Buhay sa Korea

While taking a break during our class, some of my classmates and I talked about the games at the Beijing Olympics and a popular movie playing these days. We couldn’t avoid talking about the actor in the movie who died of an accidental overdose of prescription painkillers. He had always played a leading role in the movies he made but his transformation as a villain in his last film really made a mark.

Since it’s the Olympics season, we talked about how there are some professional athletes suffer from Painkiller Addiction while others uses performance-enhancing drugs. We thought that this is not as widespread and some press reports are exaggerate. However, there always seems to be someone who fails the drug test in the Olympics.

There are some dependence on drugs that seem to be accidental though, like Pain Pill Addiction. The good thing is drug dependence is treatable and there are different types of treatment adapted by health professionals. At least there’s hope for those who need it.

I’ve been waiting to write about this since I know someone who has been benefitting from LASIK surgery for the past eight years - my elder sister. She visited the Philippines in September, 2000 and getting the surgery was one of her agenda. I haven’t heard much of LASIK then and I was amazed to know that even if the procedure is specialized, it doesn’t take a lot of time for a patient to recover. As far as I can remember, she was just in the hospital for a day!

Modern LASIK combines 3D mapping and customized treatment for the 1st all-laser technology. The said procedure have been approved by no less than the US military and NASA for their personnel. (That says a lot!) However, it’s still not for everyone as those with thin, irregularly shaped corneas (or those with unrealistic expectations) or about 20-25% are considered to be ineligible.

My husband, who’s been interchanging between corrective eye glasses and contact lenses for the past 25 years, is interested in this surgery. He believes he will look better without the glasses - so vain! He’s attracted with the fast and nearly painless surgery, but I told him to get more LASIK information. It only takes an estimated 2 hours to check eligibility for the surgery.

I’ve been hearing about Herbalife for a long time but I was a bit skeptical about it. I got curious when I heard of it on TV via “Ugly Betty.” America Ferreira’s sister in the drama is a Herbalife Distributor. I haven’t been following the show religiously since the writers’ strike last year.

If you’re in the dark about what it is, Herbalife International is a company that sells weight management, nutrition and skin care products. I haven’t tried any of its products but I know some people who swears by their effectiveness. However, it’s important to do some research first before taking any supplements, herbal or otherwise. I bet a reliable Herbalife Distributor would be able to advise her clients well.

Herbal nutrition is not really new where I am. In fact, people here have been relying on herbs for centuries. It is only recently that it has been gaining attention in the west.

I didn’t know that there are special cancer products for cancer patients that can help them cope with their conditions better. If you’re asking why I’m posting about it, it’s because I have a niece who’s been battling cancer (Neuroblastoma) for four years. Thankfully, she’s quite well now.

I remember seeing pictures of my niece while she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment. As far as I know, she always nauseous and very moody during those times. There are nausea products available specially for cancer patients. An example is the anti nausea bracelet that provides accupressure treatment to relieve nausea naturally. There are other anti nausea available online. Just like the queasy pops and queasy drops.

When I met niece almost two years ago, she was a precocious six years old. I was surprised by her maturity whenever I talk to her. I often tell her how I admire her courage in fighting her disease. She didn’t know that she thought me how not to sweat the small stuff. Whenever I would feel some pain, I’d just think of her and my pain is gone!

Busy. Busy. Busy. I’ve been busy since the end of last week. School starts on Friday and there are so many things to do!

There is an OECD report last week about the average life span of Koreans. The report says that Koreans live an average of 79.1 years, second to Japan’s 82.4 years among OECD countries. I often see a lot of old people here, specially at Jongro3-ga subway station. Our community center is more often populated by seniors, who are often exercising. My mother-in-law, who is almost 70, is a lot healthier than I am. She attends aerobics classes daily and has even competed and one third place in a provincial aerobics competition. She eats mostly veggies and hates pork. My father-in-law has been paralyzed, right side, for more than a decade but he exercises everyday. He walks more than six hours a day, covering more than 20 kilometers. Believe it or not, he walks fast.

The OECD said such longevity could be attributable to higher income’s changing people’s lifestyle as a whole; individual care and investment in health management; health insurance coverage expanding year after year; and relatively easy access to medical services.

From Koreans Live Longer than Ever

I thought it’s because of kimchi that Koreans live long… ㅋㅋㅋㅋ. It is expected that the average life span of Koreans will be higher in the years to come. In 2005, there were 961 centenarians in Korea. I wouldn’t want to live that long if I can’t take a shower daily…

I have a sick child at home. My son has a fever (that started last night) and a sore throat but his sickness didn’t stop him from his desire to watch “Cars.”

Korea has an affordable national health insurance program that is available to all citizens and legal residents. The insurance card looks like the one in the picture. The system is co-payment, meaning in-patient or out-patient pays a percentage of the charges while the NHIC pays for the rest. The insurance system is good for basic health and dental health services (like root canal surgery). It doesn’t cover cosmetic procedures (surprise! surprise!) and Lasik though. One thing that a lot of people are not familiar with is that the operation for removing sweat glands is covered by insurance.

My son and I visited a local pediatric clinic near our home. It was just before lunch and there were lots of kids (vacation time) so it was really noisy inside. We waited for more than a half hour before we saw the doctor. I like the clinic’s equipments, which are specially made for kids. The consultation lasted less than 5 minutes. Clinics in Korea aren’t immune to the “palli-palli” or rush system. ㅋㅋㅋㅋThis is true in almost every doctor’s office that I’ve visited. However, there is one doctor who spends about 20 minutes whenever I go to him for consultation and he always talk to me in English.

We payed 2,000 won (US$2) for the consultation and were given a 3-day prescription. I sometimes don’t get why the doctors would only prescribe for three days because it’s sometimes inconvenient having to go back to there. Anyway, we payed 1,500 won (US$1.50) for the medicines that we got from the pharmacy. We’ll go back to the doctor after three days.

Find more information on Korea’s national health insurance from the NHIC website.

I have a mug of hot coffee on my desk as I type this. I’ve been drinking coffee for more than two decades now and I’ve been told time and time again that it is bad for my body. However, recent research that points to the Benefits of coffee have encouraged me to not quit drinking for it is anti-oxidant rich. In fact, a lot of what we were told as “bad” for the body, e.g. chocolates, wine, have been found to contain anti-oxidants that have anti-aging benefits. Watch this: