The world of Tzu Chi (Vol.109)

TZU CHI 109 59 Ng Hui Ling A nutritionist with a Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and a Master’s degree in Sports Science, who served at the Singapore Heart Foundation before becoming self-employed, providing dietary consultations to vegetarians and writing a nutrition column for a health magazine. my mother persisted. I have always been sceptical of dubious product claims, hence my reply, “The manufacturers must have come up with defensive strategies to be so audacious in making claims on their products. They will probably back their claims by insisting that every consumer responds differently to their products, and convince you to continue taking the supplements in order for them to be effective. Who knows?” Nothing ventured, nothing gained I shared with my mother my experience of visiting a pharmacy to buy multivitamins for my child. I was comparing several brands of multivitamins and had yet to make up my mind, when a salesperson tried to promote her brand of multivitamins. I was informed that gelatin makes up part of the multivitamins’ composition, so I promptly declined, citing the reason that it is not suitable for my child, who is a vegetarian. Undeterred, the eager salesperson recommended a soy powder formulation instead, highlighting that it is rich in protein, an essential nutrient for growing children. She even went so far as to claim that the formulation caters specifically to vegetarians, and is beneficial to a child’s development. “I told you so.Avegetarian diet is inadequate in nutrients,” my mother teased smugly. “Did you buy the soy powder? All I found in the kitchen cabinet was coffee powder.” “No, I didn’t.” My mother furrowed her brow and shook her head. “You are odd. You keep stocking up on bundles of books every month, yet you are not willing to spend on health supplements.” First of all, adopting a balanced diet forms the foundation of a child’s healthy growth, instead of relying on dietary supplements. Secondly, when a child obtains sufficient protein from a varied diet, protein supplements are unnecessary, for they serve no additional benefit to the child. Evidently, I refrainfromspendingonaproduct not because it is of subpar quality, but because it is unnecessary. Moreover, protein powder alone is not a replacement for a balanced diet. Even in the case of protein deficiency, addingmore protein-rich food sources to one’s diet is the way to go, rather than solely depending on protein supplements. My mother looked crestfallen. “Everyone says I was tricked into spending RM600 on the nutritional powder! Do you think so too?” When I was young and naive, my elders would console me whenever I was duped by saying, “Consider your loss as the price to pay for a lesson learnt. Don’t trust people so easily next time.” I recalled my recent folly of buying a mop that cost four times more than the norm, but had to be discarded after being used only once. As I was re-reading Chapter 60 of the classic Chinese novel Dream of the Red Chamber last night, I stumbled upon this line: With experience comes wisdom. Indeed, such affirming words to assuage my mother’s doubts, as well as mine.