1. Cendolfor the Soul
66 HEALTHTODAY•September 2015
Last month, Dr Tee discussed his journey to being a published author and
his motivations behind writing Malaysian Diet: the Plain Truth. This month,
he shares with us some insight into his career and his passion for improving
Malaysians’ nutrition status.
I
n addition to being a newly
minted author, Dr Tee has a
distinguished track record in
championing better nutrition for
Malaysians of all ages. Naturally, we
took advantage of our conversation
to find out more about him.
HT: Dr Tee, please share with us
a little about yourself. How did
you become involved in the field
of nutrition? What were your
main areas of work?
TES: I graduated with a Bachelor’s
degree in biochemistry from University
of Malaya in 1972. I joined the Institute
for Medical Research (IMR) later that
year as a nutritionist. I then went on to
do a master’s degree and a PhD.
I did my doctorate on a part-time basis,
while I was working in the IMR.
Most graduates with a biochemistry
degree work as a biochemist in
a hospital. I thought I would do
something different and applied for
a nutritionist post in the IMR. In the
1970s, nutrition was not such a “hot”
field like it is in recent years. In fact,
no local universities offered a degree
in nutrition at that time. The IMR is
like the research arm of the Ministry
of Health Malaysia. The Nutrition
Division’s main role is to identify major
nutritional problems afflicting the
community, who the most affected
are, where the main locations of
the problems are, and determine
the causes. This information is
used by the Ministry of Health
and other government agencies to
formulate intervention programmes in
overcoming these problems.
During my years in the IMR, I worked
on several research projects
A Man of
Good Nutrition
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2. Cendolfor the Soul
September 2015•HEALTHTODAY 67
related to food and nutrition, in
line with the role of the Nutrition
Division of the IMR. My main
areas were in community nutrition
research. The Nutrition Division
became well-known for a series
of community nutrition studies
throughout the country, enriching
our knowledge on the nutritional
status of communities. I also
started a systematic programme to
establish a database on the nutrient
composition of foods available in the
market beginning in the 1980s.
Throughout those years, I have
published several versions of the
Nutrient Composition of Malaysian
Foods. Up to today, the version that
I last published in 1997 is still in
use by nutritionists, dietitians and
health workers for dietary advice and
conducting studies on nutritional
adequacy of the communities.
I stayed on for 30 years in the IMR; my
last position in the Institute was Head
of the Cardiovascular, Diabetes and
Nutrition Research Centre. In this span
of 3 decades, I have witnessed the
rapid increase of non-communicable
diseases (NCDs) in the country, with
the main problems being obesity,
diabetes, heart disease and cancers.
HT: Clearly, nutrition is a topic
you are passionate about.
What drives you and keeps
you going?
TES: As I went on further in my career
as a nutritionist, I became more and
more interested in nutrition work. It
affects real life, daily life. And we were
doing something that could help the
community overcome various nutrition
problems. And when I became involved
in the activities of the Nutrition Society
of Malaysia (NSM), I became even
more passionate about nutrition work
and how it could help the population in
preventing various diet-related diseases.
I have become so involved in nutrition
work! Even after my retirement
from IMR in 2002, I continued to be
actively involved in such activities,
mostly through NSM. I truly believe
that inculcating healthy eating habits
is the key towards reducing diseases
and prolonging life. And that we
need to disseminate this message to
the public.
HT: Dr Tee, who inspires you
in your field? Do you have any
“nutrition heroes”?
TES: The inspiration really comes
from the love for the subject, from the
knowledge that some of the activities
that we do can benefit the people and
help them to reduce the risk of various
diseases. The drive to do more comes
from observing the huge number of
people who are afflicted by these
chronic NCDs. The obesity problem
does not seem to be declining or even
stabilizing. Children are also affected in
large numbers. Diabetes affects a large
proportion of the people. More needs to
be done to alleviate these problems.
There are many internationally
renowned nutritionists who
have contributed greatly to the
development of nutrition science and
public health nutrition. One person
I would single out is the late Prof Dr
Nevin Scrimshaw who passed away
at the ripe age of 95. He devoted his
7-decade career to the alleviation
of hunger and malnutrition in
developing countries. He had been
a mentor to many nutritionists from
all corners of the world, including me
and other Malaysians. I regard him
as a nutrition icon.
I often feel that what I have done
through IMR and NSM is still so
insignificant, compared to these giants
in global nutrition. I often wish I could
contribute more to nutrition in the
country and the region.
The President of NSM
Dr Tee has held the position of
President in NSM for the last 19 years.
What is NSM all about? Let’s hear
from the man who knows the Society
in and out.
HT: You are currently the
President of Nutrition Society
of Malaysia, having held the
position for an impressive
period of time. Can you share
with us the history of your
involvement in NSM?
TES: In the early days, the IMR was
the focus of nutrition research and
activities in the country. Hence, a
small core group of us, under the
leadership of the late Dr Chong Yoon
Hin, discussed the formation of a
nutrition society in the country. A
pro-tem committee was established
in 1984 with Dr Chong as the pro-tem
President and I was the Honorary
Secretary. The Nutrition Society of
Malaysia was formally registered with
the Registrar of Societies in 1985.
In the first formal election, Dr Chong
was elected President and I took on
the post of Hon. Secretary. In 1996,
I formally took over as President of
NSM, a post I still hold to date.
Yes, it has been a considerably long
time, almost 20 years! If there is a
person who is keen and able to take
over and bring the NSM to greater
heights, I will be happy to pass on the
baton. Until that day, I feel I can still
contribute to the activities of the NSM.
There is still a great deal that the NSM
can do for the profession and for the
population.
HT: Why do you think we need
a society such as NSM today?
What roles does NSM hold in
our society?
TES: Many of the diseases afflicting
the population are diet related.
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3. Cendolfor the Soul
68 HEALTHTODAY•September 2015
This could be due to lack of certain
nutrients or excesses of other
nutrients. Nutrition is therefore a key
cause of many diseases. Promoting
healthy eating becomes an important
strategy of the government, especially
the Ministry of Health Malaysia.
I believe the NSM can contribute
towards the government's efforts
in preventing nutritional diseases.
The NSM has participated in the
preparation of the first National
Plan of Action for Nutrition (NPAN)
of Malaysia, as well as in the 2nd
NPAN (2006-2015). We are now
participating in the review of NPAN III,
for 2016-2020.
On top of that, the NSM has been
carrying out various activities
to complement and strengthen
government's activities to promote
healthy eating and active living amongst
the community. The NSM will continue
to work with government agencies
and indeed, all stakeholders in these
activities. This includes collaborating with
the private sector, especially the food
industry in implementing intervention
programmes.
Indeed, all international governmental
organizations such as World Health
Organization and Food and Agriculture
Organization call on all stakeholders to
work together in eradicating nutrient
deficiencies and reduce risk to non-
communicable diseases.
HT: Can you share with us some
of the NSM activities that you
are most proud of?
TES: The NSM has two main objectives:
1. Promoting and advancing nutrition
science
2. Promote nutritional wellbeing of
the population.
I am proud to say that the NSM has
done its very best to carry out these
activities to meet these objectives.
And I am proud to say we have
made significant achievements in
both of these areas. NSM is now a
recognized name within the nutrition
fraternity in the region and the
world. We participate in international
scientific meetings and organize
such conferences and seminars; we
have a peer-reviewed journal that is
recognized in the world.
As for the promotion of community
nutrition, we have carried out
numerous activities. These include the
publication of numerous educational
materials for the community at www.
nutriweb.org.my. We are proud to
have published 2 cookbook series
to provide the people with actual
healthier ways to prepare meals. A 3rd
series, Junior Chef Cookbook, focuses
on encouraging children to be involved
in meal preparation so that they can
eat healthier. The first volume, Let’s
Play Healthy Cooking was launched
on June 2, during the 30th
Scientific
Conference of the NSM.
That aside, we have also carried out
numerous intervention programmes
for specific groups as well as for the
community in general. The focus has
been on children and women, and
recent programmes include Healthy
Kids Programme, MyNutriChild and
Positive Parenting Programme. Focus
has also been given to mothers
and women of reproductive age.
The MI-Care and Bright Start-4-
Life programmes are the current
programmes that focus on the care of
pregnant and lactating women as well
as breastfeeding for newborns.
In addition to the above-mentioned
groups, NSM regularly carries out
community nutrition outreach
programmes for the public. The largest
of such programmes has been the
nation-wide Nutrition Month Malaysia
(NMM), initiated 13 years ago, in
2002. It aims to increase awareness
of Malaysians towards the importance
of healthy nutrition and active living
through a variety of communication
activities and approaches. You can
visit www.nutritionmonthmalaysia.org.my
for more information.
I find NMM particularly rewarding
as it is a large programme that
reaches out to all Malaysians through
the partnership between three
professional bodies, namely NSM,
Malaysian Association for the Study
of Obesity (MASO) and the Malaysian
Dietitians' Association (MDA) and
several corporate companies. It also
ropes in a communication specialist
company to help us implement the
activities. It is through such strategic
partnership that we are able to do
what each one of us is not able to
achieve individually.
Indeed, in most of the specific target
groups I mentioned above, they have
been implemented in partnership with
other professional health societies.
We can proudly say that these
educational materials and activities
have contributed significantly towards
empowering the Malaysian public
with appropriate nutrition knowledge.
I believe the NSM has enriched the
nutrition scene in our country. HT
Malaysian Diet:
The Plain Truth by
Dr Tee E Siong is available in
major bookstores as well as at
www.umpress.com.my.
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