Diners should cut down on flavorings such as soy sauce, oyster sauce, chili paste and shacha sauce (沙茶醬) since the condiments used in restaurants often have a high sodium content, which can lead to kidney damage, nephrologists from the Cathay General Hospital said yesterday at a press event promoting kidney health.
Feng Hsiang-hua (馮祥華), head of the hospital’s renal department, said diets rich in salt and fat can raise blood pressure, increase the concentration of lipids in the blood and worsen diabetes, while high intakes of sodium, potassium, magnesium and other metals are linked to reduced kidney function.
“Food at restaurants are often too richly flavored and don’t come with nutrition fact sheets, so people don’t know what they have eaten,” Feng added. “We are not suggesting to do away with seasoning all together. It is okay to eat rich-flavored food every now and then, but don’t make it a habit.”
Photo: CNA
A recent study published by Business Weekly found 80 percent of the nation’s dialysis patients frequently eat out and Feng said a similar proportion is found among patients with chronic kidney disease being treated at the hospital, among whom 45 percent have diabetes.
Currently, there are 70,000 patients on dialysis in Taiwan. The good news is that the number of new dialysis patients has steadily decreased since 2007, Feng said.
“Still, there are between 5,000 and 6,000 new patients receiving dialysis each year,” Feng added.
Every year, the Bureau of National Health Insurance (NHI) spends more than NT$30 billion (US$1 billion) on hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis, treatments for kidney failure, Feng said, with the yearly medical costs for one patient reaching NT$580,000 or more.
Feng said statistics compiled by the NHI show 50 percent of the nation’s dialysis patients are able to work normally, while 90 percent of patients can live independently.
Sixty-five-year-old Cheng Li-chen (鄭麗真), who has been on dialysis for 10 years, said renal failure did not necessarily compromise quality of life as long as one received proper medical care and followed a controlled diet.
“When I was young, there was no health information available,” Cheng said. “As an athlete, I sweated a lot, but drank little water. I also ate instant noodles regularly, and added lots of flavorings to my meals.”
Feng said a balanced diet and regular exercise are key to preventing renal damage, adding that the current recommendation is to consume less than 5g of table salt a day. Drinking water also helps, the physician added.
To people at high risk of developing renal failure, Feng offers the “3-3-3” rules, which he said were easy to remember.
“People with high blood pressure, high blood sugar and high blood lipids should have blood pressure checked and take blood and urine tests every three months,” he said.
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
A drunk woman was sexually assaulted inside a crowded concourse of Taipei Railway Station on Thursday last week before a foreign tourist notified police, leading to calls for better education on bystander intervention and review of security infrastructure. The man, surnamed Chiu (邱), was taken into custody on charges of sexual assault, taking advantage of the woman’s condition and public indecency. Police discovered that Chiu was a fugitive with prior convictions for vehicle theft. He has been taken into custody and is to complete his unserved six-month sentence, police said. On Thursday last week, Chiu was seen wearing a white
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
EVA Airways, one of the leading international carriers in Taiwan, yesterday said that it was investigating reports that a cabin crew manager had ignored the condition of a sick flight attendant, who died on Saturday. The airline made the statement in response to a post circulating on social media that said that the flight attendant on an outbound flight was feeling sick and notified the cabin crew manager. Although the flight attendant grew increasingly ill on the return flight, the manager did not contact Medlink — a system that connects the aircraft to doctors on the ground for treatment advice during medical
RSS