IT HAS been said that pork is bad for one's health. At my favorite restaurant, the manager asked me why I choose pork barbecue over chicken.
It seems the internet is a mother lode of information debunking urban fairy tales. One of this is a diet of pork products. I relayed my online research to the manager.
It is high in protein and essential vitamins, minerals and amino acid good for overall health. Lean pork, when trimmed of visible fat, is nutrient-dense, satisfying, and good for you. Some pork parts like that of tenderloin, loin chops and sirloin roast are made from the lean cuts and are healthier than chicken.
The fat in pork is trans-fat free and mostly mono-and poly-unsaturated, so trimmed pork is suitable for even cholesterol-lowering or healthy heart diets. Pork has a high mineral content of phosphorus, selenium, sodium, zinc, potassium and copper. The two minerals which are present in good quantities are iron and magnesium, while calcium and manganese are found in traces only. Pork is highly enriched with vitamin B6, vitamin B12, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin and pantothenic acid. Some quantities of vitamin A and vitamin E are found in very small amounts. Calorific value of pork is 458.0 per 100 gm.
Don't take my word for it. I'm not a doctor, much less your physician. Do your online research. Caveat emptor. They probably would be alarmed with this column.
In my case, I decided to take the risk and plunge on the barbecue, the KBL (kadios, baboy, and langka), ham. Please Google Pork 101: Nutrition Facts and Health Effects by Atli Arnarson, PhD posted online on March 28, 2019.
Recently, Negrenses have health risks to worry about: African Swine Fever, a severe viral disease affecting domestic and wild pigs. It is responsible for serious production and economic losses.
The Provincial African Swine Fever Task Force immediately burned the 34 packs of siopao that were shipped from Luzon. Non-doctor Governor Eugenio José Lacson issued an executive order to ban entry of pork and pork products from Luzon for 90 days after presence of ASF was detected in the provinces of Rizal and Bulacan.
This is the second time the local authorities were able to intercept pork products from Luzon.
The Provincial Government has stepped up its security measures, particularly in ports, following the scare of the disease in recent months. This is also because Negros Occidental is a top producer of backyard swine in the country.
Visayas and Mindanao have remained ASF-free.
The Negros Occidental provincial government has created the ASF task force as early as July to protect its P6 billion swine industry.
Congratulations to the Provincial Government for pro-active economic measures. Christmas is around the corner. We are assured that the floodgates of the expect lechon will be business as usual.