Cholesterol Control

I have done my full body check-up for this year as I planned to. Blood and urine test that included :

• Kidney function test
• Liver function test
• Diabetic screen
• Cholesterol
• Hepatitis B
• Thyroid screen
• HIV
• Syphilis
• Urine feme

And also Tumor markers all for only RM200. Glad that the clinic was having promotion so I grabbed it quick. If not, as I checked from several clinics/hospitals, the same package costs almost RM500! Thank God for this.

I think I am the kind of person who is health-conscious. But WAIT! NOT the kind of health-conscious who exercises everyday, eats clean, counts calories, all home-cooked etcetera, no. I mean, conscious in a way that any little things I feel or see, in or on my body, I will start thinking of any possibilities that could happen in the worldddd!

Just a little twinge on my chest makes me think of what’s wrong with my organs?? Is my heart functioning well? Has any foreign element entered my body and pinched my lungs or something?? So I need to do this blood examination recurrently so my mind will be at peace. THAT kind of health-conscious me. Is that the right term? Of course not. But I don’t know what it is. Whatever, that’s just what I called myself with the hope that one day I will be a true health-conscious person that really takes care of the body and will age gracefully. Wallaahh.

Back to the topic, I did my health screening almost yearly since 2012. Alhamdulillah usually, the results were all fine except for…Cholesterol Level! It’s always highlighted high. You know it has this; HDL (good cholestrol), LDL (bad cholesterol) and  Total Cholesterol calculation. Mine was usually very high in bad cholesterol and made the total high as well. So this time I also thought that I will be lectured by the doctor about the same things; cholesterol, eating habits, lifestyles all sorts. But heyy, to my surprise that’s not the case! My cholesterol has gone down to onlyyy a slight high on the bad cholesterol but the Total is fine! Oh my Goddd…I’m soo happy. I did not expect this!

Source : Google

So here’s the thing. Since my last cholesterol check mid-last year that showed my cholesterol reached borderline-high range (reading 6 mmol/L), I began taking health supplements called Omega Guard (Fish Oil) and Phytocol-ST by Shaklee. I guess it’s quite popular that Fish Oil is the solution for high cholesterol issue, but not Phytocol (or maybe I’m not aware). It was suggested by my sister as an add-on supplement to be taken together with Omega Guard.

Omega Guard works to reduce the cholesterol in your body while Phytocol works to prevent the new ones from coming in. It’s like a two-way work, right? That’s good. So I bought both types for 4 months stocks and started new routine.

After all those years having this high cholesterol issue and it kept increasing, I thought it’s nothing I can do about it. Changing lifestyle and eating habits? You know it’s easier said than done. Now that at least my little action taken showed some improvement (latest Total reading at 4.5mmol/L – ideal range), I’d like to share this with you all. I know high cholesterol is somewhat a major health problem; it could lead to the risk of heart disease and stroke, especially for us Malaysians because our foods are all marvelous yet fatty too.

So guys, if you’d like to buy those supplements I mentioned above or any other vitamins, please do call my sister or my sister-in-law (contact details below). They’re selling  a whole range of vitamins/supplements products from Shaklee and can give you the best advice for your health issues.

Siti Munirah 
Whatsapp : +60 187 669 798 
Instagram : @shakleebysitimunirah 
Website : http://www.sitimunirah.com/

Ain Syafinas 
Whatsapp : +60 132 744 885
Instagram : @vitamin_shakleejb

My bad cholesterol level is still not ideal (2.72 mmol/L) so I hope it can be reduced more. I gotta continue with the supplements and exercise more often! Oh this is the struggle because I am not an active person. Eating habit is another problem.

Nevertheless, whatever excuses I give myself, it doesn’t make me any good. We age by days and so do our bodies. Illnesses nowadays are not selective. We can see many young people got diagnosed with critical sickness just like that. Some reasons are not explainable but the best is to take care of ourselves and most importantly, be happy. Stress is no good!

Till the next post,
SALZY

Vitamins for Pregnancy

So far,up until the fourth month of pregnancy, I am only taking 3 types of pregnancy supplements all prescribed by my gynae. Those are Folic Acid, Pramilet and Neurogain.

• Folic Acid

The first time I called my mom to tell her that I’m pregnant, even before I went for the confirmation check, she mentioned to me to take Folic Acid quickly. To know what Folic Acid is, do google ;). But briefly the purpose is to prevent birth defects such as spina bifida which is a neural tube defect. Haa….important right? You have to take it as early as possible. That’s why it’s also important for us to detect our pregnancy early. As your period overdue, quickly run a home urine pregnancy test. This Folic Acid is actually also a pre-pregnancy supplement. It may help you to conceive? – hehe not sure this one. But its surely good because your baby is protected since the very second it’s developed. I started taking it at my 6^th week. At Guardian, it’s only RM0.95 sepapan of 10 pills. I’m still taking this now and if I’m not mistaken my gynae said it will continue until 5 months. 

• Pramilet

Another supplement that I knew I have to take is Obimin. It’s a multivitamin for pregnancy entering the 2^nd trimester. But for mine one, my gynae gave me Pramilet. It’s also a multivitamin, just with a different name and brand maybe. I started taking this since my 1^st checkup at 10 weeks. For what it contains, kindly search. Point is, it’s a supplement for mothers.

• Neurogain PB

This is for baby. Baby’s brain development in particular. Neurogain is a fish oil. I (mistakenly) started taking this as early as at 10 weeks of pregnancy. But actually it only needs to be taken starting from the 2^nd trimester. It didn’t supply anything to the baby too early. Pls take note. Haha…I thought taking this vitamin is just a self initiative. But no, it’s actually recommended by the hospital. So don’t need to susah2 find it at pharmacy. Oh yea, one thing, because it is fish oil, it has to be taken SEPARATELY from the 2 tablets above. Because it’s oil. It will absord the pills supplement and you won’t gain anything from them. So I took Folic Acid and Pramilet after lunch, and Neurogain at dinner time.

Yeah, that’s all. One of each per day. If you vomit, do retake! If you’re forgetful, do use the pill reminder box like me. Hehe..Yeah, one of the pregnancy symptoms is being forgetful. Many women faced this issue. I don’t know whether I do. Because being not pregnant also I am sometimes (or always) forgetful. Hehe….

Till then, will update you any more medicines I take in future months. Take care!

Update : *My Baby inside is 17 weeks old!*

Stretch Marks

Being pregnant is always associated with food cravings and weight-gaining. With the growing baby inside your tummy, your belly as well will certainly extend to a size you have never been before. Big! Don’t worry, you’ll love it. Looking forward and counting days to meeting your baby, you’ll definitely be happy seeing the bump everyday. Admit it, this is what you do – standing in front of the mirror (sometimes with clothes-off) looking at your tummy from different sides, for minutesss. True? No? Hahha….but that’s what I’m doing! Am I normal?? I think I am. If you don’t, you are the one’s abnormal. Haha…kidding *_”

That’s the exciting part. But… (yeahh…there’s always ‘but’) the baby belly comes in package, called…the stretch marks! M2Bs, are you aware of this? Do you know that childbirth will leave that ‘souvenirs’ on your lovely skin?

To be honest, this is one huge fear I have when I think of pregnancy. The fear if compared with the fear of giving birth, is just as much! Hehehe…what a bluff! Of course la pikir nak keluarkan budak tu lg takut! Hehe.. but that is still a mile away. Now, my tummy is bumpy and this is all my concern goes to coz I’m a stretch marks freak-out! For writing this post, I actually googled some stretch marks pictures to put here as ‘gambar hiasan’. But heyyyy…. Scary giler! Trs x jadi. Klu nak tgk, sile lah search and view sendiri.

So, klu dah takut dgn stretch marks tu, ape lagi! Cepat2 lah beli tummy cream. Btol tak? The only stretch marks cream that I knew available were Bio Oil, and Palmers. These two are famous to me because I always saw them in Guardians and Watsons.

But then, when I read Dr. Halina’s blog (The Astronaut’s wifey – yeah, she blogs and shares a lot about her interesting mommyhood) – its http://www.barelysupermommy.com , she did write a post on Stretch Marks and to my surprise, she recommended a stretch mark oil that she used during her first pregnancy! And amazingly, her whale-tummy left nothing on her skin afterwards! Can you imagine how crazy I was to know that? Definitely I will buy that particular oil for my own!

And….this is it. Earth Mama Angel Baby Natural Stretch Oil.

 

Pic taken from barelysupermommy.com

Owh, I didn’t know this brand. It’s so unfamiliar. Even some comments were asking where did she buy it. Some said its not available at the regular pharmacy. So I searched online, and found it sold at the Fabulous Mom online shop. They also have a few branches so the one near to my house is Puchong branch. I was really about to go grab that oil straight at the shop. Xnak beli online. But then, weeks by weeks tak terpergi2 pon Puchong tu. Furthermore, there’s a Guardian pharmacy I pass by everyday for work. So one day I dropped by, took a look at the Stretch Marks Oil available and simply grabbed this :

Hope this helps!

Yeah, this is my choice. Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Formula Massage Lotion for Stretch Marks. Comes together with a small pack Massage Cream – I keep this in my handbag. Well, maybe there’s only one particular reason I choose this against Bio Oil. Bio Oil, because it’s OIL. I don’t like oily. I’d also prefer lotion rather than cream. Softer on skin. That is also why I didn’t wait for that Earth Mama Oil. It’s ok. Nobody convinced me about this Palmers but with all my heart, I’m gonna be applying it habitually. Jgn malas! Oh ya, the price is RM38.90 for 100 ml. Could last until delivery yeah?

My own tummy starts showing at my 11th week (2 months plus). I can’t fit my regular pants comfortably. And most of my baju kurungs were made in shape so I can’t breatheee….But my office-wear blouses are still fine and nobody in office notice I am pregnant yet. And I start putting on this lotion at week 13. Hope this helps.

I heard some ppl said that your gene contributes much to the reason of having that stretch marks. Look at your mom’s tummy, does she have it? That mirrors yours! My mama? Haa….jgn cakap la..bkn mama je..my elder sister pon same. Tu yg gelebah ayam nie ble pikirkan perut sendiri. But somehow, that fact is not so reliable. I got friends telling me differently about them. So, masih ade harapan bukan?? Well, I’ll update the result later.

Before I leave this post, just wanna share a thought I got from my sister. For those new mothers who freaked-out about their pregnancy stretch marks. Her doctor said to her lah during her 1^st pregnancy. Stretch marks is something you won’t like. It can be reduced by time, but not easy to disappear at all. But, to take it positively, think again of the reason of its existence. Why? It is because you were PREGNANT! That is the mark that will always reminisce the journey you’ve gone thru to becoming a MOTHER. Isn’t that grand? Yeah, so…be happy! Look at your stretch marks and smile. And look at your baby…how sweet!

So now, I’m trying my best for myself. But later, if I see that appears, I will definitely redha and stay positive. Whoahh…being a woman is really adventurous!

 

Update : My Lil One inside is 14 weeks old!