“ONE ON ONE”
with
Cardiologist/Surgeon
General Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgery
Philippine Heart Center
by JANE DELGADO.
to our FLPians! Hard work and Persistence will lead us to our goals. But understanding the products with good knowledge of its indications will lead you to your satisfaction of seeing your patients responding to your FLP products.
Naic
Elem. School Salutatorian
Naic
Western Colleges (High School) Valedictorian
UST
College of Medicine (1962) Class Valedictorian Magna Cum Laude
Revalida
on oral exams Meritissimus
Jose
Memorial Hospital (Internship) Winthrop Scholar
Medical Board Exams (1962) 1st Place / Topnotcher
Grade of 90.91%
RESIDENCY TRAINING:
UST
Hospital (1961-1962) General
Surgery
Harvard Medical School Peter
Bent
Brigham Hospital (1967-1970)
Boston, Masachusettes Thoracic
and Cardiovascular Surgery
University of Alabama (1978-1979) Pediatric
Cardiac Surgery
AWARD & DISTINCTIONS:
Medical Internship (1961-1962) Winthrop Scholar
PMA Enrile Award (1962) Medical
Board Topnotcher
TOYM Awardee in Medicine
American College of Cardiology Scholar Harvard Medical School (1967-1970)
Most Outstanding Silver Jubilarian, UST College of
Medicine, 1987
Most Outstanding Ruby Jubilarian, Naic Western colleges,
1995
Frontline Worker Awardee, Philippine Heart Center,
1989-1990
ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS &
PREVIOUS POSITIONS HELD:
Assistant Chairman, Dept. of
Surgery, UST College of Medicine
Associate Professor III, UST
College of Medicine
Chairman, Dept. of
Cardiovascular Surgery, St. Luke’s Hospital
Chief, Section of Pediatric
Cardiac Surgery, Philippine Heart Center
Chief, Section of Thoracic
& Cardiovascular Surgery, UST Hospital
Asst. Chairman, Dept. of
Cardiovascular Surgery, Philippine Heart Center
Past President, Philippine
Association of Thoracic & CV Surgery, Inc.
Past President, Philippine
Association of Winthrop Scholars & Fellows
Secretary-Treasurer, Philippine
Board of Thoracic & CV Surgery Medical, Director, Philippine Heart Center
“During my first
encounter with Forever Living Products, I was closed-minded – to believe in the
company, moreso, to try and believe in its’ products – because the whole idea
of it seemed to be against the usual practice of medicine. But through the sheer persistence and
persistence and patience of my son, Rio, who was the first who was the first to
get involved with the company, I just woke up one day, personally patronizing
Forever Living Products, gaining positive results from testimonies of friends
and relatives, and quite a number of
cases, together with conventional medicine, speed recovery and provide some cure
to many of my patients.”
Note: You can purchase FLP at any sales office by present ID below
ABDUL HALIM YAACOB
ID: 600 000 222 262
NRIC: 530523025273
Tel: 04-7714422/012-4020063.
Co’s HQ: Forever Living Products (M) Sdn.
Bhd., Wisma Forever, 25, Jalan Jejaka 3, Taman Maluri, 55100 Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia.
Tel: 03-92820033/92847546/92861020/92872237.
Q: Good evening, doctor.
A: Good
evening to you, Jane.
Q: In behalf of my fellow distributors in Forever Living, we have prepared some questions for you to answer; and hence give us additional knowledge about our bodies, particularly, the heart and its various ailments, which appropriate care or treatment must be given, and what FLP products should be used.
How long have you been a
cardiologist?
A: Actually, ah, since I have finished my training at Harvard
Medical School in 1970… it has already 30 years.
Q: Have you always wanted to be a doctor? Has it always been a childhood dream?
A: Well, my father was a doctor who gave services to the government,
he was a City Health Officer. So as the
eldest, he always brought me along to his medical conventions and project…may
be that’s why I had the interest. So,
in a way, he has been my inspiration.
Q: There are many choices in terms of medical specialization. Among those various choices, why did you
specifically want to be a cardiologist?
A: Actually, that’s not what I really wanted. My dream, really, was
to be a neurosurgeon – the one who deals with the brain and its sensitive
parts. When I finished general surgery
in UST, I immediately went to America for training, but unfortunately, at that
time, there was no available training for neurosurgery. My second choice was urology that which
operates on the kidney, bladder, etc.
But still, even this was not offered there. Third, because I had no other choice, I went to a Filipino cardiologist there who had connections with
Harvard Medical School, Dr. Mariano Alimurong, and he advised me to try
cardiology for a while, even for just a year, and if I want after a year, I can
just shift to neurosurgery if by then it’ll be offered. Then when I came to Harvard, I saw that
their program was really excellent, and then I really got into cardiology, and
I worked hard for three years. May be I
was really fated to be a cardiologist.
Q: It’s not a secret to everyone that you Patronize Forever Living Products (During this interview last
Oct. 2000, Dr. Torres was already a recognized manager of Forever Living Products). How did you come to learn about FLP?
A: In 1990, I happened to be with Secretary, then, Cong. Golez in
one wedding. We were both wedding
sponsors (ninong). He was seated
beside me at the presidential table, and he gave each of us some reading about
this company and its products. Of
course, to be civil, I said “this appears to be good” (“mukhang maganda
ito”). And since Avon and other
products were also popular then, I thought it was just like one of those
companies. And of course, since I was a
doctor, I had no interest in those things.
I didn’t regard it much.
Then in 1997, I was already
the director of Philippine Heart Center.
My son, Rio, who was just on his first year in Medical Technology he was
encouraged to attend a Forever Living seminar in Quezon City and he was
pressing me to try it, and what I said was, “No, that’s nonsense.” (“wala,
walang kwenta ‘yan”). The first
ones he convinced were his siblings and his mother, even his cousins, because
he really could not convince me.
Then, he asked P10,000.00
from me because he said he will buy a Combo Pack. “That’s the hard part there,” I said. (“Yan ang hirap
d’yan.” kako.) “I’ll be the one to answer all the expenses.” (“Ako ang magagastusan.”) So, that’s already P30,000.00, because even my wife and one of
my children bought a Combo Pack
each. And when I tried Aloe Vera Gel,
uh, it really tasted so bad I knew my patients won’t like it. So I didn’t bother to give it any
importance.
Until they held a product
demonstration in Niac, Cavite. And
there, I saw Betadine turned white when Aloe Vera
Gel was put into it. I thought, because
bromine, iodine and chlorine were of the same family group of chemicals,
perhaps it because of its bleaching property that’s why it turned white when
they put some Aloe Vera Gel. Then,, Arctic Sea dissolved a
Styrofoam. Even Squalene was opened and
was compare to Arctic Sea. I felt
regretful, because, as I said then “sayang”, because you know, Squalene
has quite a price. And the Styrofoam
was dissolved by Arctic Sea, while with Squalene (they used ten capsules), it
did not. When I saw that, I said, “Wow,
I guess there’s really truth in this.”
Another thing that happened
then was…I had a patient who was a priest in San Beda, Fr. Arceo. He had always taken “Zocor”, a medicine that
was even sent to him by his
bothers in States, to lower cholesterol
level, ah, but it never did. He even doubled
the dosage but still it didn’t take effect.
There were already side effect on the liver. So I offered him Arctic Sea…he was my first victim, so to say…and
I thought, even if it wouldn’t okay to him, at least he was my friend. I explained that this product was fish oil
(Omega-3), and he accept it. After two
weeks, I had his cholesterol checked again, and it’s true, it was lowered. “Ah,” I said, “this really has a mode of
action.” Even his HDL (good
cholesterol) increase. And his LDL (bad
cholesterol) was reduced. So, he
liked it. That Zocor which his
relatives sent to him was given to me.
And so, since I also had a high cholesterol then, and Zocor was quite
expensive and was give to me for free, I said, “Ah, now I’ll be the one to take
this.” (“Ako naman ang iinom nito”).
That was my joke then. But I used
it with Arctic Sea, and my cholesterol level really got low. From then on, I recommended Arctic Sea to my
patients. And gradually, I then helped
my wife. I sent products of Forever Living
to my clinic at the Heart Center. I was
with her in Cavite. Some patients also
got interested in networking.
Q: What’s different with Forever Living? What did you like in them?
A: My reason is, aside from the usual prescription that I give, I pair it with conventional medicine and I see that they complement each other. The mistake is, people think that Arctic Sea and other natural health products “cure-for-all”. What I say is, no, this just supplementary, and the two work together.
Q: What Forever products do you use, personally?
A: Almost all. I use Ginkgo, for memory; Garlic Thyme, Absorbent C - instead of Enervon C, I just use Absorbent C, Bee Pollen, Field of Greens, because our family has a history of diabetes. Before my mother died, she actually had a chance to take Forever Living products. “So far, so good”. A, my mother was already old, she had a wound on her feet, it got infected. We frequently put Aloe Vera Gelly on it and Aloe Propolis Crème, and wounds healed! Even on diabetic ulcer, even on those non-healing ulcers like varicose veins, I really saw that they dry quickly. So, it really made me glad. Also Aloe Heat Lotion, there were patients who had arthritis, and it’s really a great help. Especially, those who cannot take steroids, those that we call “non-steroidal drugs”, because the ah, since they had ulcer, you just spread it topically, and it works. You know, those circumstances.
Q: As a heart specialist, this is for everyone’s information because many people do not completely understand the importance of the heart – what is really the importance of the heart? Why is it so important that we take care of our heart?
A: Oh, the
heart is, ah, that’s your only organ!
There is no substitude for it.
Not like the kidneys, we have two.
And not like the other organs which can be removed, and leaves you still
alive. But the heart, it’s your only
organ! And that’s the only one you’ve
got! So, we really have to take care of
it. It’s the pumping organ that
transport the blood. The blood, it
carries all that we need, like oxygen, and all we eat. Even we the waste products of our body a carried
by the blood to get them to excreted.
The heart is an automatic organ that beats from time of birth, until you
get to, ah, for example, ninety years old, it still continues its beating; it
doesn’t stop; until you die. The heart
has its own blood supply from what we call the “coronary artery”, and when that
gets clogged – like that of a car – when the carburetor (karburador) is
clogged the car will not run; because it supplies gasoline to the car. It’s like the heart of your car. Now, when that gets clogged up, like that of
the heart, it
will inevitably stop. That’s why one
should take care of the heart. The
heart, from the very time you were born should be protected from the
ingredients of what you eat, because it’s really what we eat which blocks
it. Actually, if we were to be really
strict, even the milk that a baby takes must be non-fat.
Now,
kids, teenagers, they are very active.
They run everywhere.
Sport-oriented. Their bodies
burn fat so quickly, that’s why it’s vary rare for people at a young age have
heart ailment. But when you start to
slow down, during your 30s to 40s, there, then you start to get fat, gain
weight, the arteries to harden – the illness your parents had, like high blood
pressure, diabetes; you can inherit these – this is the age when these will
come in. When you reach 50, it builds
up, especially when you smoke since you’re a teenager; you know, it takes 20 to
30 years before the lungs and blood vessel get disrupted. So, smoking, that should be avoided.
But there are heart sicknesses, ailments, which cannot be prevented; when you are born with it. We call these “congenital heart defects”. Like when your heart has a puncture, a hole, an opening, or like those we call “blue babies”; we can’t do anything about these. The prevention here lies on mother while she’s still pregnant. And usually, the causes of these are unknown. There are those who say that emotional difficulties of the mother during the first three month of pregnancy, or the mother had a fall, or took a certain drug or medicine, these could have caused the arrest of a baby is during its first three month in the mothers womb. After the first three months, the baby is already almost complete; it just keeps growing. That’s why in America, if the mother had German measles during the first three months, they abort the baby, because the baby is sure to have a critical disease or a deformation, and most of them have heart defect at birth.
Q: As distributors of Forever Living, we usually encounter diseases of the heart. Some of which are hypertension, heart attack, stroke, and having high cholesterol. But before we tackle hypertension (alta-presyon), first, let me ask, what is blood pressure?
A: Blood pressure is connotation of water pressure, like tap water we have at home. If water pressure is low, water wouldn’t be able to reach second floor. If ever, a booster pump is needed for water to reach second floor. So, blood pressure is the force that pushes the blood circulate throughout the body through the passages called arteries. Now, when the blood goes back, this time through the passages called veins, it goes back to the heart; that is already “against gravity”, because the return circulation start from the feet. Ah…we don’t have a heart on our feet to jump the blood upward. That’s why the return circulation of the blood, which means back to the heart, as something to do with a “sucking effect” which is also synonymous with every exhale of breath. It is a sucking effect which deals with the blood going upward, back to the heart.
Q: What is the normal blood pressure of a normal and healthy person?
A: The normal blood pressure for a normal person of average height, up to 6 feet, is 120mmHg (systolic) / 90mmHg (diastolic). If the person is taller, it is expected that the blood pressure is higher because more pressure is needed to transport the blood to and from the heart, simply because the travel of the blood is longer. That is why children have lower blood pressure; 70mmHg / 50mmHg. On the other hand, what’s interesting about our body is, unlike the water pump, there are 2 pressure needed for the blood to flow thoroughly. These are called systolic pressure and diastolic pressure. Systolic pressure is the pressure generated when the heart contracts, and diastolic pressure is generated after the blood passes from the heart through its largest artery called aorta. Diastolic pressure is when the aorta goes back to its normal size, after it has been stretched with sudden blood flow. In this diastolic phase, there is also pressure formed, which is, as I said, called diastolic pressure. This is the reason why systolic pressure is always higher than diastolic pressure. Normal diastolic pressure should not exceed 90mmHg while systolic plays between 120-140mmHg. Typically, the difference between diastolic pressure and systolic pressure is 30mmHg.
Q: So when can we say that a person is hypertensive?
A: You know what, the biggest cause of having hypertension has really no direct cause. The typical root of hypertension is 90% undefined. Why do some have high blood pressure, while some have low? There are even those who are already 90 years old and still has no hypertension. Thus, we call this type of hypertension as “essential hypertension”, whose usual cause is inheritance or genetics.
Now, there are “supporting causes”, like salty foods. Salt tends to hold water, water that has to be excreted. But given that salt holds water, it cannot be taken of the body; consequently, this builds up in the walls of our arteries, and this causes a rise blood pressure because the blood volume increase. Accordingly, 10% of the reasons for hypertension have definite causes, and we know the cure. This type of hypertension is usually brought about by other disease. A case in point is hypertension effected by having stones in the kidney, tumor in the adrenal gland, etc.; when the source of the illness is cured, like, as I said, having kidney stones removed, the alleviation of hypertension follows.
Q: What
foods can aggravate hypertension to a patient who already has it?
A: Aside
from salt, and more harmful than it…Ah…we know that our blood has two parts: a)
fluid part termed “plasma”; b) cellular part which is composed of red blood
cells, white blood cells, platelets, and other chemicals (cholesterol, blood
sugar, uric acid, triglycerides, fatty acids)…so, what’s more harmful is bad
cholesterol because this sticks to the walls of the arteries, which fuels blood
pressure. This is diet which is high in
fat, like pork, nilagang karne that has polysaturated fat (sebo),
which when dries and loses heat, it sticks to the plate, and you have to boil
it to melt it again. In spite of that,
even if we reheat to melt polysaturated fat (sebo), when it reaches our
stomach, the temperature is not as high
as we are cooking so the fat goes back to its solid form. And this gets deposited into our arteries,
which cause to make blood pressure soar.
It’s the same as when you take a sauna bath, your fats really dissolve,
but when you rise from the warm water, it build up again.
Q: Is egg bad for the body?
A: Aha, um, an egg has 2 parts. The white part is called albumin or egg white. The yellow part is the yolk, and that’s where cholesterol is.
Q: How about balut?
A: It’s the same. The chick embryo (sisiw), because the brain is there and the other nutrients, ah, so it’s high in cholesterol, both good and bad. But where the chick embryo (sisiw) sits on, the yellow part, is also called albumin or egg white.
Q: Are there foods which can help enhance good cholesterol?
A: Yes,
there are. Foods like fish, tuna,
salmon, very rich source of Omega 3, olive oil, or any oil or food that doesn’t
congeal at room temperature, like butter, margarine, these are sources of what
we call “saturated fatty acids”; and unlike good cholesterol, these are bad for
the body. And so, olive oil, corn oil, canola oil, these are advantageous. In addition, coconut oil is definitely a
source of saturated fatty acids, although some say coconut oil is good for the
body. Well, yes, but only to a certain
point. Avocado is a good source of
cholesterol, but this is plant cholesterol so it is good. In milk fish (bangus), on the other
hand, do you see black thing? The fat
in the belly portion? Uhuh, that’s a
good source of good cholesterol. In
sea foods, however, crab fat (aligi), this is bad cholesterol.
Q: Are
all fishes good for the body?
A: It
depends, because some fishes, like codfish which remains near the water
surfaces, tends to use up a lot of oxygen…
Q: Is
this good?
A: Ah,
no. The deeper fish is better.
Q: What
are the expected side effect of drugs for the cure of hypertension?
A: The
side effects of drugs for hypertension, like a sedative for instance – since
there are people who are hyperactive; and when a patient is hyperactive, the
arteries constrict and for this reason high blood pressure intensifies – ah,
sedative…the effect is in the brain.
You’re most likely to feel sleepy.
You become a little sleepy, even daytime: it’ll seem like you’re
drunk. So if you’re driving, it’s un
safe.
Q: Aside from drowsiness, are there other
physiological effects on the patient?
A: Ah, it’s like being a “slow foot”. Your body activity won’t be as functional. Additionally, there are also beta-blockers, an example is Betaloc, these make your mouth and throat feel dry or arid. It makes you feel as if you’re always parched, because it dries up your secretions. These also those drugs like Aldomet and Serpasil which cause impotence.
Q: As a practitioner, which products of FLP have you seen greatly help those people with high blood pressure?
A: What I
observed is, if you combine medicine and FLP products, they work together. Together, they lower down the cholesterol
level, and the good thing there is, the blood become thinner, not viscous or
thick (malapot). You see,
when the blood is viscous, your blood
pressure rises because solid particles increase in your blood – this case is
what we call polysythemia. Therefore,
you must take products that help make the blood less viscous and at the same
time reduces bad cholesterol…like Garlic Thyme, and Ginkgo too…it really
renders your blood to be less clotting,
and also lowers your blood pressure. And
of course Arctic Sea, it also cuts on bad cholesterol, lessens the viscosity of
the blood; plus, Arctic Sea also enhances good cholesterol. Understand that it is good cholesterol that
fights bad cholesterol.
Q: What
else…Arctic Sea, Garlic Thyme, Ginkgo…?
A: Aloe
Vera Gel, it’s the one that gives cleansing.
Plus, the nutrients packed in it.
In view of the fact that you should take it before meals, bad elements
in food like fat, do not get absorbed.
That’s why if you make them work together…our suggestion is, Aloe Vera
Gel must be taken first, before you take these other supplements, like Arctic
Sea, etc.
Q:
Ideally, how much Aloe Vera Gel can be taken?
A: It
depends on the level that patients require; depends on their needs, seeing that
Aloe Vera Gel does not only cleanse; it
also contains energy, vitamins, and everything that is needed. Usually, I give
60 cc or 2 ounces…two lines on the feeding bottle, 3x a day. But of course, if you work in an office,
it’s very inconvenient to bring gel bottle…so I just recommend 2x a day,
morning and evening, 3 ounces each, before breakfast and before supper.
Q: If in
case hypertension was not immediately relieved or treated, what could possibly
happen to the patient?
A: What
will happen is, the patient’s hypertension will be uncontrollable, which will
lead to the complications of hypertension.
One must note that high blood pressure is not a disease in itself. It is a manifestation of a possible
complication later in life.
Complications may involve the following target organs…we have four
target organs of these complications: 1) Heart – this pumps the blood, if the
pressure is high the heart muscle overwork, just like during an exercise,
muscle gain mass – the heart becomes larger.
The heart gains mass, so if you look at an ECG (Electrocardiogram),
there is an enlargement of the heart.
If there is an enlargement of the heart, basically, the patient has
hypertension. Thus, a blood pressure
that is always high will lead to heart enlargement. Now, that heart enlargement is a response
of the heart to overcome the overwork.
So, initially, it’s good.
The heart naturally has reserved
power to overcome the overwork. At this
stage, the patient still feels okay.
But, the moment that the heart reaches its limit, the moment the size
doubles up…the next thing is “heart failure”.
That enlargement of the heart causes the muscles to get
over-stretched. So, after a
while…similar to an overstretched rubber band, it’s unavoidable for it to
break. It’s either the heart fails, or the heart goes back to its
original form, also called elastic recoil.
What happens is, after the heart’s elastic recoil, the heart muscle
soften. When it soften, it weakens, and
so its ability to pump blood for circulation becomes inadequate,
insufficient. In effect, pressure that
used to be high becomes low…because the heart can no longer generate
power to make it high. So, you see, the
sudden drop of blood pressure is not really good sign; it doesn’t mean that
you’re getting well. In fact,
you’re becoming worse. Meaning, the heart becomes incapable to
generate pressure, and the tendency for the heart is to tire easily. You tend to feel tired easily, your
breathing becomes heavier, even the simple motion of climbing the stairs would
easily exhaust you. You experience
edema or bloating, because the kidneys could no longer eliminate fluids. 2) Kidney – now this is the second organ
that gets affected because, of course, the kidney also has blood supply. If the pressure increase there, the
filtration part of kidney – we call it glomerulus-dyfunctions. This glomerulus is the filtration system of
the body, it forms urine. The
glomerulus filters and this is the reason why our blood, which is red,
becomes excreted as almost colorless, or clear urine. Subsequently, if the filtration
mechanism dyfunctions, those important products which should not be
excreted will be excreted…they will mix with the urine…like protein and red
blood cells will be in your urine; hence, the urine will turn red. Now, this is the beginning of what we call
“chronic renal failure”. And eventually
, the patient will need to undergo a dialysis or a kidney transplant. 3) Brain – this is the third target organ. Our brain has blood vessels, small
capillaries, at that. These small
capillaries cannot withstand high pressure, and the inevitable result is the
eruption of these capillaries. When
this capillaries erupt, hemorrhage occurs or that which we call “stroke”…this
will occur, and a part of the body will be paralyzed, usually one side of the
body. 4) Eyes – this is the fourth
target, and so the doctor examines it trough the opthalmoscope to see the
arteries in the retina. If the doctor
sees that these arteries have “exudates”…these cause a blurring of vision…we
call it “retinopathy”… that is given laser treatment, these blood vessels. These are burned through laser before you
get blind.
Q: For an ordinary person, how can he that he already has hypertension?
A: As I said, it is easy for a person to know if he has it because primarily, he isn’t used to the feeling of high blood pressure. The usual feeling for a patient who develops first time is… he gets a headache, especially at the back of the neck. Sometimes, there is intense pulsation at the temples (sintido). It even reaches the point where he feels the urge to vomit. Whereas, other don’t feel chest pain; rather, they feel so sleepy and keeps on yawning.
Q: But it doesn’t necessarily mean that all of those symptoms will be present, right?
A: Yes, not necessarily all. Actually, there are cases where a person doesn’t even feel anything uncomfortable; when in fact, he is already hypertensive. That is very critical, when you are unaware that you have hypertension.
Q: Is there truth in what most people say, that it is bad to massage the back of the neck when one has hypertension?
A: Ah, no, there’s nothing wrong in that.
Q: Are there activities which are not allowed for hypertensive people?
A: You know what’s perilous, it’s when they say, “This is nothing. I’ll just have to work out, and I’m sure I’ll get fine. I’ll jog, exercise. I’ll play basketball…”(”Wala ito, magpapapawis lang ako, wala na ito. Magjo-jogging ako, mag –e-exercise, lalaro ako ng basketball…”)…That’s very dangerous! Without having a consultation! Get that during exercises, blood pressure increase all the more. This is why there are people who just drop dead! Very much unaware that their BP is already 200mmHg, they play basketball; this causes death.
Q: What first aid can be given to one who has a feat of high BP? Would it help if he takes a cold bath?
A: No! If ever he takes a bath, ah, it should not be a cold bath. It’s better to bathe in lukewarm water. Note that the initial response of our body to cold bath is vasoconstriction-meaning the blood vessels constrict; thus increasing your blood pressure. This is why many die in their bathrooms.
Q: How about in drinking, are there restrictions?
A: In a way, drinking cold water causes vasoconstriction in the stomach…uh, this may also cause a rise in your BP initially. But not as bad as taking a cold bath.
Q: Now
let’s tackle heart attack. What can be
termed as a heart attack?
A: Please
don’t confuse stroke with “atake de
corazon” or heart attack. Stroke is
that which happens in the brain, while heart attack really attacks the
heart. Okay, as I said, the heart is a
pumping organ. It is an automatic
organ. It doesn’t ever stop, even when
we’re asleep. Nothing controls it
except…well, uh, when you’re tired, or you’re doing exercises, the response is
it’ll beat faster. Or if you’re
shocked, or you saw your crush, or you have a bad hunch, it will beat
faster. So nothing controls it except
emotional responses. Our body releases
adrenalin to our system, and this causes the heart to beat faster. Heart attack hits in two ways. First is what we call “acute” or “myocardial
ifarction”, where coronary artery which supplies the heart blood, had been
clogged for some time already. Let’s
say, 50% blockage…then the patient get angry for some reason, then a “spasm”
occurs…this results in a sudden addition of blockage, say, it becomes
100%! For a few seconds, your heart
muscle was deprived of blood supply.
This can kill you. The beating
of the heart will certainly stop.
Second is, what we call, “chronic” or “angina”. In this case, the clogging of the coronary
artery is gradual, until the artery finally gets blocked. There are not spasms but cholesterol builds
up in those arteries. When it
gets critical and reaches 90%, and you happen to exert some effort, then you’ll
feel chest heaviness. That’s what we call “angina”. If that happens, your tendency is to rest,
so you feel relaxed. When you are
diagnosed with that, what will given to you is a drug that relaxes the
arteries; and so, the flow of blood is normalized.
Q: So when the medication loses its effect, will it go back?
A: Yes. So what they do is they keep on taking medication 2x, 3x, even 4x a day. Very frequent drug intake is bad. In time it will make the patient undergo an emergency bypass.
Q:
Ahuh…basically, can we say that heart attack has something to do with
cholesterol; that it also has a connection with a person’s diet?
A: That’s
right. Where else will
cholesterol come from but in the foods that we eat? Although, when the liver does not produce cholesterol, the body
can also get cholesterol from the carbohydrates that we eat. From the sugar, rice, fruits that you take
in, from the softdrinks, and other carbohydrates…you can convert these into
cholesterol. Even when you are not into
eating fatty foods, you also develop blood fats and we call them
“triglycerides”.
Q: Oh, so moderation is needed, not just in eating fatty foods, but also in taking in carbohydrates.
A: Right. Especially if you’re diabetic since your blood sugar is high. If you don’t use up or metabolize the sugar in your body because of lack of insulin, then, your sugar converts into cholesterol. This why diabetics are also hypertensive.
Q: How
does a heart attack feel?
A: Chest
heaviness is felt. You feel as if
you’re dying. However, if what you feel
is sense of “punctures” in the heart,
that’s not a heart attack. But when you
experience a “sense of pressure”, when you feel as if something heavy press on
your chest…that, that‘s the exact
description.
Q: What should a person who’s having a heart attack do? Is there a first aid procedure?
A: Aba! Whatever you do, you better stop! Take a deep breath.
Q: Can certain movements worsen a heart attacks?
A: Anything strenuous…carrying heavy loads…or when you hasten to go to your bedroom because you feel really bad, and you climb the stairs to the 2nd floor because the room is there. You better stop! Take a deep breath.
Q: For
your patients who have had a history of heart attacks, what FLP products do
you recommend?
A: It’s almost
the same with what I recommend for
hypertension. Except when the patient
has an abnormal carbohydrate metabolism like diabetes; I add Fields of Greens
and Garcinia Plus, because of their
high chromium picolinate content.
You see, chromium picolinate is one of raw material for manufacture of
insulin.
Q: The
“stroke” that you mentioned a while ago, is cholesterol also its root cause?
A:
Yes. Brain arteries also clog
up; and those carotid arteries in neck.
When clogging builds up, the
brain loses blood supply, and so half of the brain dies. There are also little blood clots which come
from the heart and then are transported to the brain through blood flow, we
call this “embolic stroke”.
Q:
Patients who have stroke – are they all hypertensive too?
A: Not
necessarily. I really wonder about
that. Not all who had a stroke are
hypertensive, although 90% of hyppertensive patients may go to stroke;
especially if you have a family history of this ailment.
Q: Can
you tell us about mild stroke?
A: Mild
stroke is what we call TIA or Transient Ischemic Attack. Transient, meaning, it doesn’t last
long. Ischemic means lack of blood supply. It’s not really total paralysis; it’s just
that half of the body feels numb and your speech is slurred. This only
last a few hours, and after wards, you can talk again and numbness leaves. In this case, you only have little blockages
in your arteries, but you may have showers of them. A major stroke, on the other hand, involves paralysis.
Q: For
those who had a major stroke, is recovery still a possibility for them? Do they still have chance to go back to
their normal health?
A: Well,
if rehabilitation was given early, if the blockage were dissolved immediately,
and proper medication was given – medication which gives oxygen to dead brain,
like Ginkgo Biloba, it’s very good at that – then there’s a great chance for
recovery.
Q: What
is your usual dosage for Ginkgo?
A: 1
tablet, 3x a day for those who already had stroke. But for those who have never experienced a stroke yet, 1 tablet
a day will be sufficient. With Arctic
Sea, you really have to determine if
their cholesterol level is high. Yet,
even if low, you might as well just give Arctic Sea. Garlic Thyme, same, 1 cap., 3x a day.
Q: Based on your observations on FLP products, personally and with your patients as well, what do you think are the limitations of our products?
A: Perhaps I am not very much knowledgeable in all FLP products, but what I am concerned with is the most common in what I give to my patients. The limitation is the price. Putting it aside, it’s really exceptional. They complement the drugs I prescribe if they use FLP products, since they have a complementary action.
Q: Is it
true that Artic Sea and Garlic Thyme are not recommendable for those who are
scheduled for operation or surgery?
A: Yes.
It actually happened to me. One
week before I had a surgery, I had to have my blood extracted because it has to
be placed inside the refrigerator, for it will be the same blood which will be
transfused into me after the operation…this eliminates the risk of getting
diseases from infected blood like hepatitis and AIDS. What happened is…a big needle was needed to get the blood, so
what should be is…15 minutes after pressure was applied, bleeding should have
stopped. Ah, 2 hours later, the
bleeding still continued. I remembered
I was taking Ginkgo, Garlic Thyme, and Arctic Sea, which makes the blood “thin”.
Q: Can you give us a time frame before one has on stop taking the products mentioned?
A: One week before surgery.
Q: How about for who just had operation?
A: After surgery, I would not advise that they start taking it right away. One week later is okay, after the wounds have healed.
Q: Cholesterol has been mentioned many times as a cause of certain ailments. But isn’t it that cholesterol is also needed for the body?
A: Yes. We call it “good cholesterol”, which our body needs, for example, in our brain and reproductive system. In fact, man would not be man without cholesterol. You know why, because sperm and egg cells are made of good cholesterol. Our brain is all cholesterol. So, if you don’t take in cholesterol, you tend to be less smart…boobo, or low in IQ. You can also be impotent without cholesterol.
Q: What, then, is good and bad cholesterol?
A: Basically, they’re both sebo or fat. But the point is, characteristically, they differ in terms of affinity in the walls of the blood vessels. It’s with their stickiness. Bad cholesterol is very, very sticky; whereas good cholesterol just swims in the blood.
Q: How much cholesterol is good for normal, healthy person?
A: Normally, 200mg% is considered normal serum cholesterol, total cholesterol. If you divide it, 130 out of 200 is bad cholesterol. 70 is good. If bad cholesterol exceeds 130, that’s abnormal. But if good cholesterol exceed 70, better.
Q: Why is it better to have more good cholesterol?
A: Because good cholesterol fight bad cholesterol.
Q: Are
those FLP products given to patients with hypertension the same with those
products given to patients with high cholesterol level?
A: Yeah,
that’s right. Let me cite Arctic
Sea. Comparing it with other Omega-3, I
noticed that even those coming from abroad like Norway and Australia, are all
the same – they’re all Omega-3. First,
I compared. I made some of my patients
use it and then conducted a double blind study. I gave imported Omega-3 to some of my patients, and I gave Arctic
Sea to those who didn’t have relative to sent them Omega-3. What I observed is, with those imported
Omega-3, there is no difference in cholesterol level of the patients; while
with Arctic Sea, the decrease was very much substantial. That’s why Omega-3 of Forever Living
Products is better than other fish oils.
And another thing that I liked in it is, Arctic Sea has Vitamin E, which
is good antioxidant. If you take
Vitamin E, it delays oxidation, it delays decomposition.
Q: In this discussion, it appears that diet has a major role in the prevention of ailments like heart attack, hypertension, stroke, and elevated blood cholesterol. So, it is really important that we watch what we eat.
A: That’s right. Since we eat 3x a day, and basically, we digest it, some of it will be excreted either by urine or fecal matter. The one that gets absorbed into our system is the one that our liver will metabolize. The “kitchen” of our body is the liver. So, abnormal cholesterol which has been used will be eliminated, through the bladder. And products that breakdown from cholesterol into fatty acids, they become so simple ester, which is also eliminated through the kidneys.
Q: This is really overwhelming. We have learned so much. What would you advise our fellow distributors for us to take care of our health and bodies?
A: What
is very important that the patient has a deep understanding of their
illness. We have encountered patient
whom we call “dangerous to treat”. They
are those who, when their pain gets eased a little, even for just a little…they
do not come back. It will take a long
time for them to pay the doctor another visit.
Sometimes, those patients only go back after one or two years…and when
they go back, they’ve already had a stroke, or complications in the kidneys, or
they already have edema, or a dialysis is already needed…This is really the sad
part. You know sometimes I can’t help
but tell them that if they just persevered, it would not have gotten to this
point. See, complications do not just
appear in a year or two…it takes 3 to 5 years for the complications to
appear. Sayang ang panahon. If only they had a check-up with me, I
would have really been glad. If we had an EGG check-up, and there is no
enlargement of the heart, then it means high blood was just beginning
them. It could’ve been taken properly,
and regularly. That’s the part that I
feel sad about, and what I regret is,
it could’ve been prevented.
Q: Thank you very much Dr. Torres. I have learned a lot. I know this discussion will serve a greater purpose, and I hope many of them will learn the way I did. I am sure many more will understand the importance of proper care for the body. Thank you again. Good night.
ABD HALIM YAACOB
Tuesday,
March 09, 1999 10:43 PM
