By Francis Ewherido

For a long time, I indulged in drinking of cold water, with ice floating on it and cold fried meat and chicken stored in the freezer. I call it “hardened meat.” But all that are in the past. Now, I scarcely touch cold water, especially during the rainy season. I stopped enjoying “hardened” chicken long ago after marriage when my wife took over the kitchen.

Now, the scary news from the experts is that “drinking cold water or drinks after a meal = CANCER.” They say the cold water or drinks will solidify the oily stuff that you have just eaten, which slows down digestion, then turns into fats and lead to cancer. Surprisingly, no external doctor told me to take it easy with cold water; my personal physician, my body, did. As you grow older nobody, tells you to mend your ways, your body does. It is either you mend your ways or you break later.

Glass of water: credit Google

The first time I took bitter kola, it messed up my taste buds so badly; I vowed never to touch it again. From time to time, I kept reading about the great benefits of bitter kola, but each time I remembered my first and only experience, I became even more obstinate.

Then I went for marine insurance refresher training on Wednesday and Thursday, last week and there was bitter kola in the plates containing sweets, chewing gums and kola nuts on every table to help keep adult students awake. I wanted to chew something, but the kola nut was dry and not inviting. My personal physician then told me to give bitter kola a second chance.

I did and “enjoyed” it.  Now, I am into bitter kola; the bitterness has given way to the exigencies of the benefits. Bitter kola helps to prevent malaria, improve lung functions and male fertility. It is also good for treatment of cold, helps in weight loss, reduction in eye pressure (glaucoma), a remedy for arthritis (osteoarthritis), etc. But bitter kola is a double-edged sword and must be consumed in moderation because of side effects when consumed in excess.

In those days, I took fruits as they came, but now I am being told that, “when” you eat the fruit is very important, and that fruits are better eaten on an empty stomach. Hear the experts: “If you eat fruits on empty stomach, it will play a major role to detoxify your system, supplying you with a great deal of energy for weight loss and other life activities. Let’s say you eat two slices of bread and then a slice of fruit. The slice of fruit is ready to go straight through the stomach into the intestines, but it is prevented from doing so due to the bread taken before the fruit. In the meantime, the whole meal of bread and fruit rots and ferments and turns to acid.

The minute the fruit comes into contact with the food in the stomach and digestive juices, the entire mass of food begins to spoil.” The experts say eating fruits on an empty stomach is the “secret of beauty, longevity, health, energy, happiness and normal weight.”  My personal physician has told me to take heed and I am doing just that. Fruits before meal are especially good for those who are not disciplined enough to control their appetites. Fruits first means there is less space for the main meal.

But there was one advice my personal doctor rejected flatly. One expert said too much consumption of okra can lead to infertility. Wetin concern agbero with overload? Many men who are done with childbearing do not bother with fertility anymore; their concern is virility. As long as they can still fire on all or even enough cylinders, whether the sperms are high, low, alive or dead is of little consequence. They do not want unplanned pregnancies, anyway, so what the heck! I will continue to eat okra in large quantity.

The advice that has had the most profound effect on my personal physician is the one on prostate. For a long time, I have read that once you turn 40 years, you should check your prostate annually. I have been doing that although, I default sometimes. Then I heard that eating raw tomatoes shrinks or stems the enlargement of prostate. “How person go dey chop raw tomatoes again,” I wondered aloud. Then I started combining it with suya; then they said red meat has too much cholesterol and not good as you grow older. I switched to chicken suya, which is white meat. But they say the chicken skin is laden with high cholesterol and should be peeled off.

Anyway, recently I got a whatsApp message on prostate. The message described the dangers of prostate cancer and the prevention so vividly that I have been consuming raw tomatoes like it is going out of fashion.

The only thing that has tapered my consumption of tomatoes is that I still do not know the dosage and that is one of the challenges of herbal medicines and fruits, unless the saying that “too much of everything is bad” does not apply here. Please read as much literature as possible on prostate and prostate related issues. An ailment that can be prevented by just consuming raw tomatoes regularly should not lead to loss of sexual capacity or death. That is expensive ignorance.

Finally, for those who are forty and above, if you have not been listening to your personal physician (your body), especially the inner voice, perhaps it is time to do so. It might just be the critical difference between life and death.

I was about to be discharged from the hospital, after treatment for cold-related ailments, over 20 years ago, when the doctor invited me to his office for a chat. “You have to stop drinking cold water,” he advised. I then stretched forward towards him and gave him my neck. “What,” he asked me. “Kill me, cut off my head or just take a gun and shoot me,” I told him.  “I have had to abstain from some things I would have loved to indulge in due to health and spiritual reasons.

Ordinary cold water I enjoy drinking, you are now telling me to stop.” He went into a bout of laughter and in between advised me to take it easy with cold water, all the same. I ignored him and continued with my cold water. The only thing I stopped was drinking cold water with ice floating on it and chewing the ice blocks. It was not only cold water I was indulging in; one of my favourite snacks then was frozen fried chicken and beef. I just enjoyed munching the “hardened” pieces of meat. Even as I write now, I am salivating.

But all that are in the past now; these days, I scarcely touch cold water, especially during the rainy season. “Room temperature” is now the sing song. I stopped enjoying “hardened” chicken long ago after marriage when my wife took over the kitchen. Now, the scary news from the experts is that “drinking cold water or drinks after a meal = CANCER.”

They say the cold water or drinks will solidify the oily stuff that you have just eaten, which slows down digestion, then turns into fats and lead to cancer. Surprisingly, no external doctor told me to take it easy with cold water; my personal physician, my body, did. As you grow older nobody, tells you to mend your ways, your body does. It is either you mend your ways or you break later.

Now I am reading that drinking  water while standing is not good for your joints, you should sit before drinking. Please don’t ask me about footballers and other sportsmen, who drink while standing. Maybe they are too young to worry about their joints. In any case, I am just a chartered insurance practitioner and a writer, so ask the medical experts.

The first time I took bitter kola, it messed up my taste buds so badly; I vowed never to touch it again. From time to time, I kept reading about the great benefits of bitter kola, but each time I remembered my first and only experience, I became even more obstinate. Then I went for marine insurance refresher training on Wednesday and Thursday, last week and there was bitter kola in the plates containing sweets, chewing gums and kola nuts on every table to help keep adult students awake. I wanted to chew something, but the kola nut was dry and not inviting. My personal physician then told me to give bitter kola a second chance.

I did and “enjoyed” it.  Now, I am into bitter kola; the bitterness has given way to the exigencies of the benefits. Bitter kola helps to prevent malaria, improve lung functions and male fertility. It is also good for treatment of cold, helps in weight loss, reduction in eye pressure (glaucoma), a remedy for arthritis (osteoarthritis), etc. But bitter kola is a double-edged sword and must be consumed in moderation because of side effects when consumed in excess.

In those days, I took fruits as they came, but now I am being told that, “when” you eat the fruit is very important, and that fruits are better eaten on an empty stomach. Hear the experts: “If you eat fruits on empty stomach, it will play a major role to detoxify your system, supplying you with a great deal of energy for weight loss and other life activities.  Let’s say you eat two slices of bread and then a slice of fruit.

The slice of fruit is ready to go straight through the stomach into the intestines, but it is prevented from doing so due to the bread taken before the fruit. In the meantime the whole meal of bread and fruit rots and ferments and turns to acid.  The minute the fruit comes into contact with the food in the stomach and digestive juices, the entire mass of food begins to spoil.” The experts say eating fruits on an empty stomach is the “secret of beauty, longevity, health, energy, happiness and normal weight.”  My personal physician has told me to take heed and I am doing just that. Fruits before meal are especially good for those who are not disciplined enough to control their appetites. Fruits first means there is less space for the main meal.

But there was one advice my personal doctor rejected flatly. One expert said too much consumption of okra can affect infertility. Wetin concern agbero with overload? Many men who are done with childbearing do not bother with fertility anymore; their concern is virility. As long as they can still fire on all or even enough cylinders, whether the sperms are high, low, alive or dead is of little consequence. They do not want unplanned pregnancies, anyway, so what the heck! I will continue to eat okra in large quantity.

The advice that has had the most profound effect on my personal physician is the one on prostate. For a long time I have read that once you turn 40 years, you should check your prostate annually. I have been doing that although, I default sometimes. Then I heard that eating raw tomatoes shrinks or stems the enlargement of prostate. “How person go dey eat raw tomatoes again,” I wondered aloud. Then I started combining it with suya; then they said red meat has too much cholesterol and not good as you grow older.

I switched to chicken suya, which is white meat. But they say the chicken skin is laden with high cholesterol and should be peeled off. As my friend, Theo Ayoma, exclaimed long ago, when he saw me peeling off chicken skin, “if person no eat skin when sweet pass for chicken, wetin person wan chop again?”

Anyway, recently I got a whatsapp message on prostate. The message described the dangers of prostate cancer and the prevention so vividly that I have been consuming raw tomatoes like it is going out of fashion.

The only thing that has tapered my consumption of tomatoes is that I still do not know the dosage and that is one of the challenges of herbal medicines and fruits, unless the saying that “too much of everything is bad” does not apply here. But please read as much literature as possible on prostate and prostate related issues. An ailment that can be prevented by just consuming raw tomatoes regularly should not lead to loss of sexual capacity or death. That is expensive ignorance.

Finally, for those who are forty and above, if you have not been listening to your personal physician (your body), especially the inner voice, perhaps it is time to do so. It might just be the critical difference between life and death.