YOUR GUIDE TO LIVING WELL
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2013
HEALTH POST THE RISE OF THE DESIGNER VAGINA >PAGE 4
HEYROBICS: SWEAT LIKE A SWEDE >PAGE 8
Suddenly olive oil has many rivals on the supermarket shelves >PAGE 6
Time for an oil change?
2 NEWS HONG KONG FITNESS
CASE HISTORY
Life is just not worth the weight for most of us
Ballet teacher regains footing
...................................................... Jeanette Wang jeanette.wang@scmp.com Hong Kong has serious weighty issues, based on figures released by the Census and Statistics Department last week. About five years ago, the percentage of Hong Kong adults who were overweight/obese stood at about 39 per cent, according to the Centre for Health Protection. The latest survey, conducted between April 2011 and January last year by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, reveals that more than half of adults aged 40 and over are carrying too much weight. The overweight/obesity level generally increases as age advances: infants (13.5 per cent), children (26.9 per cent), adolescents (14 per cent), young adults (38 per cent), middleaged adults (56.9 per cent), and elderly (61.5 per cent). World Health Organisation standards for Asians defines overweight as a body mass
index (BMI) of at least 23 and obesity as 25 and above. BMI is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by the square of height in metres. Central obesity, or waist circumference of over 90cm for men and 80cm for women, is another indication of overweight/obesity. This had the same general increasing pattern with age: young adults 15.7 per cent, middle-aged 32.1 per cent, and elderly 44 per cent. The findings are part of the first city-wide physical fitness test conducted to ascertain the patterns, overall lifestyle and attitudes of Hongkongers towards physical activity. The test, which also included a survey questionnaire, was devised with reference to the China National Fitness Survey conducted by the General Administration of Sport of China. About 8,200 residents aged three to 69 were randomly sampled. Excess weight is linked to a lack of exercise: participation in physical activity was found to decrease with age, from 51.8 per cent in children to 36.5 per cent in the elderly. People who had physical activity of moderate or above intensity at least three days a week with accumulation of 30 minutes or more per day were classified as “active”. Among those who claimed they were “not active”, the major reasons were: “lack of spare time”, “lack of interest”, “tiredness”, “inclement weather” and “laziness”.
ASK THE DOCTORS DR KELVIN LEE Q: How do you treat a sty? My eye is so swollen that it’s almost shut A: A sty is an infection of the oil or sweat glands at the eyelid margins. They are usually mild and require only topical antibiotics like eye drops or ointments. However, the infection and inflammation can spread and cause swelling of the surrounding eyelids, causing them to close. Oral antibiotics as well as topical antibiotic treatment would then be required. As the infection can spread to the eye and surrounding tissues,
an ophthalmologist should be consulted. If an area of pus is detected in the eyelid, a procedure called incision and drainage is performed to remove the trapped secretions. This will aid in the recovery of the infection and lid swelling. Sties can occur in other areas of the eyelid, as well. Cleaning the eyelid margins daily will prevent recurrences. Dr Kelvin Lee Yoon Chiang is a specialist in ophthalmology and the medical director of glaucoma services and surgery at Eagle Eye Centre at Mount Elizabeth Novena in Singapore
> CONTACT US Deputy Culture Editor: Choong Tet Sieu tetsieu.choong@scmp.com Health Post Editor: Jeanette Wang jeanette.wang@scmp.com General inquiries: healthpost@scmp.com Advertising: tel: 2565 2435; e-mail advertising@scmp.com Printed and published by South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd, Morning Post Centre, 22 Dai Fat Street, Tai Po Industrial Estate, Tai Po, Hong Kong. Tel: 2680 8888
...................................................... Jeanette Wang jeanette.wang@scmp.com Graeme Collins, 63, a retired ballet dancer who now teaches, knew he was in dire straits when he first felt his ankle joint getting stiff about 14 years ago. “My left ankle was a mess,” he says. At the time, he was the head of ballet at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, after a successful 17-year career as a professional dancer in Australia, London, Sweden and South Africa. “I had sprained my ankle a number of times as a dancer,” he recalls. After retiring from dancing, he developed an interest in longdistance hiking and squash, and those activities caused a few more sprains on his now-weary ankle.
About five years ago, Collins felt his ankle becoming increasingly immobile and painful, and he started to walk with a limp. He iced and strapped it, and saw the physiotherapist at the Academy. It didn’t help much. He lived with the pain for a while more, but when it became tougher to demonstrate dance moves in class, he decided to take further action. His general practitioner did an X-ray of the ankle and confirmed it was deformed. The physician referred him to Dr Yeung Yeung, a specialist in orthopaedics and traumatology at Matilda International Hospital. “Mr Collins couldn’t put his left foot flat on the floor because of the ankle deformity. He was walking on the outside of the foot and was in a lot of pain,” Yeung recalls of her
first meeting with him. “Repeated injury to the outer ligament of the ankle meant it could no longer support the joint.” Yeung, a sub-specialist in foot and ankle surgery, fitted Collins with orthotics for six months – a “conservative way” to try to control the pain and prevent the injury from worsening. That didn’t help either, so surgery was discussed. The gold standard for advanced ankle arthritis is fusion surgery, which fuses the ankle joint solidly together to keep it stable and painfree when bearing weight (such as during walking and standing). However, the ankle joint becomes stiff and motionless afterwards. Some patients may develop arthritis in adjacent joints about 10 years after the initial surgery.
HEALTH BITES ...................................................... Jeanette Wang jeanette.wang@scmp.com
Right plate at the right time When you eat is as important as what you eat, and a study published in the journal Current Biology provides new evidence as to why. Researchers from Vanderbilt University in Tennessee found that insulin, the hormone that regulates carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body, has rising and falling action according to a 24-hour circadian rhythm. Tests on mice revealed that animals unable to keep the time, due to a genetic defect or constant exposure to light, lost the rhythm and got stuck in an insulinresistant and obesity-prone mode. “Mediterranean diets, in which the main meal is eaten in the middle of the day, are probably healthier,” lead author Carl Johnson says. “It’s probably best to eat a light supper and avoid snacking after dinner.”
Pears and graces An avocado a day keeps the doctor away? Perhaps. Analysing data from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, researchers found that adults who ate avocados in any amount during a 24-hour dietary recording period had better nutrient intake levels and more positive health indicators than those who did not. On average, the avocado consumers ate about half a medium-sized avocado daily. They had significantly higher intakes of important nutrients such as dietary fibre, magnesium, potassium, and vitamins E and K. They also had significantly lower Body Mass Index and smaller waist circumference, and 50 per cent lower odds for metabolic syndrome. They study was published in Nutrition Journal.
Illustration: Angela Ho
MEDICAL 3
The other surgical option is Total Ankle Replacement (TAR), which removes the diseased joint cartilage and replaces it with an artificial implant that mimics the function of the ankle joint. TAR preserves the functional range of motion of the ankle, allowing patients to better perform daily activities and possibly resume athletic activities. It also has a shorter rehabilitation period of four to six weeks, compared with four to six months for fusion surgery. TAR has been performed in Europe and the US in the past decade and is an evolving technology. Early designs of implanted prostheses were largely unsuccessful, with high complication and failure rates. Problems included excessive wear and constraint and a lack of stability. New designs of implants have had favourable clinical results. Yeung had researched the designs intensively and found one developed by Pascal Rippstein, a Swiss surgeon, to be the best option. It consists of an implant made of a metal alloy and polyethylene spacer.
Points of departure A more intense form of acupuncture has been found to help patients with Bell palsy, a condition whereby the face gets temporarily paralysed for weeks or months. In a study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, Chinese researchers tested the efficacy of acupuncture with weak or strong (de qi) stimulation on more than 300 patients in 11 tertiary hospitals in China. Half the patients received de qi, a combination of sensations stimulated by manipulation of acupuncture needles – soreness, tingling, coolness, warmth and others, radiating at the insertion points. The other half received needles but no stimulation. Six months later, facial-nerve function, disability and quality of life were better in patients in the de qi group.
Best stressed Tomatoes, just like humans, have a biological response to stress. In the case of the fruit, increased stress is linked with more nutritious produce: higher levels of sugars, vitamin C and pigment molecules like lycopene, an antioxidant compound. Tomatoes experience this stress when grown on organic farms, say researchers from the Federal University of Ceara in Brazil. In their study in the journal PLoS ONE, they compared the weights and biochemical properties of tomatoes from organic and conventional farms. It was also found that organic tomatoes were about 40 per cent smaller than conventional ones.
It’s been getting better and better. It’s nowhere near the level of pain I used to feel GRAEME COLLINS, BALLET TEACHER
Yeung travelled to Switzerland to learn from Rippstein at his Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Schulthess Clinic’s Foot and Ankle Centre in Zurich, where Rippstein confirmed he was a suitable candidate for TAR surgery. Matilda’s executive medical director, Dr Hans Schrader, says a TAR package with the hospital costs between HK$75,000 and HK$100,000, while a fusion surgery package costs HK$55,000 to HK$70,000. Between the two, the choice was clear for Collins. “My criteria were that I wanted to be able to walk, hike and continue
teaching ballet after the surgery,” he says. “TAR would give me mobility.” In June last year, Yeung – overseen by Rippstein, who was visiting – operated for 90 minutes on Collins at Matilda, which is the first and only private hospital in Hong Kong to be equipped with the skills and instruments for a TAR procedure. Collins’ foot was kept in a cast for two weeks. After the plaster was removed, rehabilitation and physiotherapy followed, first with gentle movements and exercises to boost circulation to the joint. After four weeks, Collins began learning to walk again with the proper gait, and progressively increased the weight bearing on the joint. After three months, he slowly eased back into gentle physical activity. “It’s been getting better and better,” says Collins. “It’s nowhere near the level of pain I used to feel.” He will have to have annual check-ups using X-rays to ensure that his foot, its bones and the joint implant continue to be in good shape. There is the possibility of complications, including a loosening of the implant and an
allergic reaction to it, says Yeung, “but it’s not a major concern”. She says TAR may not be suitable for young and active patients, nor those with a history of infections, those suffering from peripheral vascular disease or from neuromuscular disease with poor muscle control, as well as patients whose daily life or work requires a lot of heavy loading on the joint. Worldwide, four in every 1,000 people over 65 will suffer from some form of ankle degeneration, says Yeung. She advises that recurrent ankle injuries are treated early and the ankle realigned properly. This will prevent further cartilage wear and tear, and ankle deformation. Collins recently returned from a trip to Australia and Fiji, where he says he did quite a lot of walking. He plans to hike the hills around his home in Lantau soon. The only inconvenience that he’s experienced recently is setting off sensors repeatedly while going through airport security in London. He told security staff that he had an implant fitted and showed his scar to prove it – and was then allowed through, fancy footwork and all.
4 HEALTH AESTHETIC SURGERY
Snipped in the bud ...................................................... Richard Lord healthpost@scmp.com Labiaplasty – an operation to reduce one or both of the labia minora, or inner lips of the vagina – is rapidly gaining popularity as women go under the knife for health-related or purely cosmetic reasons. In the West, the rise in the operation’s popularity is startling. In Britain, for example, there’s been a five-fold increase in the past five years to more than 2,000 surgeries in 2011 in the public health system alone; while American women spent US$6.8 million on the procedure in 2009, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. It’s increasingly common in Asia, too, with the cosmetic surgery hot spot of Thailand catering to a growing number of women from around the region – including plenty from Hong Kong. Part of the trend for so-called “designer vaginas” – other popular types of cosmetic vaginal surgery include vaginal rejuvenation or tightening, hymenoplasty (“revirgination”) and clitoral unhooding – labiaplasty is a fairly straightforward surgical procedure, using a scalpel or laser. It can be performed either under local or general anaesthetic, takes about 20 minutes and rarely goes wrong. Still, it is not the type of operation that any woman would take lightly. So why are so many women willing to undertake the surgery when many doctors question whether, in most cases, it’s necessary, or even advisable, for them to do so? In this type of surgery, there is no clear dividing line between what is necessary and what isn’t. Overly large labia can be present from birth, but can also be caused or exacerbated by medical conditions, and by the stresses and strains of childbirth, sex, masturbation and even genital piercings. Some women opt for labiaplasty because the size of one or both of their labia is causing them discomfort, or even pain, usually during sex or while undertaking strenuous seated activities such as cycling, but in some cases all the time. Other women are just unhappy
Women are becoming more aware of how their body looks down there and are empowered by information DR VITASNA KETGLANG (ABOVE), DIRECTOR, COSMETIC GYNAECOLOGY CENTRE, THAILAND
with the appearance of their vagina and want to change it. The problem is there’s no definition of a “normal” vagina. There is no set of dimensions women and their doctors can use to determine whether labia are abnormally large. The term labial hypertrophy describes the labia minora extending beyond the labia majora, but that’s quite common and may not be a problem in itself. That has led to concerns that women are opting for the procedure to conform to an unrealistic notion of what the female genitalia should look like. It is the ultimate area in which women are being asked to live up to an ideal of beauty. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says labiaplasty is unnecessary, and possibly unsafe and unethical. Clinical guidelines state that, in addition to women with any form of gynaecological disease and smokers, the surgery is inadvisable for women
with unrealistic body-image goals – but realism in this case is entirely subjective and at least partly culturally defined. The divide between functional and aesthetic motivations for the surgery is reflected in confusion over which medical discipline performs it. In Thailand, as in many countries, most labiaplasties are undertaken by cosmetic surgeons, but in United States, for example, gynaecologists commonly perform it – largely because they’re trying to muscle in on the lucrative cosmetic surgery market. The procedure isn’t cheap – costing between HK$8,000 and HK$20,000 in Thailand – and so, as with all cosmetic surgery, doctors have an incentive to recommend it. In reality, however, a lot of women who undertake the procedure don’t need medical prompting. Jenny (whose name has been changed for reasons of patient confidentiality), 29, from Sydney, was thinking about having the operation for at least a decade before she travelled to Bangkok’s Yanhee International Hospital 18 months ago. “I’ve never liked the appearance of my genitalia,” she says. “As a teenager I always felt embarrassed about the way my vagina looked and felt that I was abnormal. I had quite long labia minora with a large asymmetry [of more than 2.5cm] between the length of each side. In particular, I felt uncomfortable to wear small underwear because I would find that my lips might protrude. I often felt embarrassed if I was with a new partner and didn’t feel I was sexy. I also found that the lip that protruded could become itchy or irritated from being exposed and was often uncomfortable.” In fact, she adds, the operation didn’t feel like a risk at all: “I really disliked the appearance so figured it couldn’t be much worse.” She says that the operation itself was a good experience, although she was in pain and swollen afterwards, with an intense itching and burning sensation that lasted several weeks. She adds that she was advised not to have sex for six to eight weeks afterwards, but that it was actually more like four months. The result, however, she says, “is
perfect. It looks totally natural. I am much more confident in myself as a woman and am also more comfortable physically.” The doctor who performed Jenny’s operation was Vitasna Ketglang, director of the Cosmetic Gynaecology Centre at Yanhee International Hospital, where about 50 labiaplasties are performed a month, and the chair of the Thai Cosmetic Gynaecology Society. She says that labiaplasty has become more popular in recent years because before, “a woman who had not heard about the surgery may possibly have felt insecure about her enlarged labia, but would not do anything about it, and may have considered having an elongated labia minora her ‘normal’ anatomy. “Women are becoming more aware of how their body looks down
there and are empowered by information. The adult media and the internet may be important tools in disseminating information about the labiaplasty procedure.” As Professor Somyos Kunachak of Bangkok’s Yoskarn Clinic says, “This is not a new procedure: we have been performing it for more than 20 years.” He adds that most women who have “unsightly” labia – a subjective judgment, of course – want them corrected, but “in the past, they just didn’t know that this area could be beautified and may have been a bit shy to request it”. He says that almost all his patients, who include a number from Hong Kong, have the operation for aesthetic reasons, and about half also have vaginal rejuvenation at the same time. Vitasna, who has also had many
HEALTH 5 BOOK REVIEW
Nutrient-rich diet will help you live long and prosper ...................................................... Jeanette Wang jeanette.wang@scmp.com
Photo: MCT
patients from Hong Kong, says women come to her for a mixture of aesthetic and functional reasons. She acknowledges that the operation can pose ethical questions. “I am an advocate of women’s rights and I believe in respecting a woman’s autonomy or freedom: women have the right to choose to change their bodies however they like,” she says “It is, however, important to determine the motivation for surgery. “Surgery is just an option. It takes great courage for some women to accept having elongated, large labia. They think it is not normal. Acceptance and surgery are both options women need to weigh.” According to Jano Ha, spokesperson for Kamol Cosmetic Hospital in Bangkok, which is
$6.8m The amount of money, in US dollars, American women spent on having labiaplasties in 2009
headed by leading aesthetic surgeon Kamol Pansritum, the operation can have a helpful psychological effect. “We have found that many people have had mental problems because of a little part of their body that they did not like. Plastic surgery can help them to fix those parts and so to improve their mental state.” Cosmetic surgery often provokes strong opinions, and surgical genital alteration, of course, is always an emotive subject. Labiaplasty might sound a drastic move, but an increasing number of women feel they need it. That could just be because more women have heard about it, but it could also be because more want it, for whatever reason. As ever with cosmetic surgery, the line between correcting an abnormality and trying to conform to a physical ideal is often blurred.
In a city where food can be found in nearly every street and at every corner, it’s obvious that many Hongkongers live to eat. Dr Joel Fuhrman wants you to do the opposite: eat to live. Fuhrman, 59, an American board-certified family physician, has been promoting this philosophy since the launch of his book, Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss, in 2003. A No 1 New York Times best-seller, the book is backed by hundreds of testimonials from people who have followed his six-week diet plan and shed a radical amount of weight quickly while boosting their health. After its success, Fuhrman, a specialist in preventing and reversing disease using nutritional and natural methods, has recently launched a spin-off, The End of Diabetes: The Eat to Live Plan to Prevent and Reverse Diabetes. It’s a smart move: the diet is the same, but repackaged for its targeted audience. Excess weight, a high body-fat percentage and a poor diet, after all, are key risk factors for type-2 diabetes, or adult-onset diabetes. In Hong Kong, one in 10 people, or about 700,000, have the condition, and the number is increasing sharply. In 2010, it was the 10th most common cause of death in the city. Today, controlling the condition depends on drugs that lower high blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure typically seen in diabetics. But Fuhrman believes in eradication rather than medication – by treating the disease’s cause through changing one’s diet. Drugs, he says, could worsen diabetes in the long run as they cause weight gain. The basis of Eat to Live is what Fuhrman calls a nutritarian diet, “the most effective programme for diabetes ever studied”. It’s all about filling your plate with the most nutrient-dense foods – green
vegetables, berries, beans, mushrooms, onions, seeds and other natural produce. With such a diet, he says the body ages more slowly and is armed to prevent and reverse many common illnesses. Food cravings are also suppressed. Fuhrman has devised the Aggregate Nutrient Density Index, which scores food on a maximum of 1,000 based on its density of micronutrients – phytochemicals, vitamins and essential minerals that improve health and longevity. Kale, watercress and collards, for example, score full marks; cola (1 point), corn chips (7) and olive oil (10) are at the bottom of the list. Essentially, Fuhrman is saying, go vegan. In the book, he provides
In Hong Kong, about 700,000, have adult-onset diabetes, and the number is increasing sharply two weeks of sample meal plans based on a daily intake of 1,400 calories, including more than 60 recipes (no photos). He backs his diet with solid science – there are 20 pages of research citations – and presents everything in a readable, friendly manner. In a case series published in the Open Journal of Preventive Medicine, 90 per cent of diabetic patients studied were able to eliminate or reduce their medication by 75 per cent, and the average haemoglobin A1C dropped from 8.2 to 5.8 (lower than six is considered non-diabetic; above eight, poorly controlled). The evidence is certainly convincing, but the diet is restrictive, potentially boring and foodie unfriendly. Eat to live or live to eat? It all boils down to personal priorities.
6 COVER STORY
Greas Jeanette Wang and Gabriella Clarke investigate the truths and myths about the oils we use
F
or decades, we’ve been told by dietitians, doctors and public health authorities to avoid saturated fats such as butter or lard in favour of unsaturated vegetable oils like safflower and soya bean. Studies conducted in the 1960s and ’70s suggested that dietary saturated fatty acids raise the concentrations of total and low-density lipoprotein, or “bad” cholesterol, while polyunsaturated fatty acids do the opposite – lower cholesterol and decrease one’s risk of heart disease. But research published earlier
Studies indicate that replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fats lowers heart disease risk, and this is widely accepted NUTRITION EXPERT BILL SHRAPNEL
this month in the British Medical Journal has stirred controversy. Scientists from the US National Institutes of Health analysed recovered data from the Sydney Diet Heart Study conducted from 1966 to 1973 and found that substituting dietary omega-6 linoleic acid – the most abundant polyunsaturated fatty acid in a Western diet – for saturated fats increased the number of deaths from coronary heart disease and cardiovascular disease. The study, which involved 458 men, showed no evidence of polyunsaturated fatty acids’ longpreached heart-healthy benefits. Participants were provided with liquid safflower oil (which is 75 per cent linoleic acid) and a safflower oil-based margarine to be used in place of animal fats for cooking, baking and spreading. Many experts have disputed the findings. Bill Shrapnel, deputy chairman of the Sydney University Nutrition Research Foundation, says the study used Miracle margarine as a source of polyunsaturated fat, a product which in the 1960s contained about 15 per cent trans-
fatty acids, which have the worst effect on heart disease risk of any fat. “The adverse effect of the intervention in this study was almost certainly due to the increase in trans-fatty acids in the diet,” says Shrapnel, who was a consultant for Unilever, makers of Miracle margarine. “Recent, well-conducted studies indicate that replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat lowers the risk of heart disease, and this is widely accepted. Trans-fatty acids were largely removed from Australian margarines in the mid-1990s when their adverse effects on heart health became apparent.” Faced with supermarket shelves crammed full of various oils, which ones are truly healthy and which should you avoid? Candy Sin, a dietitian with World Cancer Research Fund Hong Kong, advises avoiding animal fats, such as butter and lard, as they are high in saturated fat. Some plant oils, such as coconut oil and palm oil, are also high in saturated fat, she says, adding that healthy oils usually have a higher ratio of unsaturated fat (especially monounsaturated fat) to saturated fat. These include most plant oils, such as olive, canola and peanut oil. How you cook with oils also matters. According to Sin, heating oil at high temperature will change its chemical structure and form harmful trans fats. Canola, safflower or grapeseed oils have a higher smoke point and are preferred for stir-frying or sautéing. But even so, she advises against deep-frying, since it increases fat intake. Sin says the amount of oil used is as important as which one you choose: “Healthy oil can also contribute to weight gain and harm your health if you overuse them.” All fats contain the same number of calories – nine calories per gram – regardless of whether they are “good” or “bad” fat. “A high fat intake increases the risk of becoming overweight/obese, which, in turn, increases the risk of different chronic diseases and obesity-related cancers,” Sin says. The recommended daily intake of oil for most people, says Sin, is five to six tablespoons. To help you decide which to use, here’s a look at some of the popular and trendy oils around.
COVER STORY 7
sy does it Olive oil has many health benefits. Olive oil The best known of the healthy oils, olive oil has been associated with potentially protective effects that guard against many cardiovascular risk factors, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity. A study published in August in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism shows consumption of a Mediterranean diet enriched with olive oil for two years is linked with a protective effect on bone. Refined olive oils have been chemically treated to reduce its strong earthy flavour. Extra virgin olive oil, on the other hand, results from pressing olives without the use of heat or chemical treatments. It contains phytochemicals, which studies show can trigger cancer cell death, that are otherwise lost in the refining process. Recent studies suggest a link between extra virgin olive oil and stroke prevention in older people, and protecting the liver from oxidative stress. Due to its lower smoke point, extra virgin olive oil is best used as a dressing and drizzle. The more refined an olive oil, the better it is for all-purpose cooking. It is thought that daily consumption of about two tablespoons of olive oil may have a beneficial effect on blood cholesterol levels. Coconut oil This oil has been in the limelight in the last couple of years for its alleged health-giving properties. Coconut
Coconut oil has gained popularity.
oil had been demonised in the past by nutrition experts for its mega-dose of saturated fat, but not all coconut oils are created equal. The key is to use virgin coconut oil that, unlike regular coconut oil, is not hydrogenated, as the process creates trans fats and destroys beneficial nutrients. Virgin coconut oil is high in saturated fat (about 77 per cent), but it’s mainly lauric acid, a mediumchain fatty acid that’s quickly metabolised by the liver and, therefore, less likely to be stored as body fat. Naturopathic physician Benita Perch says virgin coconut oil can reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer and other ageing-related conditions. It boosts the immune system, helps with weight loss, and improves digestion and the absorption of nutrients from food. Stable at very high temperatures, it is suitable for frying and baking.
Rapeseed in bloom. Rapeseed oil In recent years, top chefs have started using this in their culinary creations as a substitute for extra virgin olive oil. Rapeseed oil has high nutritional value because of significant amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. It comes from the seeds of the plant known as “rape”, which comes from the Latin for “turnip”. During the second world war, the oil was used for industrial purposes. Rapeseed oil is relatively healthy with 7 per cent saturated fat compared with 14 per cent in olive oil and 51 per cent in butter. It won’t go toxic at high heat, as olive oil will, and has a higher smoke point. Flaxseed oil Produced from the seeds of the flax plant, this oil contains both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. It also has the essential fatty acid alphalinolenic acid, which the body converts into two omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil, according to the University of Maryland Medical Centre. But studies are mixed about whether flaxseed oil has the same benefit as fish oil.
Flaxseed oil has many uses. Both flaxseed and flaxseed oil have been used for high cholesterol levels and in an effort to prevent cancer, says the US National Centre for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. But studies on flaxseed preparations to lower cholesterol levels report mixed results. Flaxseed oil has different folk or traditional uses, including for arthritis. Animal studies suggest that adding flaxseed oil to the diet could reduce the risk of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women and women with diabetes, according to a report published in 2009 in the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health. Avocado oil Similar in its health-giving properties to olive oil, avocado oil is rich in antioxidants and vitamin E. Research into this oil and its antioxidant properties has been done in Mexico, the world’s largest avocado producer. Studies conducted at the Morelia General Hospital in Mexico found that
Avocados are rich in vitamin E.
improve a patient’s cholesterol profile,” says Dr Devarajan Sankar, a research scientist in the Department of Cardiovascular Disease at Fukuoka University Chikushi Hospital in Chikushino, Japan. “Additionally, it may reduce heart disease risk in other ways, including being a substitute for less healthy oils and fats in the diet.” In one of Sankar’s studies, people who cooked with a blend of sesame and rice bran oils saw a significant drop in blood pressure and improved cholesterol levels. This worked nearly as well as a commonly prescribed medication for high blood pressure, and the use of the oil blend with medication yielded even more impressive
Rice bran oil is popular in Japan. results. Rice bran oil also contains an antioxidant called y-oryzanol, which Japanese studies have shown to help treat hot flushes and other symptoms experienced by menopausal women. Chia oil This is the pure and natural omega-3 oil extracted from chia seeds, the superfood that originated in Mexico and South America. According to the Chia Co, Australian producers of chia products, the oil is good for vegetarians seeking a healthy source of plant-based oils, arthritis sufferers looking to improve joint function and mobility, and those who want to enhance their heart health. A teaspoon (10ml) of chia oil every day is said to meet the body’s daily requirement for plant-based omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid. healthpost@scmp.com
avocado oil helped to lower blood cholesterol and may also have a role in the prevention of type-2 diabetes. It is high in monounsaturated fats and can be used for high-temperature cooking. Rice bran oil Extracted from the germ and inner husk of rice, this oil is rich in antioxidants and vitamin E. “Rice bran oil, like sesame oil, is low in saturated fat and appears to
FAT FACTS Fat is an essential part of our diet and should make up no more than 30 per cent of daily calorie intake. Candy Sin, a registered dietitian with World Cancer Research Fund Hong Kong, says fat has various functions: it carries fat-soluble vitamins such as E, D, E and K, protects organs against shock and is the body’s energy reserve. Oils are made up of saturated and unsaturated fat in different ratios, says Sin. Unsaturated fats include monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and trans fat. Each type of fat has a different effect on blood cholesterol. Saturated fat: bad fat. It increases the level of bad cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein, or LDL) in blood that causes blockages in blood vessels, which in turn increases the risk of heart diseases. Less than 7 per cent of your daily fat calories should come from saturated fat, as it is associated with raising blood cholesterol, which increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and some cancers. • Found in: fats from animal sources; plant oils such as coconut oil and palm oil. Trans fat: bad fat. Trans fat is a product of a process called hydrogenation – adding hydrogen to vegetable oil – which makes the oil less likely to spoil. It carries the same health concerns as saturated fat. • Found in: foods that contain hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils. Polyunsaturated fat: good fat. It decreases bad cholesterol levels in the blood, which helps prevent heart disease. Omega-3 and omega-6 are two wellknown examples. • Found in: sunflower oil, safflower oil. Monounsaturated fat: good fat. It decreases bad cholesterol and increases good cholesterol levels in the blood, which helps prevent heart diseases. • Found in: olive oil, canola oil.
Aliso Viejo is an ancient superfood.
8 FITNESS SWEAT
Miles of smiles .................................................... Mark Graham healthpost@scmp.com Wherever he is – warming up a crowd of marathon runners in Tiananmen Square, or leading a pack of joggers in a Beijing park – Linus Holmsater is easy to spot. A shock of blond hair, a pair of fluorescent pink shorts and a voice that bursts with enthusiasm are the unmistakable trademarks of the Swedish fitness instruction entrepreneur. He is a man on a mission to prevent China becoming a nation of computerscreen-watching fatties, intent on persuading people, by vigorous action and loquacious exhortation, that fitness can be fun, whether it is a gentle run around the local park or a mass aerobics session.
If Holmsater fails, it will not be for lack of effort or commitment. So far his mass exercise businesses, Heyrobics and HeyRunning, which are offered at cheap prices or even for free, are proving to be hugely popular, initially with the expatriate community in Beijing and, increasingly, with local Chinese. Holmsater, 28, quit a well-paid job in finance to start Heyrobics, initially running it as a non-profit organisation seeking to get people off their couches. The long-term aim is to build a database of subscribers with commercial value, offer premium paid-for fitness programmes and tailormake courses for corporations. For now, though, Holmsater is focusing on increasing the number of participants and gaining wider exposure. Having tentative official blessing has helped – he led the
Tiananmen Square warm-up for 30,000 participants in the Beijing marathon one year – along with appearing on local television. Regular HeyRunning sessions in the city’s largest downtown park, Chaoyang, can attract a summertime crowd of up to a hundred people, while scores take part in the twice-weekly Heyrobics gym sessions involving work-outs with a strong social and networking element. “I think the old people in China understand the importance of exercise and health but the young ones don’t, unless they have been abroad,” says Holmsater, whose father was the original founder of the Heyrobics exercise system. “I think exercise is super important, it will make you live longer and avoid illness. “In China, people are not so interested in their health. They are more interested in showing off,
buying nice products and having an expensive gym membership than actually going to the gym and using it. “That is a big difference compared to Sweden, Britain and even Hong Kong, where people are looking at quality in a different way. It is coming to China – in just three years I have seen a big change – but they are still a few years off.” The boss practises what he preaches, running about 60 kilometres a week, plus spending hours exercising in the gym and on the odd game of football. He has a personal marathon best time of two hours, 31 minutes, which puts
Exercise is super important. It will make you live longer and avoid illness LINUS HOLMSATER, FITNESS INSTRUCTOR
him squarely in the elite category of amateur athletes. But keen runners such as him have limited opportunities to test their speed skills: for a major world city, Beijing has pitifully few races. Runners in Paris, New York, London or Hong Kong have a choice of road or trail, with competitions most weekends. That is an issue Holmsater is trying to address by putting on regular five kilometre and 10 kilometre events – not officially classified as competitive races – in the city’s splendid Olympic Forest Park, or downtown Chaoyang Park. The downside to running outdoors is the dreadful pollution that can descend on the city for days or even weeks; keen runners always check with the United States embassy website, which measures the potentially lungdamaging fine particulates in the air and classifies the air from good (0-50) to hazardous (301 to 500). Says Holmsater: “If it is over 300 we determine how it looks on the day; if it is over 200 we might reduce the intensity level; if it is higher, it is tougher on the heart. “We connect our runners to the stores which supply masks that take out almost everything. But that is not ideal, I realise. I may wear a mask if I am in intensive training or else do a Heyrobics class instead.”
DIET 9 THE TASTE TEST CHAI TEA Despite the risks, Beijing-based American doctor Richard Saint Cyr, a community health expert, says that venturing out for a jog on (relatively) clean air days is likely to do much more good than harm. But he does recommend being at least 100 metres from busy roads and, if there is even mild pollution, to consider wearing an N95 mask, a device originally designed to protect health workers from exposure to airborne diseases. “The best research seems clear that the long-term benefits of exercise are still much greater than the long-term risks from pollution, traffic accidents and other concerns,” he says. “Heart disease is still the world’s top killer and exercise is crucial to protecting your heart.” Regular Heyrobics participant Lexie Morris, a Hong Kong-raised entrepreneur, ensures the pollution reading is below 300 before lacing up her running shoes. On a typical week, she spends a total of six hours at various HeyRunning sessions or Heyrobics classes. Says Morris: “First and foremost it is so much fun! The first session I went along to absolutely killed me physically, and yet I smiled throughout the entire thing and had an awesome time.” Holmsater has hit the spot with his business, appealing, in particular, to young urban professionals. He also seems to have a way with officialdom, which is so vital for a successful business in China. But even he falls victim to mainland regulations. He recently finished high up in a race, but was disqualified because he was wearing the wrong colour shirt. “They do things by the book,” he adds.
...................................................... Jeanette Wang jeanette.wang@scmp.com
Linus Holmsater (in blue T-shirt and pink shorts) leads his followers in Heyrobics in the Olympic Forest Park in Beijing. Photos: Simon Song
Higher Living Sweet Chai HK$37.50 for 15 bags, Jasons Marketplace This organic, caffeine-free herb infusion combines natural licorice root with a blend of traditional spices: fennel, anise, peppermint, ginger, cardamom, cloves and black pepper. Verdict: the bold sweetness of the licorice takes away most of the spiciness that’s typical of chai.
Pukka Vanilla Chai HK$49 for 20 bags, Just Green This is a mix of six organic herbs: cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, fennel, licorice and vanilla. The herbs are sourced from small independent farmers round the world. Verdict: calming vanilla aroma, the least spicy of the lot. Better with a dash of milk to bring out the flavour.
Zhena’s Gypsy Tea Coconut Chai Green Tea HK$85 for 22 bags, Just Green The label claims that cinnamon “heightens contentment”, and ginger aids digestion. These two blend with coconut and green tea to produce this low-caffeine chai. Verdict: the sweet, soothing coconut fragrance fills the cup, and the spices provide a faint flavour – good if you don’t like chai that’s too spicy.
10 FITNESS PERSONAL BEST
Vikki d’Arcy focuses on aerobic and corestrength exercises. Photo: Paul Yeung
...................................................... Vikki d’Arcy healthpost@scmp.com I was a top age-group triathlete and a sub-three-hour marathon runner, spent a year as an officer cadet at Sandhurst in the 1990s and had been on operational tours. Pregnancy was going to be a breeze, right? Wrong. I had never been in less control of my body and never been more aware of it. I had a strict lesson in patience, achieved through eight weeks of bed rest in my first trimester. My goal of being a super-fit triathlon mum, ready to race as soon as I’d popped out Junior, went out the window. Instead, I decided to focus on gaining back some of my aerobic fitness, working on my core and basic strength, and concentrating on my swimming technique. I spent hours on the internet and scouring books, researching various types of training during pregnancy. There is a wealth of information out there, but most of it is blogs and personal experience. Generally, the advice from doctors is that you can continue what you were doing before, but that probably doesn’t apply to someone whose training schedule averaged 17 hours a week on top of a full-time job. So I needed to modify my training. After two months of bed rest, once given the all clear, I had to go back to basics. Pregnancy makes your muscles more flexible, your ligaments stretch and many of your systems (digestive, for one) slow down, all due to a hormone called relaxin. This can put you at risk of injury, especially back (sciatica) and pelvic injuries, and your core stability decreases. Considering I have a history of pelvic instability and hamstring injuries during running, I decided that it was pointless to even try and run while pregnant. I could regain aerobic fitness doing other things. My focus was on maintaining core strength and stability, and trying to prevent postural problems and back pain in later pregnancy, while giving me a robust platform to build on post-pregnancy. At 14 weeks, I did a 20-minute treadmill walk, a 500-metre swim and two core/strength routines. The first thing I noticed was that I felt less lethargic and had more energy after each session. I took that to be a good sign. After two weeks of activity every other day, I could swim 1,500 metres, do a 40-minute elliptical trainer with a low heart rate (130 beats per minute), and my strength during weight sessions was improving. I was surprised at how quickly my basic fitness came back. I also started swim training again with my triathlon group, 26 Coaching, but I stuck to the slow lane, wore a heart rate monitor and focused on my technique. When pregnant, your body experiences a 40 per cent increase in blood volume, and your lungs (and everything else) start to get squashed to make room for the baby. It becomes important to monitor your heart rate to avoid becoming
A bump in the road anaerobic, which decreases your ability to take up enough oxygen and could potentially reduce the amount of oxygen the baby gets. With the extra blood volume and smaller lung capacity, it’s very easy to hit a high heart rate quickly. I also decided to use a personal trainer to help with my core and basic strength (back and legs), and more challenging exercises while in a safe environment. My trainer focused on core in the transverse (rotational) plane: plank work, upper and lower back strength, and a lot of one-legged stability exercises and supported squats. Lying on your back once you are into the second trimester becomes more difficult because of the weight of the baby on your aorta, but can be modified in an incline position. Lying on your front is completely out of the question and just too uncomfortable. By week 18, I had developed a routine: 75 to 90-minute swim sessions three times a week (covering about 2.5 kilometres each
time), two personal trainer sessions, a spin class/turbo for 60 minutes, a 45-minute elliptical session and a two-hour hike on Sundays. It was about 10 hours in total, but all at very low intensity. If I was feeling too tired, I would rest. By 20 weeks, I had settled into my routine and particularly loved swimming. I was finding it a challenge, due to my decreased lung capacity, but was enjoying the weightlessness of the water, and the ease at which I moved in it through increased buoyancy and redistribution of weight. I stopped hiking at about 21 weeks as the hills became a challenge and I stopped enjoying it. From 24 weeks, I started to experience growth spurts and expansion, which made aerobic exercise and weight-bearing exercises much harder. In swimming, this meant concentrating even harder on my technique to pull through the water more efficiently. Core work was modified, and elliptical trainer
When pregnant, your body experiences a 40 per cent increase in blood volume, and your lungs start to get squashed
and spinning were reduced in intensity. Throughout my second trimester, I felt strong and comfortable and made sure that I never did anything to the point of overheating or exhaustion. I continued to train in my third trimester, until I gave birth on Christmas Day. My baby girl was born early due to unrelated complications, but is healthy and is so far making good progress. I feel that much of this is due to my fitness during the pregnancy, which meant she was better able to endure the stress of the natural birth (she was breech) and the neonatal environment. My own recovery was very quick as well – I was hiking within a week and doing Pilates after 10 days. Pregnancy is also known to be a performance enhancer: in 1983, Norway’s Ingrid Kristiansen won the Houston Marathon five months after having her first child. I have set my sights on the Ironman Western Australia in December. Ambitious, maybe, but we all need a goal.
FITNESS 11 MARATHON MANIA ...................................................... Rachel Jacqueline healthpost@scmp.com The thought of running a marathon three months ago seemed daunting and beyond my capability. Although I’m a seasoned long-distance trail runner happy to get lost in the wilderness, the idea of pounding along a road for 42 kilometres with nothing resembling nature was not appealing. But then I got curious. If marathons really are as tough as I thought, why do millions of people run in them worldwide each year? Appropriately, the slogan for the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon is “Run for a reason”, so for 12 weeks, I set out to discover the attraction and find my own reason to relish the road – and share it all weekly in this newspaper. Following my carefully crafted training plan from coach Clinton Mackevicius, I quickly discovered the first pleasure in road running: speed. There’s a childlike delight in moving quickly. Plus, Mackevicius’ regimented approach brought several other victories in my running pursuits. Even though I began to notice improvements, I was still not convinced. Tackling the longer, flatter and more monotonous training runs left me with the same gripe with which I began this venture: boredom. How was I going to survive the weary nature of repetition come race day? Despite my fears, I arrived on Sunday at the start line on Nathan Road, feeling enthusiastic. I was doing something for the first time, after all. I finally had the chance to discover why 65,000 runners and I were running. Although too many nervous pre-race toilet stops saw me begin towards the back of the 7.10am start, I managed to set off at a cracking pace (thanks to discovering my own “speed lane” on the edges of the course) and overtook several runners. I ran while listening to an awesome playlist, and as my feet began moving to their own rhythm, I surprised myself. I realised I was running for the joy of progress. As I passed each kilometre mark, still intact and with plenty of petrol in the tank, I felt a growing sense of accomplishment. Leaning forward into the first ascent leading into Ting Kau Bridge and gazing up at the geometric shapes created by the suspension cables, I began appreciating the views. Although criticised as being a fairly unsightly marathon, there was something humbling about travelling through Hong Kong’s heavy transport arteries with its impressive skyline slowly coming into view. I imagined that running an iconic marathon like New York, Paris or London would be the most effective and time-efficient way to see each city. Next, I discovered I was running to marvel at other runners. Boring a marathon is not, particularly one in Hong Kong. People were competing in all sorts of gear, from hiking boots to bare feet, with some carrying
Rachel Jacqueline (above left) and her friend Milly Hall before the race. Early morning warm-ups (below left) and the spoils of success. Photos: Nora Tam
It’s all about the passion
nothing and others everything plus the kitchen sink. Race club T-shirts from Hong Kong and abroad illustrated the sense of community running brings; the vibrant unmatching numbers and the costumes (the sharks and the ninja were my favourite) showed the humour in this trivial pursuit. Then there were the many amusing running styles: the overexaggerated hip wiggle, the speedwalk, the seemingly inefficient
shuffle. I took the time to laugh at myself, too. Despite our differences, we were unified by the look of determination on our faces. As I edged past the halfway mark with fatigue setting in, I found myself running to beat the guy next to me. Then I ran so I could be faster than the old man, who seemed to have a hold over me during the last 20 kilometres. I ran because of all the blind runners happily running, despite their disability. I ran because
I saw a friend and exchanged an ecstatic high five – our common struggle shared. As the kilometres edged towards the 30s, I ran to let out my frustration at all the slow half-marathon runners taking up my already packed running track. (Don’t get me started on race etiquette.) Then I ran as fast as possible to get out of the oxygen-depleted Western Tunnel. Then I ran so I could stop. With only two kilometres to go, I knew I had to keep going. Two hundred metres from the finish, I spotted my running buddy in the crowd and broke into a sprint; finally, I ran so I could say I’d given it my all. As I crossed the finish line, a smile covering my exhausted face, I realised, above all, I ran because I was a runner. Not a trail runner, a short-distance speedster or a jogger – simply someone who loves to run. I’d had the wrong approach all along: it’s not about the labels we put on things, it’s about the joy. Running puts a smile on my face. It’s hard work and leaves you exhausted, yes, but as a wise runner once told me, “You can’t get that type of exhaustion: it’s earned.” Children know it: they play for hours and run themselves into a slumber. What’s more, as I stopped my watch and realised I’d run my debut marathon in 3 hours, 33 minutes, 50 seconds, I realised I also ran because
As I hauled my aching body over the finish line, the time wasn’t what mattered
of how liberated it makes me feel. If you put your heart into something and work hard, anything is possible. Three months ago, a sub-fourhour marathon seemed unfathomable; my 3:45 target set by Mackevicius seemed laughable. But as I hauled my aching body over the finish line, the time wasn’t what mattered. It wasn’t worthy of a podium finish, but it was a good time. What’s more, it was my time: a reflection of me, my hard work, my passion and, ultimately, my good luck on race day. I hope you found your time, too.
12 DIET HEALTHY GOURMET
Top nosh a matter of degrees ...................................................... Andrea Oschetti healthpost@scmp.com A revolution is under way: the cooking rules of the past are being overthrown by a modern approach that draws on scientific insights to make food tastier and healthier. Fear not: this does not mean that Sunday’s roast will be served with the consistency of jelly or that a family reunion will feature pumpkin caviar. It is about understanding what happens to food as it cooks in order to make great meals consistently. At the heart of this revolution is accurate temperature control. Home cooks have been relying on exotic tips and tricks in their quest to cook food perfectly. For example, using a toothpick to check if the cake is ready, or comparing the consistency of the steak with the muscle in the palm of the hand. But these solutions are approximations at best. Measuring temperature precisely is the only reliable method. Take Thanksgiving as an example: it is often a source of frustration for the dinner host, with the turkey not turning out as succulently as hoped. The recipe calls for a given amount of cooking minutes for each kilogram; you follow the advice religiously, but it still turns out overcooked. The reason for this is that meat does not conduct heat well. The shape of food affects internal temperature more than weight, as does the percentage of water in the fibres, the amount of fat, whether or not bones are present, and so on. The solution is simple: use a digital thermometer to control the core temperature. At 55 degrees Celsius, a steak is medium rare, at 65 degrees it’s medium, and at 70 degrees it’s well done. Always. The same approach applies to fish: they are best when the cooking time is short. Heating denatures the proteins of fish, distorting the nutrients and drying the tissues. This process starts at 45 degrees Celsius, but is drastic at 60 degrees. Do not let the core temperature of a tuna fillet exceed 50 degrees. The secret of many tasty foods is
scientifically called the Maillard reaction. The molecules that trigger the sense of flavours that make food tasty are generated by the reaction of amino acids with sugars. This happens only at certain temperatures, notably between 140 and 180 degrees Celsius. The traditional cook will make a steak on a pan which is not hot enough or will overcrowd the pan. These errors will prevent the surface of the steak reaching the 140 degrees Celsius needed for the Maillard reaction. The cook will end up with a piece of meat that is dry – because the proteins will coagulate, letting out the juices – and hard, because the fibres will contract. The modern cook, aided by a digital thermometer, will cook the steak briefly and at a high temperature. He will not turn the steak immediately, for fear it will attach to the pan, but will wait no more than two minutes, until the reaction occurs and the steak detaches itself from the pan. Taking care to control temperature is also a matter of healthiness, not just taste. Beyond 180 degrees Celsius, toxic molecules form on the surface of the steak. A pressure cooker is another valuable piece of equipment, particularly to prepare tasty and healthy stocks and sauces. When these are being boiled, because they are full of water, they do not reach the temperature necessary to generate the chemical reactions needed to create flavours. To make stocks and sauces tasty, the tendency is to cook them until they are dried out: of water and of nutrients. A pressure cooker avoids this problem, as the temperature inside is significantly higher than that of a boiling pot. Look for pressure cookers of the new generation; they have a spring valve that keeps the aromas inside. Sous-vide equipment is the crown jewel of the modern cook at home: ingredients are vacuum packed and immersed in a water bath, where they remain until the food is at the same temperature as the surrounding water. The water is maintained at the target
Egg cook ed
for an ho ur at 65 degrees Celsius
Taking care to control temperature is also a matter of healthiness, not just taste
Chef Andrea Oschetti. Photos: Nora Tam
temperature, within a range of a single degree Celsius, by a computer-controlled heater. This process allows for results which are difficult to achieve by traditional means, allowing uniformity of temperature throughout the food. Another advantage is that it does not matter how long the food stays in the water, it cannot overcook. This frees the cook at home from one of the most difficult things to master in the kitchen: timing. Longer cooking time allows for textures in food never dreamt of before: try cooking beef ribs at 58 degrees Celsius for 72 hours for mouth-watering results. Cooking at controlled low temperatures can be done without a computer-controlled heater, albeit the process is more laborious. This week’s recipe shows how to cook an egg at 65 degrees Celsius for one hour – the signature dish in many Michelin-starred restaurants. Just a pot and a thermometer are needed. Eggs cooked at home often come out with a gummy white and a dry yolk. The tendency to overcook them is because the yolk takes longer to cook than the white. The final consistency of an egg is determined by the coagulation of its
proteins. At 65 degrees Celsius, only one of the proteins of the egg white coagulates, leaving an incredible smooth texture. At this temperature, the yolk is cooked as well and has a gratifying creamy consistency. Recipe 2 eggs Four litres of water • Put the water in a pot over the smallest burner and cook until the water reaches 70 degrees Celsius, using a digital thermometer to check. • Switch off the heat and put a lid on the pot. • Wait until the temperature of the water drops to 65 degrees. • Delicately place the two eggs in the water, taking care to keep them separated. • When the thermometer reaches 64.5 degrees, cook on minimum, until the temperature goes back to 65 degrees – it will take about a minute. • Turn off the heat again, until the temperature drops to 64.5 degrees (about 10 minutes). • Repeat the process for one hour. Andrea Oschetti is a private chef. cuoreprivatechef.com