Malaysia's 5 most gruesome murders

1. The Mona Fandey incident

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Pop singer, witch doctor and murderess
When: The victim, Mazlan Idris, a state assemblyman from Pahang, was murdered on July 18th, 1993, somewhere between 10.00pm and 12 midnight by Mona, her husband and their assistant.
What went down: Mazlan, looking to boost his political career, sought out Mona's help, and during a cleansing ritual, was told to lie on the floor facing up, while Mona placed flowers on him. He was then told to close his eyes and wait for money to "fall from the sky". Her assistant, Juraimi Hassan, then chopped Mazlan's head off with an axe. Following this, the victim was dismembered and partially skinned. Mazlan's body was found in 18 pieces, buried in a storeroom near Mona's house in Pahang.
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2. The Nurin Jazlin murder

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The cruel ending of a young life
When: Nurin went missing on the 20th of August, 2007, and was found dead on the morning of the 17th of September, 2007.
What went down: The eight-year-old girl was reported missing after she had gone to a wet market near her house to buy a hair clip on the night of August 20th, 2007, in Kuala Lumpur. What seemed like a simple task took a turn for the worst as Nurin was discovered dead in a gym bag on the morning of September 17th, 2007. She was found naked, curled up in a fetal position with a cucumber and a brinjal stuffed inside her genitals. Investigations have been carried out, but until now, her killer remains on the loose.
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3. The Canny Ong murder

 

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A trip to the Bangsar Shopping Complex ended in the worst possible way
When: Canny was murdered on June 14th, 2003, in her Proton Tiara.
What went down: Canny was abducted at knife-point from the shopping complex's parking lot. Subsequently, she was raped, stabbed, strangled then dumped into a manhole. Her assailant, Ahmad Najib Aris, returned a day later to set her corpse on fire. Her murderer has been sentenced to hang at the gallows.
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4. The Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya murder

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The murder of a tycoon
When: Occured on the 30th of August 2010 approximately between 8.30pm and 9.45pm.
What went down: The most recent high-profile murder in Malaysia. Cosmetics tycoon, Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya, was killed along with her lawyer, financial adviser and driver when they made a trip to Banting to negotiate a land deal. The four, at first reported missing, were bludgeoned to death, and then set on fire. Their ashes were scattered over a river near Ladang Gadong in Tanjung Sepat, near Banting.
The accused: Lawyer, N. Pathmanabhan and three farm workers, T. Thilaiyalagan, R. Matan, and R. Kathavarayan.
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5. The Altantuya Shaariibuu murder

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Controversy and an over-extended court case
When: Altantuya was murdered on the 18th of June, 2006.
What went down: She was blown to bits and pieces of her body was found in a jungle clearing near the Subang Dam in Puncak Alam, Shah Alam. She was shot twice before C-4 explosives were detonated on her remains. It took the courts 159 days to settle on a verdict and after what felt like forever, Sirul Azhar and Azilah, her accused murderers, both policemen, were sentenced to death.
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The Cancer Time Bomb Sitting in Your Refrigerator - Will You Stop Consuming It?

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women. If you're a woman, your chance of getting breast cancer in your lifetime is about one in eight.
Researchers at a breast cancer conference stated that up to one-third of breast cancers could be avoided by making different lifestyle choices, such as the foods you choose to eat.
There is one food you may be surprised to learn, that is directly linked to breast cancer—and that is pasteurized dairy in the form of milk or milk products.
The risk lies in consuming milk from cows treated with a synthetic, genetically engineered growth hormone called rBGH, and unfortunately, this applies to about one third of the dairy cows in America.
When you consume dairy products from these cows, every product made from their milk is contaminated with this dangerous hormone—be it cheese, ice cream, yogurt, butter—or just plain milk.
Cows are injected with rBGH to boost their milk production.
But science has proven this practice, although profitable to the industry, comes at a high price to you, as well as to dairy cows. RBGH, or recombinant bovine growth hormone, is a synthetic version of natural bovine somatotropin (BST), a hormone produced in cows' pituitary glands.
Monsanto developed the recombinant version from genetically engineered E. coli bacteria and markets it under the brand name "Posilac."
RBGH is the largest selling dairy animal drug in America.
But it is banned in Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and in the 27 countries of the European Union because of its dangers to human health. Many have tried to inform the public of the risks of using this hormone in dairy cows, but their attempts have been met with overwhelming opposition by the powerful dairy and pharmaceutical industries, and their government liaisons.

Monsanto Lawyers Threaten "Dire Consequences" for Whistleblowers

In 1997, two Fox-affiliate investigative journalists, Jane Akre and Steve Wilson, attempted to air a program exposing the truth about the dangers of rBGH. Lawyers for Monsanto, a major advertiser with the Florida network, sent letters promising "dire consequences" if the story aired.
After attempts by Fox to bribe the reporters to keep quiet failed, the station agreed to air a revised version of the report. An unheard of 83 edits later, the report was shelved and the courts took over. Although a lower court ruled in favor of the reporters for some $425,000, a Florida appeals court denied them whistleblower protection, claiming Fox (and the media in general) have no obligation to tell the truth and have the freedom to report, essentially, fact OR fiction as real news.
They tell their story in an article at PR Watch.
It is stories like this that reignite my determination to bring you factual information about these important issues regarding your health.
Despite decades of evidence about the dangers of rBGH, the FDA still maintains it's safe for human consumption and ignores scientific evidence to the contrary. According to Dr. Samuel Epstein, a well-respected professional in cancer prevention and toxicology and chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition, the FDA has responded to evidence that rBGH is unsafe with a wide range of "tenuous and inconsistent claims" based on "highly speculative and misleading calculations…based on a wide range of assumptions," often citing flawed scientific studies that simply are not meaningful.
In 1999, the United Nations Safety Agency ruled unanimously not to endorse or set safety standards for rBGH milk, which has effectively resulted in an international ban on U.S. milk. The Cancer Prevention Coalition, trying for years to get the use of rBGH by the dairy industry banned, resubmitted a petition to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, MD, in January 2010.
They are still waiting for a response. Although the FDA stubbornly sticks to its position that milk from rBGH-treated cows is no different than milk from untreated cows, this is just plain false and is not supported by science.

Differences Between rBGH-Treated and Untreated Milk

According to Dr. Epstein, rBGH milk differs from natural milk nutritionally, pharmacologically, immunologically, and hormonally, and he cites the following differences. RBGH milk contains:

• Increased levels of insulin growth factor-1 (IGF-1)
• Contamination with illegal antibiotics and drugs used to treat mastitis and other rBGH-induced diseases, as well as pus from increased rates of mastitis among the cows injected with rBGH
• Increased levels of the thyroid hormone enzyme thyroxin-5'-monodeiodinase
• Reduced casein content (a milk protein)
• Increased concentration of long-chain fatty acids and decreased concentration of short-chain fatty acids

ALL of the factors above can cause or contribute to health problems for people. But people aren't the only ones suffering—as it turns out, the cows getting injected with these hormones are suffering as well.

RBGH Causes 16 Different Medical Problems in Dairy Cows

As mentioned above, the cows receiving this synthetic hormone suffer massively high rates of mastitis, a painful infection of their udders. Monsanto's own data show up to an 80 percent incidence of mastitis in hormone-treated cattle, resulting in the need for routine administration of antibiotics and other drugs. This increases the frequency of allergic reactions and fuels antibiotic resistance. But mastitis is not the only adverse veterinary effect. The Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research (2003) found 16 different harmful medical conditions resulting from rBGH administration to dairy cattle, including:

• 40 percent increase in infertility
• 55 percent increased risk for lameness
• Shortened lifespan
• Hoof disorders
• Visibly abnormal milk

From the data presented in this meta-analysis, I think it's a reasonable conclusion that injecting animals with rBGH is cruel and inhumane treatment, besides producing milk that is not fit for human consumption.

RBGH Raises Levels of IGF-1 in Milk by Up to 70 Percent

IGF-1 is a potent hormone that acts on your pituitary gland to induce powerful metabolic and endocrine effects, including cell growth and replication. Elevated IGF-1 levels are associated with breast and other cancers. When cows are injected with rBGH, their levels of IGF-1 increase up to 20-fold, and this IGF-1 is excreted in the milk.
According to some confidential, unpublished industry studies, IGF-1 levels consistently elevate by 25 to 70 percent in rBGH milk. In reality, it is probably worse than that, since standard calculation techniques used by the dairy industry underestimate IGF-1 levels by a factor of four.
In one study, a six-fold increase in IGF-1 levels in milk were found as early as seven days following rBGH treatment.
Not only are IGF-1 levels elevated in the milk of rBGH-treated cows, but a significant portion of this IGF-1 is in the free, or unbound, form, which may be about 10 times as potent as the IGF-1 in untreated milk. And not only does pasteurization NOT destroy this protein, but studies show it actually increases IGF-1 levels by about 70 percent, presumably by disrupting protein binding.  There is a glaring absence of safety margins for IGF-1 in milk, and assurances by industry and government regulators to establish these parameters have been nothing more than empty promises.
Ok, so the levels of IGF-1 are higher in rBGH milk. But does the IGF get absorbed into your system when you drink it, or does your digestive tract break it down and render it inert?
Science tells us unequivocally that  you do  NOT break this down when you swallow it, but you DO absorb it into your bloodstream, as evidenced by both human and animal studies. Infants and young children absorb IGF-1 in even higher concentrations than adults, because their gut wall is more permeable to proteins. Infants and young children show higher levels of cow's milk protein antibodies. The IGF-1 in dairy products appears to be protected during digestion by casein and by dairy's buffering effects.

How Elevated IGF-1 Levels May Raise Your Breast Cancer Risk

Only one of every 10 breast cancer cases is attributed to genetics—the other nine are triggered by environmental factors, some of which are dietary. The fact that increased IGF-1 levels in hormone-treated milk increase your risk for breast, colon, and prostate cancers as has been documented in about 50 scientific publications over the past three decades. Among them is the 1998 Harvard Nurses Health study, which showed that premenopausal women with elevated IGF-1 levels had up to a seven-fold increase in breast cancer. And women younger than age 35 who have elevated IGF-1 have more aggressive breast cancer.
How does IGF-1 contribute to breast cancer?
IGF-1 regulates cell growth, cell division, and the ability of cancer cells to spread to your distant organs (invasiveness). In other words, IGF-1 has potent mitogenic effects in human breast tissue, especially in the presence of estradiol (a form of estrogen). Growth factors such as IGF-1 are "catalysts" for the transformation of normal breast tissue into breast cancer tissue, and are critically involved in the aberrant growth of human breast cancer cells. The following two findings have direct bearing on this link between elevated IGF-1 levels and breast cancer:

• Specific IGF-1 mammary cell receptors are elevated by a factor of 10 in malignant human breast tissue.
• IGF-1 plasma concentrations are higher in breast cancer patients than in healthy patients. (As an aside, this is how the breast cancer drug tamoxifen exerts its action—by reducing blood IGF-1 levels.)

According to Dr. Epstein, IGF-1 blocks your natural defense mechanisms against early microscopic cancers—it prevents apoptosis of cancer cells, or programmed cellular self-destruction.
The breast tissues of female fetuses and infants are especially sensitive to hormonal influences and cancer-causing chemicals. Infants and children exposed to high IGF-1 early on may become "sensitized," leading to health problems later in life, such as breast enlargement in infants and young children, and breast cancer in adult women. Yet, despite these elevated risks to children, few schools make rBGH-free or organic milk available, nor do most state governments under low-income food programs. A study authored by Dr. Epstein demonstrated that IGF-1 in rBGH milk is a potential risk factor for both breast and gastrointestinal cancers. And a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention concluded that diet can impact cancer risk by influencing IGF-1 level.
The risks don't end with breast cancer.
Ten studies show that consuming milk from rBGH-treated cows raises your risk for colon cancer, and seven studies document this for  prostate cancer. If you want more information on this topic, I recommend reading Dr. Epstein's 2006 book, What's In Your Milk?

Are You Drinking rBGH Milk?

You very well may be drinking rBGH milk, or eating rBGH cheese or yogurt, as no labeling is required. This is despite the fact that surveys show that more than 80 percent of Americans want it labeled, but the government, as usual, continues bowing to industry lobbyists. The good news is, as increasing numbers of consumers and dairies choose to avoid rBGH, you can find labels that say "rBGH-free" or a similar variation. Organic milk is also rBGH-free. According to the Hartman Group, organic milk is now among the first organic product consumers buy.
Organic milk is enjoying an annual growth rate of about 20 percent, while overall milk consumption has dropped by about 10 percent.
Organic milk is certainly preferable to milk that contains this dangerous hormone. However, I still don't recommend drinking any milk that is pasteurized—organic or otherwise. You can avoid the risks of rBGH, as well as pasteurization, by drinking only raw milk that comes from a small farmer you know and trust. The milk issue is really part of the larger problem of genetic manipulation of our food supply. The more you can avoid genetically modified (GM) and highly processed foods, the healthier you and your family will be.

Reference:

• PR Watch 2000
• Business Wire April 2010
• Cancer Prevention Coalition
• What’s In Your Milk?
• Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research October 2003
• Analyst. December 1998
• Int J Health Serv. 1996
• Lancet May 1998
• Cancer October 1996
• GreenMedInfo
• Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention 2002
• PreventCancer.com June 2006

Related Links:

  Who Knew this Cocktail of up to 20 Chemicals Was in Your Glass of Milk?

  Research Proves 'Gender-Bending' Chemicals Affect Reproduction

  Is it Time to Boycott This 'Anti' Cancer Charity?

Poor sleep can have a terrible effect on your health -

but recent studies show the resting heart rate of people who sleep under these types of sheets is 20 beats per minute less than these "energy stealing" ones. And they'll protect you from sleeping 

 

You can have the best health habits in the world but if you aren't sleeping well you simply won't ever be truly healthy. Sleep restores your brain and body. It recharges your batteries, helps you sort out and solve problems, replaces vital chemicals, and gives you the energy you need to meet the new day.

Think about it like this: When you sleep, you're giving yourself a restorative "mini-spa retreat" every night.
And that feels good, right?
Not if you're in the same bed as 60% of Americans. That's because millions of us don't get enough sleep. A recent National Sleep Foundation study reported that more adults than ever are experiencing occasional problems sleeping.
So, when you know that sleep is so important, why is it so tough to get what you need? There are a variety of factors that can hamper your ability to get a great night's sleep � everything from the foods you eat to the comforter on your bed. The good news is that when you take control of your sleeping environment and habits, you can help yourself drift quickly and easily into dreamland.

If you are having sleep problems, whether you are not able to fall asleep, wake up too often, don't feel well-rested when you wake up in the morning, or simply want to improve the quality and quantity of your sleep, there are many things you can do, including:

• Go to bed around the same time each night, ideally around 10 PM.
• Avoid snacking just before bedtime, particularly grains and sugars.
• Keep the temperature in your bedroom no higher than 70 degrees F (ideally between 60-68 degrees F.
• Eat a high-protein snack several hours before bed. This can provide the amino acid L-tryptophan, a precursor to melatonin and serotonin.
• Avoid caffeine as much as possible, especially in the PM.
• Make sure you exercise regularly, but not near bedtime.

However, there's another simple thing you can do that will set you up for sweet sleep: change your bedding. That's right � the types of sheets, pillows and comforter on your bed can make a significant difference in how well you sleep.
But, not just any new bedding will do.


It makes sense that your bedding would have a big impact on how you sleep, right? Obviously, what you choose to lay your head upon or cover your body with makes a real difference in how well you'll snooze. But, emerging sleep research is revealing that it's not just thread count or how squishy that comforter or pillow is that makes the real difference in your sleep quality.
Recent scientific studies indicate that your choice of bedding can actually help you sleep longer and more comfortably.
For example, certain types of bedding have actually been shown to increase the length of your REM, or Rapid Eye Movement, sleep.
As you know, REM sleep is the most beneficial phase of your sleep cycle. This is where your body is most relaxed, where dreaming happens, and the main restorative benefits of sleep take place. This means you can now select bedding that is scientifically proven to help you sleep more optimally.

Malaysia PM offers handouts in pre-election budget

Malaysian premier Najib Razak offered cash handouts to the poor and civil servants on Friday as he unveiled a pre-election budget aimed at voters increasingly worried about making ends meet.

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Najib, who is expected to call snap polls within months, also pledged to maintain subsidies on key consumer items and introduce various tax breaks intended to spur domestic demand as a hedge against a feared export slowdown.
The prime minister told parliament the cash handouts would include a one-off payment of 500 ringgit ($158) to lower-income families and a bonus for the country's 1.3 million civil servants equal to half their monthly salaries.
He called the payments to the poor "an unprecedented measure" to help Malaysians cope with rising world prices of food, fuel and other essentials.
The budget is likely the last before Najib calls pivotal parliamentary elections.
A once-insignificant opposition scored historic gains in 2008 polls that saw the long-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition lose its two-thirds majority for the first time, and Najib has battled lately to win back voters.
"In an environment of global uncertainties, the strong support of the people is mandatory for us to become developed and prosper as a nation," Najib, who is also finance minister, told parliament.
With inflation around two-year highs of 3.3 percent in August, cost-of-living concerns loom large with voters.
Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim -- a former finance minister -- dismissed the handouts as "clearly an election ploy".
"You promise everybody everything on earth, it's completely irresponsible," he said.
Najib's budget promised to maintain subsidies on fuel and food items that his government had earlier moved to scale back in a deficit-reduction drive.
The subsidy cuts had caused a further spike in costs of transport and essential commodities that had already risen along with surging world prices.
Inflation fears have been compounded by worry that exports -- the economy's driving force -- could be hit by the US and European economic woes.
Najib said government workers would get larger-than-usual pay rises, all fees in public schools would be abolished and the government would adjust property transaction taxes in a bid to curb market speculation.
Various tax breaks and other incentives would be extended in a range of industries to stoke both domestic and foreign investment, he added.
Malaysia's economy grew 7.2 percent in 2010 but slowed to 4.0 percent in the second quarter of this year.
The budget maintains an earlier rough government estimate of 5 to 6 percent growth in 2012.
The budget acknowledged Southeast Asia's third-largest economy faced external challenges and forecast export growth slowing to 6.8 percent in 2011 and 6 percent next year. Growth had surged by 15.6 percent in 2010.
Despite the handouts, Najib forecast a 4.7 percent budget deficit in 2012, down from this year's 5.4 percent target.
The ruling coalition has governed Muslim-majority Malaysia since independence in 1957, but the opposition alliance has capitalised recently on concerns over corruption, the economy, and authoritarian rule.
Last month, Najib promised to scrap draconian laws often criticised as tools of repression in a gesture widely seen as aimed at voters.

Probe commercial organ transplant claims, urge doctors

Doctors from the Malaysian Transplant Association (MTA) and Malaysian Nephrology Association (MNA) have called on the police to investigate allegations that a Malaysian hospital is involved in commercial organ transplants. MTA president Datuk Dr Harjit Singh said that recent media reports alleging Malaysia to be among several South-East Asian countries involved in commercial organ transplants had to be investigated.
He said the Malaysian Government had adopted the Istanbul Declaration regarding commercial organ transplants and is also a signatory to the World Health Organisation’s Guiding Principle on Organ Transplantation.
“Our national transplant policy cle-arly states that commercial and forced organ transplants are illegal,” he said.
It was reported in The Star on Sept 21 that Malaysia was among several countries investigated by Bangladeshi police in connection with an international syndicate linked to illegal kidney trade across several South-East Asian countries.
Investigators had identified a reputable international hospital with branches in key regions and capitals, including a hospital in Malaysia.
Initial investigations revealed that donors from remote villages in Bangladesh were flown to the region to sell their kidneys.
Eight people have been arrested in connection with luring poor illiterate victims overseas for the purpose.
Joypurhat Superintendent of Police Mozammel Haque was reported as saying that police had information of an international hospital’s involvement. The hospital has branches in India, Malaysia and Indonesia.
He said each victim was paid between US$2,000 (RM6,360) and US$3,000 (RM9,540) for a kidney, but he was unsure how much the organ was priced in the black market.
So far, at least seven cases of illegal sale of kidneys had surfaced in Joypurhat in northern Bangla-desh where largely impoverished communities survive on seasonal agricultural crops.

Two associations involved in organ transplants have called on police to investigate allegations of a hospital carrying out commercial organ transplants. Malaysian Transplant Association (MTA) president Datuk Dr Harjit Singh said that recent media reports alleging Malaysia to be among several Southeast Asian countries involved in commercial organ transplants should be investigated.
"We hope the police will launch an investigation into this matter as it is an issue that can tarnish our good name," he said after lodging a police report on the matter with members of the Malaysian Nephrology Association.
Health director-general Datuk Dr Hasan Abdul Rahman was reported as saying that transplants from unrelated donors need to be vetted by the independent Unrelated Transplant Approval Committee appointed by Health director-general before it can be carried out but from records, there were no such requests or applications.

Fork out only RM638,000 for a few minutes in space

All a Malaysian needs to do to book a trip to space is merely to enter his name and e-mail into the booking section of the Virgin Galactic website. According to the website, those interested would need to put down a deposit of US$20,000 (RM63,800) for the tickets, which cost US$200,000 (RM638,000) each.
To book directly with Virgin Galactic, they are required to provide their name, gender, date of birth, country and mobile phone number.
Virgin Galactic also stated it would get in touch as soon as possible with those who responded and answer any questions they might have.
Malaysians are among the 450 customers worldwide who were reported in Wall Street Journal to be snapping up tickets for a private space tour with the Virgin Galactic for US$200,000 a seat.
Virgin Galactic commercial director Stephen Attenborough was quoted as saying that sales for the tour were under way in Asian countries such as Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and India.
Virgin Galactic promises to send travellers on a suborbital hop that features several minutes in space.
“Our initial ambition was to sign up 500 people by the time we start commercial operations. So we will be significantly ahead of that. It could be 700 to 800,” Attenborough reportedly said.
Apparently, most of them were males and “reasonably wealthy”.