Pfizer Strengthens Global Campaign on Bone Health, Calls on Filipinos to ‘Love Your Bones’

We all know that we need to have a healthier lifestyle. This includes having healthier food choices, better living conditions and environment as well as having adequate exercise. However, whether we admit it our not, most of us do not put this on top of my priority list.

Food and bone health, although considered vital life components, are still largely ignored, be it due to poor lifestyle or lack of awareness.To help address this growing health problem, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare (PCH) partnered with the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) to spearhead the local celebration of World Osteoporosis Day (WOD) last October 20.

Aptly themed “Serve up Bone Strength,” WOD 2015 focuses on the importance of adopting a bone-healthy diet throughout a person’s lifetime to optimize bone strength. The campaign highlights the point that poor nutrition is one of the critical risk factors for developing bone-related diseases.

“It conveys the message that the first step in osteoporosis prevention begins in youth, when nutrition can help maximize our bone-building potential, and continues throughout life as we strive to maintain strong bones at older age,” explained IOF, the global organizer of WOD.

A key date in the bone, muscle, and joint community agenda, WOD is an occasion when people around the globe unite to put the spotlight on the immense burden caused by osteoporosis and other musculoskeletal diseases, and the actions that can be taken to prevent and treat them. It aims to put bone, muscle, and joint health on the global health agenda.

“We at Pfizer Consumer Healthcare support the IOF in its advocacy to inform the people about osteoporosis and the fact that it can be prevented,” says Dr. Egbert Dorado, senior medical manager at PCH. “We echo IOF’s key message: Adequate intake of the right nutrients contributes to bone health at all ages, and is a first step in osteoporosis prevention. For those who already have osteoporosis, a bone-healthy nutrition should be part of their treatment and rehabilitation program.”

Three of the major nutrients that help optimize bone health are: calcium, vitamin D, and protein, with recommended daily allowances varying throughout life.

“Regulating calcium levels in the body promotes better bone mass density (BMD), alongside improving muscle performance and balance. Taking a calcium supplement with adequate levels of Vitamin D3 also helps maximize calcium absorption,” adds Dr. Egbert. While proper nutrition works, it is also important to have a holistic approach to osteoporosis prevention and management.
“It is indeed crucial to build strong bones early in life by following a healthy diet as it is the key ingredient in helping a person achieve peak bone mass, and maintaining it throughout life. But it is equally important to avoid other modifiable risk factors including sedentary lifestyle, smoking, and alcohol use,” explains Dr. Egbert.

Osteoporosis is an incurable disease, but controlling its risk factors and complying with treatment regimens where prescribed can ensure a mobile, independent, and fracture-free life.

For more information on osteoporosis and World Osteoporosis Day 2015, visitwww.worldosteoporosisday.org, follow IOF on Instagram (@worldosteoporosisday) or on Facebook (www.facebook.com/worldosteoporosisday), or subscribe to its YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/iofbonehealth).

//Social Constructs : All About Passion For Music

They say that a lot of people express themselves through music which I totally agree with. Whether we are happy, sad or worried, there would always be a corresponding "theme song of our life" for that moment. We opt to either sing along or just plainly listen and let us drift our thoughts with it. 

However, Paincake Patrol, a one-man electronic music project by musician, Eeman Bulotano would like to take this to a different level. Launching //Social Constructs on December 5, 2015 at Today x Future in Cubao, Quezon City, this project aims to make people listen to music without having to ignore the person standing next to them. The project will provide music that "makes you think, but yet somehow not distract you at all." 

This experimental solo project is focused on creating alternative electronic and ambient music, reflecting the artist’s experiences and views on existence in general.

The idea behind //Social Constructs and Paincake Patrol itself is inspired and widely influenced by the very existence of ambient music as pioneered by Brian Leno during the 1980’s. Usually electronic and instrumental in nature, ambient music aims to create a perfect balance between disappearance and presence.

Though it has existed for a long time now, ambient music remains relatively unknown to the mainstream crowd as it is seen as "too smart" or "overly deep.” Personally, I was just using this for my animation projects and videos since the sound are pretty unique and perfect as a background music. 

However, Eeman and many other ambient music artists see this type of music as simpler and more relatable compared to any other genre because it provides the chance to be freely interpreted by its listeners. Thus, being exposed to this new genre would be very refreshing given that it is powered by the experiences and emotions not just by the one who created the music but also by those whom the music is created for.

Songs from this genre evolve from the mere self-expression of one artist into many different stories weaved by those present in the audience. They are taken and understood in more ways than one – similar to how individuals give meaning to various things and, ultimately, to life.

Music relives one’s memories, and the entire Paincake Patrol project intends to elicit nostalgia while stimulating thought-provoking conversations. With this particular EP, the artist focused on his view of the general meaning of existence and how empty it may seem when viewed only in an objective and logical way.

Each composition is appropriately titled based heavily on how the artist views reality. Combining master beats with ethereal notes, //Social Constructs’ first three tracks aim to reflect the existential angst and loneliness one might experience when he or she has failed to see reason behind life.

So, are you up for a good genuine passion for music? Join them this December 5, 2015 and check out Paincake Patrol on Facebook, Sound Cloud, Twitter, Instagram and his blog or catch more of Eeman’s keyboards and synths as he plays with Audio Drive Thru.