Vegan doctor says vegetarian diets can meet all nutrient needsWhen asked why he promotes vegetarianism, Yoon Sung-chul, professor of nephrology at Dankook University Medical College, responded in Kind: “Why do you stick to eating meat?” he asked.“I have numerous reasons why we should be vegetarians. How about you?” he said in a Korea Herald interview.On May 21, Yoon took part in the inauguration o

DECATUR, Georgia ― As baby boomers approach their golden years, they are embracing wellness and wine ― two things that don’t always go together.While a glass of red wine a day may reduce the risk of heart disease, many boomers are drinking a lot more and not realizing they are increasing their potential risks for other serious health problems, ranging from alcohol abuse disorders to chronic diseas

Seoul will be presented as a role-model in environment-friendly traffic policy during the fourth C40 Cities Climate Conference in Brazil, officials said Tuesday.During the three-day event, which begins Tuesday in Sao Paolo, Seoul officials will introduce the capital’s traffic policy, including the adoption of compressed natural gas buses and the bus rapid transit system. Officials said the organiz

The Ministry of Health and Welfare is considering forcing cigarette companies to label toxic chemicals and their quantities on cigarette packets, news reports said Tuesday.If implemented, it would be the nation’s strongest-ever antismoking warning on cigarette packaging. A family walks past a no-smoking sign, warning smokers that starting this June, those caught smoking at Seoul, Gwanghwamun and C

More than 110,000 Koreans have been suffering from the aftereffects of exposure to toxic defoliants, the Ministry of Veterans and Patriots Affairs said Sunday. The latest data, collected in March, has fanned public concern amid recent allegations that the U.S. Army buried a large amount of Agent Orange in one of its camps in southeastern Korea three decades ago.  City officials take samples of und

Gang member arrested; first time Mexican drugs found on sale hereThe prosecution said Sunday they recently indicted a former Korean-American gang member for smuggling methamphetamine from Mexico and selling it here. It was the first time that the drugs from Mexico have been found to be traded in Korea where most illegal drugs come from China. According to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Of

Snowballing savings bank allegations now involve politicians, bureaucratsFormer state auditor Eun Jin-soo appeared before the prosecution Sunday to face questioning over his alleged involvement in a snowballing savings bank scandal.Eun, a confidant of President Lee Myung-bak’s, is suspected of taking kickbacks including diamonds in return for lax auditing into the corruption-ridden Busan Mutual Sa

One of seven hospitalized with unknown virus dies 16 days after first deathAnother pregnant woman has died of acute pneumonia caused by an unidentified virus, the health authorities confirmed Thursday. She was the second death among the seven pregnant women who had been hospitalized at a Seoul hospital in April for infection with the unknown virus.The 36-year-old woman first visited the hospital o

Boehringer Ingelheim Korea is receiving nominations for this year’s Wunsch Medical Award, one of the most prestigious prizes in Korean medicine. The German drug manufacturer established the award together with the Korean Academy of Medical Sciences in 1990, naming it after Richard Wunsch, the first German physician in Korea. Wunsch also served as a personal physician to King Gojong from 1901 to 19

New director expects to attract breast cancer patients from Asian nationsRenowned breast cancer specialist Paik Nam-sun has never hesitated to try something new. Despite the doubts of his colleagues, he carried out Korea’s first breast-conserving cancer surgery in 1986. He is also among the Korean doctors to have treated the largest number of foreign patients at more than 15,000 cases. Paik, now 6

A prosecution investigation is underway into a match rigging case in which brokers bribed some professional soccer players to deliberately lose games, local daily Munhwa Ilbo reported Wednesday. The two brokers, including a former midfielder from a local soccer club, made significant profits from a sports lottery by arranging game scores, the report said. According to Changwon Prosecutor’s Office,

District’s foreign publicity ambassadors share Seoul experiences through SNSFor Chinese student Yu Wenbo, who has been studying journalism in Korea for more than five years, Gangnam, in southeastern Seoul, is an area with many wonders yet to find.“I often hang out with my friends at COEX, which has a huge underground shopping center, a movie theater and restaurants. But I had never known the World

Seoul considers paying interest on student loans for low-income familiesThe nation’s university fees saw a nearly 30 percent increase over the past five years, according to reports from central bank and the government Monday.The figure came a day after the ruling Grand National Party resumed the discussion on a “half-tuition” policy. According to the Bank of Korea and Statistics Korea on Monday, t

Ministry may seek joint on-the-spot inspection with U.S. militarySouth Korea’s Environment Ministry dispatched Friday an investigation team to an area around a U.S. military base in Korea where barrels of Agent Orange were allegedly buried about 30 years ago.A U.S. cable TV network reported on May 13, citing three former American soldiers who served in the U.S. Forces Korea, that they had buried t

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Thursday a plan to support the city’s 217,000 senior citizens living alone. According to the city’s recent survey, of the more than 1 million elderly people aged 65 or older in Seoul, 21.5 percent live alone, many of them financially struggling.The number of aged living alone has continued to increase in recent years from 16.2 percent in 2004, the city s

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― More is better when it comes to drinking coffee to ward off the risk of deadly prostate cancer, according to a major U.S. study released by researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health.Men who drank six or more cups per day had a 60 percent lower risk of developing the most lethal type of prostate cancer and a 20 percent lower risk of forming any type of prostate cancer co

Although there is no cure, irritable bowel syndrome can be managedWhen he was a college student, Lee Sang-woo used to memorize the location of toilets at every subway station between his home and school. “Because I had diarrhea frequently, I never took the bus,” said the 32-year-old office worker who has suffered from irritable bowel syndrome for more than 10 years. Even though his symptoms have i

The overpasses planned to be buit near Sungnyemun, the historic gate in central Seoul. (The Korea Herald)The Seoul Fortress, which has surrounded the city for 615 years, will be fully restored by 2014, officials said Wednesday.The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Wednesday a plan to reconnect the 18.6-kilometer fortress and seek to list it as a UNESCO cultural heritage site.“The Seoul Fortr

Her elder son who is preparing for an Ivy League school at a prestigious foreign language high school in Seoul may receive the best school education in Korea. However, his mother, Park Sung-hee, says she has never reduced the family’s spending on private education. “Even though you enter a good school, the situation is the same at least for the students at the school. In order not to lag behind ot

Rival regions rage, claim decision was made on political motivationThe nation’s multi-trillion won science belt project took its first step on Monday with Daejeon selected as the host city. A government-private committee said Monday that Daejeon, some 164 kilometers south of Seoul, will have the National Basic Science Institute and a particle accelerator that will be completed in the region over t