Traditional postpartum practices generally involve food proscriptions and prescriptions. Certain foods are prohibited due to their properties such as “windy”, “cold” and “hot”. As lactating mother needs higher energy and protein intake, this practice may impact their ability to meet their nutritional requirements. Consequently, their health may not be fully restored, wound healing would be slowed, and lactation success may be interfered. This study was conducted in Kuantan, Pahang, to investigate Malay mothers’ perception on confinement dietary practices during postpartum period. A total of 80 respondents aged between 23-43 years old were interviewed using a questionnaire which consisted of an extensive list of food items. It was found that 100% of respondents mentioned that they do observe the traditional postpartum practices after childbirth with most of them (63.0%) chose to confine for up to 44 days. Flavored rice, roti canai and various types of noodle were generally avoided during postpartum period due to their ‘oily/fatty’ property. Tubers, and most fruits and vegetables were also avoided due to their ‘cold’ property. Moreover, the famous ‘reason’ for exclusion of fish was ‘bisa’ and ‘causing itchiness’ for seafood. Milk and dairy products were included in majority of respondents’ diet. Out of 80, 43 (53.8%) respondents avoided soy sauce because it was believed to give negative effect on wound healing. Other than
that, iced drink, tea and sugarcane drink were avoided due to their ‘cold’ and ‘sharp/sour’ properties. In addition, statistical tests of all food items show that there is no difference in terms of level of acceptance for each food between women delivered via normal delivery or caesarean section. It is concluded that postpartum food taboo beliefs are still prevalent among Malay women. Extensive food prohibition and restriction causes limited food choices which may affect mothers’ nutritional intake. Thus, a more balanced diet should be recommended for Malay mothers during postpartum period to ensure adequate nutrient intake, as much as culturally acceptable.
Bauxite mining in Kuantan district of Pahang has raised health concerns of communities residing near the mining areas. Bauxite mining and transportation activities have contributed a lot to the pollution of environment. There is a fear among the residents of the areas that whether the soil is free from naturally occurring radioactive substances or not. Therefore, the objective of this study was to detect the presence of natural radioactive elements in the soil of bauxite mining field at Bukit Goh, Kuantan.
Increasing risk of antibiotic resistance of pathogenic bacteria has led to the exploration of alternative antibiotics derived from leaves of medicinal plants such as the fig (Ficus carica L.). The aim of this study was to determine the antimicrobial activity of the methanolic extract of fig leaves grown under Malaysian tropical environment against pathogenic bacteria linked to antibiotic resistance namely the Staphylococcus aureus and Escherechia coli. The methanolic extraction was performed by using soxhlet apparatus. The disc diffusion method was used to measure inhibition zone diameter on the Mueller-Hinton agar plate. Staphylococcus aureus displayed the highest diameter of inhibition zone against the extract at concentration of 900 mg/ml whilst Escherechia coli displayed the highest diameter of inhibition zone against both the 100% crude extract and 700 mg/ml, respectively. This study therefore highlighted the potential of developing alternative antibiotics derived from the methalonic extract of locally grown fig plant.
Visual therapy or eye exercise, which is widely used in behavioral optometry, has been
successfully helping some visual disorders, especially binocular vision problem. In Bates System of Eye Exercise, it is claimed that eye exercise can restore vision with refractive error by completely relaxing the eyes. One of the ways to relax the eyes is by wearing the pinhole glasses as the pinhole placed before the eyes will help to relax accommodation and temporarily improving vision by reducing the size of blur circle. Pinhole glasses have been marketed as a visual therapy device, with the claim that continuous use of these glasses will improve refractive error. Although only anecdotal evidences have been provided on the efficacy of this product, the society are still interested to use the pinhole glasses and believe that their vision could be improved by simply wearing this device. Aim: The purpose of this study was to compare the refractive error of
myopic participants before and after wearing the pinhole glasses for 3 weeks. Methodology: Fifteen
participants were recruited in this study and all of the participants wore the pinhole glasses while performing near works for 20 minutes/day, anytime from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. everyday for 3 weeks. Results: The refractive error before and after the intervention was then being compared and the results showed that there was no significant difference in refractive error of both right (p= 0.08) and left eyes (p= 0.09) of myopic participants before and after wearing the pinhole glasses. Conclusion: Our results suggest that pinhole glasses did not improve the refractive error of myopic participants.
It has been reported that diabetics are more likely to develop tear film dysfunction compared to non-diabetics. Even so, there has been very little research reported on the correlation between blood glucose level and quality of tears. Objective: The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of blood glucose level on TBUT among young adults with diabetes. Methods: A cross-sectional study consisting of 37 diabetic patients within the age range of 19-39 years was carried out at International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) Optometry Clinic, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia. The subjects were tested for random blood glucose level (RBS) and undergone tear
break up time (TBUT) test. Nonparametric test was used namely Spearman correlation to determine the association between RBS and TBUT. Results: TBUT median (interquartile range) value was 7.5 (11.55) seconds. Meanwhile, the negative association was found between (RBS) and TBUT in diabetics (r = -0.126). However, the correlation was not statistically significant (p>0.05). Tear film break up time was not associated with the random blood glucose level. Conclusion: Tear film break up time seems to be not affected by blood glucose level.
The ability for us to see is actually due to the reflection of light that serves as a proof of the greatest creations of our Creator as stated in the Holy Quran, “Allah is the Light of the heavens and the Earth” (24:35). There are limited references specifically focusing on Revelations related to visual function. Thus, this study aims to provide a compilation of Quranic verses (Juz 1 to 15) and hadiths of Sahih Al-Bukhari related to visual function supported by scientifically proven facts. This may invite readers to reflect upon the wonders of creations by Allah mentioned in these Revelations that lead to the discovery of our modern science. A website named“Search Truth” on http://www.searchtruth.com/ was used as a tool to ease the finding of the Quranic verses and hadiths that are related to visual function by searching for the keywords “eye/eyes”, “see”, “light”, “sight” and “vision” in the search boxes provided in the website. The translations of Revelations containing those keywords were verified and related to visual function supported by scientifically proven facts from other reading materials. Twenty-eight Quranic verses and 57 hadiths of Sahih Al-Bukhari can be related to visual function supported by scientifically proven facts. Twelve Quranic verses that have the word “eye/eyes”, 7 verses with the word “light”, 2 verses with the word “see”, 6 verses with the word "sight” and 1 verse with the word “vision” can be related to visual function. As for hadiths, 49 hadiths have the word “eye/eyes”, 3 with the word “light”, 1 with the word “see”, 2 with the word “sight” and 2 with the word “vision” in their translations can also be related to
visual function. Some of the Quranic verses and hadiths are related to anatomy, physiology and
pathophysiology of the eyes, treatments for eye diseases, and other interesting findings.
Food contamination is a crucial health problem as it could result in food-borne illness. This research aimed to evaluate the microbiological quality of ready-to-eat (RTE) fried rice dishes sold at different type of food premises in Kuantan city, Pahang. Total Plate Count (TPC), Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus and Aeromonas spp. bacteria were used as microbiological contamination indicators. About 52 samples were collected stratified randomly from four types of food premises (restaurant, cafeteria, food stall and night market) where about 13 samples were respectively collected from each type of the food premises. The results showed that TPC had medium mean count (6.30x105±1.47x105 cfu/g), S. aureus and B. cereus had high mean counts (7.70x104±2.22x105 cfu/g and 3.85x105±1.67x106 cfu/g respectively), while Aeromonas spp. had medium mean count (7.13x104±2.42x105 cfu/g). The mean counts of TPC in the samples collected from cafeteria were highest compare to other food premises.