for that, as I used to go on medical leave almost monthly during my menses, but I hardly suffer from menstrual cramps anymore now.

Further, Lingzhi boosts up the body immune system and increase the number and activity of natural killer cells of our body. This strengthens the anti-tumour capability and tumour-suppression power of the cells, which activate the cells to inhibit subsequent tumour growth. I personally know of several friends with proven instances of seeing their fibroid growths shrunk after taking high-dosage Lingzhi over a mere several weeks.

For ladies who have to undergo operation, Jia Hor Instant Soya Protein Powder is able to help them recuperate from surgical operation. It helps their wounds heal quickly by generating new cells and repairing the skin that is damaged from the operation.

Please email me at laifuiping@gmail.com to buy. Click here to refer to Shuang Hor company website for Product Description and Price.

Most of us have heard of (or even use) the terms free radical, oxidation and antioxidant when we talk about health or ageing. If you're a bit hazy on what they all mean, I hope this post will help clear up some of your confusion.

What is Free Radical?
It is any atom or molecule that has a single unpaired electron in the outer shell and hence is not stable. 

What is Oxidation?
For the free radicals to become stable, it has to "steal" an electron from our body cells to stabilize itself, resulting in the death of our cells. Oxidation is the process of robbing electrons from our cells by the free radicals. If there are many free radicals, our cells become more fragile and weaker when the free radicals attack the DNA and change the structure of our cells. So the more free radicals there are, the more easily a person will fall sick, age and die.


What is Antioxidant?
Antioxidant is the substance that may protect our cells against free radicals. It can prevent or slow the oxidative damage to our body. Antioxidants act as "free radical scavengers" and hence prevent and repair the damage done by these free radicals. 


Where do Free Radicals come from?
Free radicals are molecules produced when our body breaks down food or from environmental exposures like tobacco smoke and radiation. Free radicals are also produced with each breathe we take. Each of our cell has a "generator" to produce energy, called Mitochondria. When we breath, the mitochondria takes in oxygen and releases a waste material called free radical. There are 2 types, namely, Superoxide Radical and Hydroxyl Radical. 

What sort of Harm will Free Radicals Cause?
If the quantum is too high, it will damage our cells, make them vulnerable and die easily. This happens to people with stroke, cancer or arteriosclerosis (hardening of arteries).

Free radicals will also cause us to age faster; makes us grow old more quickly.
Further, it will make our body organs deteriorate faster.

How does our Body Eliminate Free Radicals?
Our blood has natural antioxidant enzymes, which are capable to eliminate these free radicals. It's called a Multi-Enzymatic Anti-Oxidation System, comprising of these main enzymes:
a) Glutathione
b) Superoxide dismutase (SOD)
c) Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase (G6PD)
d) Catalase


How healthy is a person depends on:
a) How good is his defense system (white blood cells)
b) How good is his multi-enzymatic system. If it is working well, he will feel energetic and healthy. For instance, a person suffering from an inherited disorder called G6PD deficiency has red blood cells (RBCs) that cannot transport oxygen effectively throughout the body. Their RBCs are destroyed faster than their body can replace them.


What Foods Provide Antioxidants?
Vitamins C and E eg. from fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
Alpha lipoic acid, generally made by our body but also found in red meat.
Polyphenol from grapes.
Lycopene eg. from tomatoes, grapefruits, watermelons.
Green tea.



How does Lingzhi Work to Eliminate Free Radicals?

When you collect your medical check-up results, you see many acronyms and ranges of numbers, right? It can get very confusing. Even after careful explanation by the doctor, some of us are still confused or tend to forget. If you wonder what they all mean, read on for a simple summary.


Measurements of the Components of Red Blood Cells (RBC)

1. RBC (erythrocyte). Counts the number of RBC we have per litre of our blood plasma.
Normal range:
Male: 4.3 to 6.2 million cells per microliter
Female and children: 3.8 to 5.5 million cells per microliter

2. Hb (haemoglobin). Measures the amount of Hb in our blood. Hb is the component that carries oxygen in our RBC and gives our blood its red colour. A low Hb means you have anaemia.
Normal range:
Male: 13.2 to 16.2 grams per deciliter
Female: 12.0 to 15.2 grams per deciliter

3. Hct (haematocrit). Ratio of the volume of red cells to our whole blood. Lowered haematocrit can imply significant haemorrhage.
Normal range:
Male: 40% to 52%
Female: 37% to 46%

4. MCV (mean corpuscular volume). This is the average volume (size) of our red blood cell. A high MCV may signify the presence of a disease such as megaloblastic anaemia (big RBC).

5. MCH (mean corpuscular haemoglobin). This is the average amount of Hb in our RBC. A low measurement signifies anaemia.

6. MCHC (mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration). This measures the average concentration of Hb in a volume of RBC.
Normal range: 32% to 36%

Measurement of the Components of White Blood Cells (WBC) and Platelets

1. WBC (leukocyte). Counts the number of WBC we have per litre of our blood plasma. A significantly high WBC count can signify infection or suffering from certain types of blood diseases.

• Metabolism and storage of food
• Conversion and transportation of medicine
• Detoxification and excretion of toxic substances ingested or inhaled
• Synthesis of protein
• Involvement in food digestion (conversion of hemoglobin into bilirubin to aid digestion).

1. viral infection, where the most prevalent are hepatitis B and C (AST/ALT ratio less than 1).
2. alcoholic damage (AST/ALT ratio more than 2).
3. chemical damage including ingestion or inhalation of toxic substances. 

Since our liver lacks nerves, damage at the initial stage may go unrecognized. To date, viral hepatitis remains incurable and can only be controlled by western medicines such as silymarin (extract of the milk thistle seeds), the one most commonly used. Providing protection for the liver, rather than waiting to treat liver disorders when they arise, may be the best way forward since it is almost impossible to avoid contact with the toxic substances that may affect the liver.
Once liver cells are damaged, they will release GPT (ALT) and GOT (AST) enzymes - the greater the damage, the higher the values of these liver function indices. GPT is a more representative index on account of its liver specificity. GOT also exists in the heart, kidneys, skeletal muscle and brain.

Research into the Effects of Ganoderma on Liver Function

Over 30 scientific studies have been published on the usage of ganoderma in liver protection. These are some of the references on studies published since 2000:


An official testing method uses a strict and rigorous approach employing a "chronic poisoning" model, which involves using carbon tetrachloride to induce chronic hepatic injury in rats. This requires 8 weeks of feeding the toxic substances to rats and examining their effects on the liver. The rats are divided into 5 groups:

a) control group (no medication given)
b) carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) group
c) silymarin group
d) low-dosage ganoderma group
e) high-dosage ganoderma group.

The results are as follows:


The test results show that rats receiving ganoderma products (extracted from YK-01 strain) showed significant decreases in GPT and GOT values after 3 weeks. This shows that ganoderma was able to reduce hepatic injury induced by CCl4. The efficacy is dose-dependent. i.e. the more ganoderma was taken (from 0.5g/Kg to 3.0g/Kg), the more the inflammation was alleviated and liver function indices lowered. Thus, in animal testing model for lowering serum GPT and GOT values, ganoderma extract has the effect of alleviating injuries related to the liver.

When the liver is injured, it will activate the function of liver cell regeneration. The experiment found that mice taking CCl4 together with ganoderma were found to have high levels of protein in their livers. This tendency is also dose-dependent - higher dosage (0.5g/Kg to 3.0g/Kg) of ganoderma led to greater levels of liver protein. Ganoderma is not a high-protein food, but interestingly, the results demonstrated that it helped to increase the quantity of protein in the liver. The liver cells also show greater powers of regeneration. In other words, ganoderma can increase the quantity of protein in the liver, and enhance liver cell reproduction.

This study was published in the The American Journal of Chinese Medicine in 2004.

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This test results shows the effects of ganoderma and silymarin in reducing hepatic fibrosis:



The study also concluded that although silymarin is considered to be an effective treatment of hepatitis, it demonstrated a lesser effect on reducing fibrosis than that of ganoderma. Increasing the dose of silymarin might provide better results but with the increased possibility of more side effects.

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In another study in 2006, Bi-Fong Lin and Miao-Ling Chen from National Taiwan University fed ganoderma extracts from the fruiting body of the YK-01 strain to mice for 7 weeks. The results indicate that ganoderma has anti-oxidation ability, i.e. prevent our liver from oxidation.

Study on the Effect of Ganoderma on Protecting Human Liver

In 2005, Prof. Jin-Kun Wang from Chung Shan Medical University conducted a clinical trial on 40 healthy volunteers using Ganoderma YK-01 fruiting body extracts over 3-6 months.  Their average GPT values during consumption of ganoderma were measured and are listed in the table below:


In other words,

• YK-01 ganoderma extract decreases liver indices values.
• The longer the extract is used, the more the hepatic GPT value dropped.

(Source: Ganoderma The Ultimate Herbal Medicine, Chapter 4, by Dr. Deng-Hai Chen)

Please contact me at askfuiping@gmail.com to buy Yung Kien Ganoderma, which is manufactured using the Ganoderma YK-01 strain.
Click here to refer to Shuang Hor company website for Product Description and Price.