Infant Feeding Practices in a Multi-Ethnic Asian Cohort: The GUSTO Study.

The optimal introduction of complementary foods provides infants with nutritionally balanced diets and establishes healthy eating habits. The documentation of infant feeding practices in multi-ethnic Asian populations is limited. In a Singapore cohort study (GUSTO), 842 mother-infant dyads were interviewed regarding their feeding practices when the infants were aged 9 and 12 months. In the first year, 20.5% of infants were given dietary supplements, while 5.7% took probiotics and 15.7% homeopathic preparations. At age 9 months, 45.8% of infants had seasonings added to their foods, increasing to 56.3% at 12 months. At age 12 months, 32.7% of infants were given blended food, although 92.3% had begun some form of self-feeding. Additionally, 87.4% of infants were fed milk via a bottle, while a third of them had food items added into their bottles. At both time points, more than a third of infants were provided sweetened drinks via the bottle. Infants of Indian ethnicity were more likely to be given dietary supplements, have oil and seasonings added to their foods and consumed sweetened drinks from the bottle (p < 0.001). These findings provide a better understanding of variations in infant feeding practices, so that healthcare professionals can offer more targeted and culturally-appropriate advice.

Perceptions of complementary and alternative medicine amongst medical students in Singapore--a survey.

BACKGROUND: In view of the current upsurge of interest in, practice of, and research into, complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) worldwide and locally, a survey was conducted to gauge the understanding, interest and knowledge of CAM amongst medical students in a local university. METHODS: A total of 555 first to fifth year medical students completed a questionnaire (54% response rate) designed to assess their knowledge, beliefs and attitudes to CAM in general and 16 common CAM therapies. RESULTS: Acupuncture was the best known therapy, with 57% claiming to know at least something about it. No students claimed they knew a lot about chiropractic, osteopathy, Ayuverdic medicine, homeopathy and naturopathy, and many had not ever heard of these therapies. Knowledge of commonly held beliefs about the 16 CAM modalities was generally poor, even for modalities which students claimed to know most about. A significant number of students had knowledge about CAM that was erroneous. Lack of scientific support was considered to be the main barrier to implementation of CAM. Attitudes to CAM were positive, with 92% believing that CAM includes ideas and methods from which conventional medicine can benefit, 86% wishing to know more about CAM and 91% stating that CAM would play an important role in their future medical practice. CONCLUSION: As the public's use of various healing practices outside conventional medicine accelerates, ignorance about these practices by the country's future medical practitioners risks broadening the communication gap between the public and the profession that serves them. The majority of medical students recognise this risk and are keen to bridge this gap.

Suicide of the elderly in Singapore.

This is a study based on data from all Coroners' case-files (Years 1969-1976) and a 'psychological post-mortem' study of all suicides for the year 1974--57 cases comprising of 39 males and 18 females. The trend of aged suicide in Singapore, the demographic data of the aged suicide population, the methods used by the aged suicide and the causative factors associated with suicide in aged are recorded, analysed and discussed. Reactions of the surviving relatives are also described. The unique features particular to the aged suicide in Singapore are noted and explained. Suicide of the aged in Singapore is mainly a study of the aged Chinese suicide.

Risk factors for lung cancer in Singapore Chinese, a population with high female incidence rates.

The high incidence of lung cancer in Chinese females in Singapore, especially among those belonging to the Cantonese dialect group, and the relatively high rates in Chinese males have been studied by means of interviews of cases and controls. A significant dose-response effect of cigarette smoking was found for all male and female groups, but neither smoking nor any other exposure explains the high incidence of lung cancer observed in Cantonese females who exhibit high rates of adenocarcinoma appraently unrelated to smoking. In general, persons with a low consumption of green vegetables were at higher risk for lung cancer. This finding might be due to an increased susceptibility in the presence of a relative deficiency of vitamin A.

Cholelithiasis in Singapore. II. A clinical study.

In the present study of 241 patients submitted for gallbladder and biliary tract surgery, it is found that choledocholithiasis in cases in Singapore presents with a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations. It is essential that the less common clinical presentations should be recognized.

Cholelithiasis in Singapore. I. A necropsy study.

The present necropsy study shows an oriental pattern of gallstone disease in Singapore, namely, a relatively low overall frequency, an equal involvement of both sexes, a high proportion of pigment stones, and the common occurrence of choledocholithiasis associated with pyogenic cholangitis. There is a close association between opium addiction and cholelithiasis in the adult male Chinese in Singapore, and the long-term abuse of opium may be an important aetiological factor in the pathogenesis of oriental cholelithiasis.