Ground Views and Random Thoughts

Everywhere in the Philippines is an advertisement about skin whitening products, not just on television and other forms of mass media but also in the mouths of many. There had been a wrong impression that beauty is about having a white skin. You could see TV commercials showing a famous actress testifying that this whitening product has turned her even more beautiful. You could also see a miserable brown girl that becomes happy and fulfilled when her skin has turned into white. Via totalskinandbodywellness.com Fictional icons have probably played a big role on this like Snow White, Bella of Twilight, and among other white-skinned characters who ended up finding their true love and having happy endings. Who wouldn’t like to have the same destiny like them, right? To add more, even religious images we adore like Santo Niño, Jesus on the Cross, Mama Mary, and some saints look also white. Because of all this, it is common for Filipinos, especially the women, to say, “Gusto kong m...

The Forest of Evergreen: Lost in the Wilderness (Volume 1) by Teresa May B. Bandiola was launched on May 13, 2015 at Yin Yan Suite-Imperial Suite Great Eastern Hotel, Philippines. It was attended by people from the academe, business and new media. BOOK SUMMARY: Sophia Vabueretti grew up with her grandmother in Forest Green, a remote town in the Great Archipelago of Philipdomia somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. When she turned thirteen, she moved to her parents' house in the big city where she has to share a home with her two siblings, Alex and Nadine.  In the summer before her senior year of high school, an accident causes her to lose her memory, and also causes her to regret forever having lost a high school romance. Her diary is the only link she has to her childhood memories and first love. As she struggles with both grief and loss, an unexpected encounter with a strange creature from the mystical Forest of Evergreen changes her life forever. Her life becomes even more ...

According to World Health Organization (WHO), depression is a common mental disorder, characterized by sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, disturbed sleep or appetite, feelings of tiredness, and poor concentration. It can be long-lasting or recurrent, substantially impairing an individual’s ability to function at work or school or cope with daily life. At its most severe, depression can lead to suicide. Depression can be genetic known as the Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), or it may occur in response to grief, illness, and life crisis events. The biologic and pharmacologic explanation for depression is due to lack of three important neurotransmitters (chemicals that transmit messages into and away from the brain by passing through the different nerve cells of our nervous system). These neurotransmitters that we are dealing about are serotonin (referred to as happy hormone), dopamine, and norepinephrine. Norepinephrine may be related to alertness...

There is no secret formula in writing. However, writer's block is probably one of the worst enemies of every writer. It's inevitable. It happens to every writer. But how a writer deals with it is what really matters. Here are some tips that I found helpful in battling with writer's block: First, step away from your laptop or computer and do other things that could clear your mind from your previous activities. Second, drink enough water to hydrate every cell in your body, particularly your brain cells which you use principally in writing. Third, exercise regularly. This helps in providing a good blood circulation and increasing endogenous opioid peptides in your body that could elevate your mood and gives you drive in writing again. Fourth, have a good diet. The food we eat affect our way of thinking. Eating foods that could boost serotonin levels, a happy hormone, can contribute to the feeling of wellness and well-being. This can help improve your wa...

The best thing about being a writer is that... you can be anyone else. You can be the person you always wanted to be by creating his/her character. You can also put all your learning experiences or observations in your writing and influence people who get to read your book. But more importantly, a writer leaves a legacy. A book lasts forever, like a painting or sculpture, however, a book comes in multiple copies for all the world to see, not just one, and it could be admired by the whole world simultaneously.

The Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently warned the public of three “voodoo” anti-cancer products by the name of Aro Baro Churo Organic Tea, Aro Guyabano Tea, and Aro Baro Churo Guyabano Capsules. These products are not registered with FDA either as herbal medicines or food supplements. DOH-FDA Advisory No. 2013-004, stated that these products are now distributed throughout the country with boasts that they are 100,000 times stronger than chemotherapy and that they contain Adriamycin that can kill cancer cells, among other claims. Acting on the issue, the FDA with the help of local government units implemented measures such as strict monitoring and on the spot inspections to remove these products from the market nationwide. Unfortunately, this incident is just one of the several instances when herbal products are sold without FDA approval or with sales talks not consistent with the FDA approval. Since many popular health products in the market are registered wit...