31 August 2016 — Some 50 OFWs attended the third quarterly staging of the health talk series, Magtanong kay Doc, at the Conference Room of the Philippine Consulate General in Hong Kong SAR on August 21. The health talk series is spearheaded by the Consulate General in cooperation with Noble Life Inc.

Consul General Bernardita L. Catalla, in her opening remarks, stressed the importance of maintaining a healthy body, especially for migrant workers who usually work under stressful conditions.

She encouraged the audience to seize every opportunity to learn from these kinds of sessions and avail of the free services being offered by the Consulate General such as the health talk series.

Dr. Romeo V. Orteza, a neuro-trauma surgeon and Complementary and Alternative Medicine practitioner, first delivered a lecture about bangungot or Sudden Unexplained Nocturnal Death Syndrome (SUNDS), otherwise known as Sudden Unexpected Death Syndrome (SUDS) or pancreatitis. 

He stressed that bangungot may be caused by many factors such as existing medical heart conditions  such as arrhythmia, palpitation, cardiomegaly or heart enlargement; eating food loaded with carbohydrates immediately prior to sleeping; and stress.

To detect a predisposition to bangungot, Dr. Orteza recommended that the participants undergo regular check-ups, specifically undergoing an electrocardiogram (ECG) test. An abnormal ECG result may indicate a person’s susceptibility to bangungot.

A short open-forum followed the lecture.  The participants also availed of free one-on-one consultations with Dr. Orteza.

The next session of Magtanong Kay Doc is scheduled on November 27. END