Gradient Alliance News Bulletin February 2016 The only source for a roundup of key Sri Lankan News. Economic News World Bank highlights SL’s progress and key challenges. French oil giant Total to explore oil in the East. ETCA under pressure due to its’ lack of transparency. ADB “reorients” with SL to receive about USD 2bn. Stock market closes at 6,192.81 in Feb. (-2.3% YoY). Business News Tourist arrivals in Jan. 2016 up 24.4% YoY to 194,280. Vehicle reg. falls 34.5% YoY in Jan. 2016. Dialog and Airtel to merge?. Business sentiment index falls to 151 in Jan. (-6 pts MoM). Consumer News Consumer confidence index falls to 70 (-5 pts MoM). Deflation returns in Jan 2016, -0.7% YoY. Imported rice prices up. MA’S Curry Paste and Seasoning range in new packaging. Gradient Alliance News Bulletin – February 2016 ...

Health and Views 2016 February 3rd Issue     Click here to read more Health & Views February 3rd issue ...

Why You Should Eat Beans By Dr. Harold Gunatillake Health Writer There is a belief that beans of all varieties, including Mung and lentils (parippu) are good for the heart, but they do much more than that. They provide a major source of soluble fibre.(Most beans have 15 grams of fibre per cup) This fibre when passing through the gut grabs and traps bile that contains cholesterol, removing it from the body before it’s absorbed. The cholesterol in bile is the excess excreted by the liver, and if there isn’t sufficient soluble fibre in the digestive tract, the cholesterol may get re-absorbed in the small intestines. According to Patti Bazel Weil R.D., diabetes nutrition educator at the University of Kentucky  in Lexington and author of ‘Magic Beans’, eating a cup of cooked beans a day can lower your total cholesterol by up to 10% in 6 weeks. Hence, indirectly it can lower incidence of heart disease by 20%. ...

Do You Get Your Vitamin B12 Checked By Dr. Harold Gunatillake Health Writer Recently, a doctor friend of mine was relating an experience he had one morning, and from time to time. He was finding it difficult to walk and quite unsteady on his legs on waking up in the morning. My wife had a similar experience about a year ago, when she got up in the morning she was very unsteady on her legs, and complained that she was cramping, did not know what was happening, and felt as if she was dying. I was writing an article on the side effects of statins that morning, and her complaint fitted well into the picture what I was writing about the side effects of statins. I was quite confident that it was due to the side effects of statins, as her cardiologist had put her on 40 mg of Crestor, ...

STUDIO TIMES BULLETIN FEBRUARY 2016   ...

Stamps for Lions Club Last year we raised $9200 for Children’s Mobility Fund. All the club need to do is ask it’s members to save Stamps on or off paper. Collections. Any unwanted  stamps. We will exceed last year Fund Raised, Double 2 years ago. We would like to double that figure again. How? Just by you collect Stamps. We sort and sell them in Auction. We appreciate any stamps we can get already clipped also by .5 of a cm around the stamps. Please save stamps. When your club saves  A4 envelope full and or a wine carton full as possible arrange to get them delivered to Cabinet meeting and give to zone Chairman David Erskine. Or POST TO Lions Club of Hornsby Inc. P.O. BOX 3053 ASQUITH 2077 Or Leave them at Colin and Thompson 8 Coronation Street Hornsby 2077. Please ring Ted 0414806840 with any queries. Thank ...

Knowing The Foods That Prevent, And Cause Cancer by Dr Harold Gunatillake , FICS, FIACS, AM(Sing),MBBS Before one could be afflicted with an illness like cancer, one would understandably assume, and say “It wont be me.” You hear of stories how others have got it and how they suffer going through surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, with distressing side effects, but one would never think that one could be a victim of it someday. At parties you would hear one lady whispering to another, “Do you know dear, that so and so is having cancer?” You will never think of taking precautionary methods to avoid the disease yourself, and when you get it, you ask God why is it me? A Buddhist thought would be to put it on “Karma.” More and more people in the developed countries are coming to understand the important role diet has to play in the prevention ...

Negative Gearing Special Edition – Ralphs Newsletter Labour to cut negative gearing Also in the news is the new policy annouced at the NSW ALP conference that Labour intends to allow negative gearing on new properties only and grandfather existing arrangements. Read one of many articles about this by clicking here Personally, I’d have no problem with this. It won’t affect me and won’t affect the club strategy, which has always been to buy new for a variety of reasons, including the negative gearing advantages. I’m not sure the headlines about it being a big election issue risk are justified. It is a policy that is fair, unlike many other proposals that suggest retroactive changes or which disadvantage large sections of the population, usually those least able to afford it. CGT is also on the table for labour with a cut in the concession rate from 50% down to 25%. ...

Health and Views 2016 February 2nd Issue   Click here to read more Health & Views February 2nd issue ...

Seminar Invite PLUS Ralph s Property Investing Newsletter Friends of Royal seminar invite When I am not helping my members build their wealth through property, or going on holiday, I have a number of other interests, native plants and my local National Park where I enjoy bush-walking being a couple of them. With that hat on (I’m treasurer of the Friends group), I’d like to invite you to an afternnon seminar that we are running next month. The date is Sunday afternoon, 20th March from 1.00pm at Sutherland. You can go to our Website to book and for further details, or our Facebook page via this link. The seminar has a world-class lineup of speakers from well-known organisations including Bush Heritage, BirdLife Australia, Australian Wildlife Consevancy, Environmental Water Trust, Wildlife Land Trust and others. There is an associated expo with information from other organisations such as Save Our Flora, Bushcare, ...