Beware & Protect Yourself 03 (Sep 10 - Dec 14)

[kennynah]

the e-coli outbreak in europe, particularly from germany, seems to be traced to bean sprouts from some german city...

since many people i know like stir fried bean sprout with giam chai...thought you might wana know..

[winston]

Fish Fraud

With all the emphasis on the health benefits of fish in recent years, it's disappointing to find that we're in an era of phony fish.

The New York Times reports that researchers using gene sequencers to identify fish species have concluded that as much as 25 percent of all commercial fish products are incorrectly identified.

Put another way: it's fraud.

Mahi-mahi can pass as yellowtail tuna, grouper can pass as catfish, and the Times calls tilapia "the Meryl Streep of seafood." Apparently tilapia can be brilliantly passed off as all kinds of different fish.

The FDA has installed several gene sequencers in field labs to review fish samples. They're expected to be up and running in a few months (like, in a year maybe?).

But the fish fraud problem won't really be controlled until the technology catches up. Scientists predict the situation will change dramatically when hand-held sequencers are available to inspectors -- probably within 10 years.

In the meantime, you can help ensure that the fish you're eating is the actual variety of fish you ordered by purchasing fish from reputable sellers and reputable restaurants -– especially those who deal in whole fish.

A fish is harder to pass off as something it's not when it's still whole -– from head to tailfin. But when it arrives already cut into steaks or filets, or otherwise packaged and prepared -– especially if it's breaded or obscured by sauce -– it just might be tilapia putting on a Meryl-quality performance.


Source: HSI

[winston]

Would you pay $130 for a plate of crab bee hoon? By Fann Sim

The chef of a popular seafood restaurant at Geylang has defended charging his customers high prices, including $130 for a plate of crab bee hoon.

The restaurant in question, Sin Huat Seafood Restaurant, is under the spotlight after a Yahoo! reader said she was charged $421 for a dinner for four adults and two children when she visited the eatery for dinner earlier this month.

Dinner at Sin Huat Seafood Restaurant came up to $421 for Gelene Ong and her family. (courtesy of Gelene Ong)

Salesperson Gelene Ong, who went there with her family of six, received a rude shock when she saw the final bill.

Her dinner consisted of crab bee hoon ($130), scallops ($50), conch or gong gong ($50), prawns ($77), frog legs ($78) and vegetables ($12). Other items on the bill were peanuts and drinks ($20.40) and wet towels ($3.60).

However, chef Danny Lee said in response, "It's all a one-man show. Every dish we have, I make sure I take the orders and cook it myself. I also make sure that my ingredients are clean and fresh."

When Yahoo! Singapore visited his restaurant this week, he also explained the steps he takes to ensure that his dishes are fresh.

"For my gong gong (conch), I always tell people 'if you don't take my gong gong here, try not to take it elsewhere. I keep my gong gong in the tanks for a week for it to clear out the mud and dirt."

He also voiced his doubts that other seafood restaurants actually serve live seafood.

"They are serving such a big crowd everyday and they always only have a few fishes in the tanks. At the end of the day, you still see the fish swimming in the tank," said the chef.

At the time, customer Ong said she had visited the restaurant because the place was recommended by her friend who said she should try the crab bee hoon.

But she said she "didn't expect it to be so expensive" and was also put off by the lack of communication between her and the restaurant. She was not informed of the prices when her orders were taken.

"The restaurant had no menu. The service crew was also pushy about getting us to order an extra fish when we already had so much food," Ong added.

The extra fish she was asked to order was Cheng yu, otherwise known as Parrot Fish, and it comes at $120 per kilogram.
Chef Lee clarified that his restaurant does not provide menus.

"We don't have a menu. People who come here know me and, most of the time, they will ask me how much the dishes are. It just happened that on the day she visited the restaurant, she did not ask for the prices. Even if she asked, I would not have charged her differently," Lee said.

Chef Lee took out a stack of receipts to show the amount paid by other customers. It was exactly as he said: the prices were standardised.

It's not the first time the seafood restaurant has hit the headlines.

Chef Lee, who is known to be the "food nazi of Geylang", can be quite obnoxious, according to reviews posted on popular food site HungryGoWhere.

Potential customers visiting Sin Huat are also warned to be prepared for long waits and should avoid ordering from food stalls beside the restaurant.

"Sometimes people complain I serve too slow. I only have two hands and I'm the only cook. People may see me looking like I'm angry or impatient because I have no time to entertain them," Chef Lee explained.

His favourite customers are those who know how to appreciate good food.

"No point buying cheap food and it doesn't taste good. There's nothing special about that," said the owner of the restaurant who's hosted the likes of celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain.

Expensive meals have been in the limelight recently. Last month, Yahoo! Singapore ran a story about nasi lemak going for $8.30 along Upper Serangoon Road.

An expatriate diner was also charged $1,107.32 for a seafood lunch for two at Boat Quay's Forum Seafood Village Restaurant earlier this week, reported Today newspaper.

CASE has received 12 complaints for alleged overcharging by food and beverage outlets from January to May this year.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/singapor ... 15055.html

[millionairemind]

I always find this kind of news amusing..

No menu, no prices... can't ask for one???

Why subject yourself to this kind of "bo-liang" treatment just because you heard that the food is good???

I never believe that good food can make up for poor service....

[kennynah]

a bit too ridiculous man... kopi tiam charge $130 fo a crab bee hoon...

i buay pai seh one...whereever i go, when they don't state price, i always make sure to ask first...

if i was that woman...i won't pay...i would have called for the police ...

[Poles]

a bit too ridiculous man... kopi tiam charge $130 fo a crab bee hoon...

i buay pai seh one...whereever i go, when they don't state price, i always make sure to ask first...

if i was that woman...i won't pay...i would have called for the police ...

bro, that one is at geylang lor 33/34 very famous crab beehoon for long time liao....
everyone who goes there to eat will know the pricing or else you wouldn't bother to step into that lorong....it is not even near the happening lorongs
btw that kopitiam also serve wine...

[winston]

Hong Kong declares scarlet fever outbreak by Joyce Woo
AFP Asian Edition

Hong Kong has declared an outbreak of scarlet fever, an illness potentially fatal among children, after hundreds were infected in the teeming city, the government said Tuesday.

A seven-year-old girl in the southern Chinese city died late last month while there have been more than 400 cases so far this year, a Centre for Health Protection spokesman told AFP Tuesday.

Hong Kong's 419 scarlet fever infections in 2011 are already the highest annual total in the city, and more than three times the figure for the whole of last year. There were 142 cases in the first half of June.

"We have seen an unusually high number of infection cases this year," the spokesman said, describing the situation as an "outbreak".

Local scientists said the outbreak may be linked to a deadly new strain of the disease which could make it more contagious than in the past.

A unique gene fragment was present in the bacteria's genome "which might contribute to increased transmissibility of this strain," said the health protection centre statement, released late Monday.

The new strain, discovered by researchers at the University of Hong Kong, appears to be resistant to antibiotics traditionally used to fight the illness, the spokesman added.

Children under 10 made up 93 percent of the reported cases and most of the infections were mild, the statement said.

Hong Kong is particularly nervous about infectious diseases following the 2003 SARS outbreak, which killed 300 people in the city and a further 500 worldwide.

The densely city populated city of seven million has also seen fatalities from multiple swine flu outbreaks.

Thomas Tsang, the health protection centre's controller, described the outbreak as an "epidemic", according to the South China Morning Post.

Mainland China and the former Portuguese enclave Macau, about an hour by ferry from Hong Kong, have also seen surges in scarlet fever cases "suggesting a regional phenomenon (is) at play," the government statement said.

Tse Hung-hing, former president and current board member of the Hong Kong Medical Association, said he expects more scarlet fever cases in the coming months.

"We are seeing a rising trend. We don't know how many more will come. We haven't seen the top yet," he told AFP.

"The bacteria is becoming more resistant to antibiotics traditionally used," Tse added.

Scarlet fever mainly affects children between the ages of two and eight. Symptoms include fever, sore throat, rashes and a "strawberry coloured" tongue, and usually subside within 48 hours with appropriate antibiotic treatment.

Source: AFP Asian Edition

[winston]

File it here first while I think of a place for it ..

Splash! What to Do When Your Gadget Gets Wet By Samantha Murphy, TechNewsDaily

Everyone knows that gadgets and water don't get along. But fear not, all may not be lost when your smartphone, digital camera or other tech device takes an unexpected nose dive into the pool or ocean. Resuscitation can still be done with the help of a few key tips.

Although your gut reaction may be to take the battery out of your drenched device, dry it off and try it again, the battery should remain out until it's completely dry to avoid a shortage. Then use a towel to not only dry the battery, but also the area inside the device where the battery sits.

However, resist all temptation to pick up a hair dryer or let the device sit in the sun to help along the drying process. Gadgets need to be dried with still, dry air, not with excess heat.

Drying the device shouldn't stop with just cleaning up the wet areas. Place the device into a covered bowl or container of dry, uncooked rice to soak up all of the moisture from the device. It should sit there overnight in a cool, dry place.

Uncover the container the next morning, remove the device and hope for the best.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/splash-gadget- ... 03002.html

[winston]

Shocking reports say TSA workers are developing "cancer clusters" from airport body scanners
From Infowars:

Fearful of provoking further public resistance to naked airport body scanners, the TSA has been caught covering up a surge in cases of TSA workers developing cancer as a result of their close proximity to the radiation-firing devices, perhaps the most shocking revelation to emerge from the latest FOIA documents obtained by the Electronic Privacy Information Center.

After union representatives in Boston discovered a "cancer cluster" amongst TSA workers linked with radiation from the body scanners, the TSA sought to downplay the matter and refused to issue employees with dosimeters to measure levels of exposure.

The documents indicate how "a large number of workers have been falling victim to cancer, strokes, and heart disease."


http://www.infowars.com/cancer-surges-i ... -cover-up/

[winston]

Hong Kong orders recall of GSK children's drug

HONG KONG — Hong Kong has ordered pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline to recall an antibiotic used to treat infections in children which contained chemical additives, and warned it may sue the drugmaker.

The health department on Monday said tests revealed the British firm's Augmentin antibiotic tablet contained several plasticisers, including diisodecyl phthalate (DIDP), raising "quality concerns."

But the department said the amount of the chemicals -- used to make plastics pliable -- uncovered in the Augmentin tablets was "considered unlikely to cause acute harmful effects if taken according to the recommended dosage."

The health department said in a statement it would "seek Department of Justice's advice on possible legal actions against (GlaxoSmithKline)."

"Since GSK could not provide satisfactory explanation on sources of the plasticisers, the quality of the product is in question."

In a statement Tuesday, the drug firm said it had launched an "urgent and thorough investigation" to determine the source of the additives.

"GSK does not intentionally use any plasticisers in the manufacture of Augmentin," it said, adding they were "significantly lower than the levels that the US and European authorities deem as presenting risk to humans."

Last month, Hong Kong's health watchdog ordered a recall of the antibiotic in syrup form after it discovered elevated levels of DIDP, warning that long-term consumption at high levels may have adverse effects on the liver.

China, South Korea, the Philippines and Hong Kong banned imports of certain food and drinks from Taiwan after some were found to contain plasticisers, which experts say can cause hormone problems in children.

Taiwan prosecutors said last month they were seeking long jail terms for four people on charges of selling the banned chemicals to food makers, triggering the island's worst food scare in decades.

Source: AFP.