Did Mona Lisa have high cholesterol?

Last week, my husband and I went to the Da Vinci – The Genius exhibition at the National Science Centre in Mont Kiara. The exhibition demonstrates the full scope of Leonardo Da Vinci’s remarkable work as an inventor, artist, anatomist, sculptor, engineer, musician and architect.

Before this, i didn't know that Leonardo from a small place called Vinci (hence, Leonardo Da Vinci) was the mind behind the concept of scuba diving, planes, war tanks, catapults and machine guns. He was well-known to most of us as an artist who produced masterpieces such as "The Last Supper" and the ever famous "Mona Lisa" (I am very contented to have seen the real portrait currently housed in the Lourve Museum, Paris many years back).

The highlight of the exhibition in my opinion is the “Secrets of Mona Lisa,” which showcases the work of French engineer Pascal Cotte. His life-long passion for the preservation of the Mona Lisa led him to invent the 240-megapixel Multi-spectral Imaging Camera, which uses infrared technology and intense illumination to uncover how the Mona Lisa looked as she was originally painted.

Other interesting facts are:
1. The portrait of Mona Lisa is actually unfinished (at least in the eyes of Leonardo Da Vinci)
2. Mona Lisa has no visible facial hair—including eyebrows and eyelashes.
3. Until this day, nobody can confidently say who the sitter was (Was Mona Lisa a real female or did Da Vinci used his own likeness when drawing the portrait?).

Another interesting speculation by a researcher from Sicily is that he spotted clear signs of xanthelasma, the accumulation of cholesterol just under the skin around Mona Lisa's left eye as well as evidence of a lipoma, a fatty-tissue tumour, on her right hand.

Read more at:

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1952583,00.html

All in all, i enjoyed the exhibition but will only recommend to those who love arts especially art from the Renaissance era.

AB is for modern

AB is for Modern. Of the 4 blood groups, type AB blood is the rarest (less than 5% of the population), with the majority of us being type O (about 50%). Type AB is the newest of the blood types, evolutionary speaking. Type AB resulted from the intermingling of Type A with Type B (an A blood group person marries a B blood group person). Thus, they share both the benefits and the challenges of both Type A and Type B blood types. Type AB is sometimes A-like, sometimes B-like and sometimes a fusion of both.

Personality

Type AB often receives mixed messages about emotional health. While you tend to be drawn to other people and are friendly and trusting, there is a side of you that feels alienated from the larger community. At your best, you are intuitive and spiritual, with an ability to look beyond the rigid confines of society. You are passionate in your beliefs, but you also want to be liked by others and this can create conflicts. Type ABs often described themselves as emotional, passionate, friendly, trusting and empathetic.

Eat Right for Wellness

• Type ABs lack enough stomach acid (like type A) to metabolise meat efficiently and the meat you eat tends to get stored as fat.
• Type AB should avoid caffeine and alcohol, especially when you’re in stressful situations.
• Type AB should focus on foods such as tofu, seafood, dairy and green vegetables if you are trying to lose weight.
• Avoid all smoked or cured meats. These foods can cause stomach cancer in people with low levels of stomach acid.
• A few highly beneficial fish for type Abs are mahi-mahi, red snapper, salmon, sardines, and tuna.
• Some dairy is also beneficial for Type AB – especially cultured dairy such as yoghurt.
• Recommends smaller, more frequent meals, as they will counteract digestive problems caused by inadequate stomach acid and peptic enzymes.

Stress and Exercise

• For Type ABs, when it comes to stress hormones, you most resemble Type O in your tendency to overproduce catecholamines like adrenaline. Yet you also have the additional complexity of Type B’s rapid clearing of nitrous oxide, so you suffer the physical consequences of high emotions.
• Your greatest danger is the tendency to internalise your emotions, especially anger and hostility, which is much more damaging to your health than externalising it.
• Exercise plays a critical component in stress reduction and maintaining a healthy emotional balance for Type AB. A combination of both calming activities and more intense physical exercise to help maintain an optimal balance is advised. For example, three days of aerobic exercise such as running or biking and two days of calming exercise such as yoga or tai chi.

Live Right

• Cultivate your social nature in welcoming environments. Avoid situations that are highly competitive.
• Avoid ritualistic thinking and fixating on issues, especially those you can’t control or influence.
• Develop a clear plan for goals and tasks – annually, monthly, weekly, daily – to avoid rushing.
• Make lifestyle changes gradually, rather than trying to tackle everything at once.
• Engage in forty-five to sixty minutes of aerobic exercise at least twice a week. Balanced by daily stretching, meditation or yoga.
• Engage in a community, neighborhood or other group activity that gives you a meaningful connection to a group.
• Practice visualization techniques daily
• Also carve out time alone. Have at least one sport, hobby or activity that you perform independently of others.
• Break up your workday with some physical activity, especially if your job is sedentary. You’ll feel more energised.

And you asked how about blood group 'A'?

In general, type `A’ blood group of people may be classified as introverted individuals. They are the ones to go to when you need someone to listen to you and share your problems. They also tend to be more analytical and demanding when executing their tasks.

The Type A people tend to over-respond to even minor stress. This is due to their naturally high basal cortisol (a type of hormone that is active in metabolism) levels and tendency to overproduce cortisol during stress. They also don’t benefit as much as the other blood types when they practise stress-reducing exercises.

For Type As, they may benefit from the following diet & lifestyle strategies:

Lifestyle Strategies

• Cultivate creativity in your life

• Establish a consistent daily schedule

• Go to bed no later than 11pm and sleep for 8 hours or more. Don’t linger in bed. As soon as you wake up, get moving!

• Take at least two breaks of 20 minutes each during the work day. Treat them as mini vacations. Use this time for meditation or reflection.

• Engage in 30 to 45 minutes of calming exercise at least three times a week

• Plan regular screening for heart disease and cancer prevention

Dietary Strategies

• Don’t skip meals.

• Eat more protein at the start of the day, and less at the end.

• Don’t eat when you are nervous or because you are nervous. Your stomach initiates the digestive process with a combination of digestive secretions and muscular contractions that mix food with them. When you have low levels of digestive secretions, food tends to stay in the stomach longer.

• Schedule smaller, more frequent meals – six instead of three

• Always chew your food thoroughly to enhance digestion. Low stomach acid makes digestion more difficult.

Eat right for Strength and Balance

• Limit sugar, caffeine and alcohol. These are short-term “fixes” that ultimately increase stress and slow down your metabolism. One cup of coffee, or one cup every six hours, is usually acceptable for Type As.

• Don’t under-eat or skip meals. Avoid low-calorie diet.

• Eat a balanced breakfast, with more protein-containing food. It is the most important meal of the day for balancing your metabolic needs and your stress response.

• Smaller, more frequent meals will counteract digestive problems caused by low stomach acid.

Dietary Guidelines

Indigestion due to low stomach acid:

• Avoid dairy products, fried and processed foods, soybeans, peanuts and lentils. Increase intake of foods that are rich in fibre such as leafy vegetables and whole grains. Have a cup of diluted lemon juice every morning before breakfast.

Stress: Emotional Equalisers

For emotional health and avoidance of Type A-related mind-body imbalances, incorporate the following behaviours into your daily life.

• Speak up when you feel anxious or overwhelmed. Don’t repress or ignore your concerns. Sing!

• Before you add an activity or responsibility, give up one you already have.

• Use natural light therapy in your work space.

• Be decisive. Procrastination raises cortisol levels.

• When exercising, stop before you reach your limit

• Break your mental and physical work into segments

• Supplement your diet with stress-relieving adaptogens.

The following factors are known to increase cortisol levels and mental exhaustion for Type As. Be aware of them and limit your exposure.

• Crowds of people

• Unproductive meetings

• Financial concerns

• Long telephone calls

• Negative emotions

• Anxiety for others

• Cold or hot weather conditions

• Sunbathing

• Lack of sleep

• Coffee (more than 1 cup)

• Smoking

• Dieting (low calories)

• High-carbohydrate breakfast

• Too much sugar and starch

• Violent movies

• Strong chemicals

• Strong smells or perfumes

• Loud noise

• Overwork

• Too much exercise

• Arguments