Assessment of TRAIN’s Coal and Petroleum Excise Taxes: Environmental Benefits and Impacts on Sectoral Employment and Household Welfare

This study assessed the impact of the first package of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (or TRAIN) Law, which includes an increase in petroleum and coal excise taxes, as passed by Congress in 2017. This study reviewed the context of the energy sector in the country given that petroleum and coal are the largest sources of energy in the country. Using a computable general equilibrium-microsimulation model, it mainly assessed the impact of this increase and of the whole TRAIN 1 package (which includes a reduction in the personal income tax and the broadening of the value added tax). The results from the simulations show that there is a slight adverse output effect for most industries under an increase in petroleum and coal taxes scenario, resulting in a lower level of carbon emissions. There is a slight decline in employment, and poverty incidence increased slightly as excise taxes have an adverse effect in terms of higher commodities prices among the poor

Acculturation-Related Factors of Dietary Pattern Changes among Indigenous Adolescents in Mt. Arayat, Philippines

This study aimed to determine the levels of dietary acculturation and factors affecting acculturationrelated changes in dietary patterns of 15 adolescents in an indigenous community in Mt. Arayat, Central Luzon, Philippines displaced after the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991. Mixed-methods sequential explanatory design (using modified scales) was employed to measure dietary acculturation; index analyses to evaluate dietary patterns; and focus group discussion to determine factors leading to dietary acculturation. Majority was found to be bicultural (93.33%) and the mean dietary pattern index score was 69.40 implying a need for dietary improvement. Moderate to high levels of dietary acculturation were observed on the traditional food block, while low to moderate levels were observed towards the dominant food block. Various psychosocial factors driving dietary choices cumulatively affect dietary patterns of adolescents experiencing acculturation in this study, including but not limited to: 1) the neighboring communities’ ethnocultural composition facilitates acculturation primarily through language fluency; 2) prevalence of discrimination exerts an external pressure to adopt host culture for social acceptance; 3) economic need for integration to sustain day-to-day activities exists; 4) religious feasts and gatherings centered on foods previously unknown to them have been introduced; 5) food selection behavior shifts due to acquired experiences of food whether sensory or cognitive; and 6) their attitudes towards assimilation majorly characterizes the gradual internalization of host culture

Reviving the Philippine Economy under a Responsible New Normal

After the reclassification of areas under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to general community quarantine (GCQ), the urgent task for the Philippine government is to provide an exit plan to revive the Philippine economy. Given the significant economic damage resulting from the shutdown of roughly 75 percent of the country’s total production in the National Capital Region (NCR) and in the CALABARZON and Central Luzon areas, a gradual reopening of the economy will be necessary to prevent further economic damage that could not only be difficult to repair, but also long to overcome. Indeed, based on recent directives from the government, a substantial number of industries and services have thus been allowed to operate in both the ECQ and GCQ areas. However, as the Philippine government begins to calibrate the opening of sectors, there remain concerns as to how this process will affect jobs and livelihoods now and beyond. In this context, an economic recovery plan that talks about short-term, a transition, and full recovery phases— encompassing a revision of the current Philippine Development Plan without losing sight of the long-term goals envisioned in Ambisyon Natin 2040— is still needed. Indeed, a key component of AmBisyon 2040 has been of building resiliency over the long-term, which includes resiliency in health and economic shocks apart from natural disasters. At the same time, this recovery plan should also be accompanied by structural reforms to enhance its implementation. The Department of Finance has crafted a four-pillar socio-economic strategy aimed at: (a) supporting the more vulnerable sectors of society; (b) increasing medical resources to contain the virus and offer safety to front-liners; (c) keeping the economy afloat through financial emergency initiatives; and (d) creating jobs and sustaining the economy. Yet while enumerating the costs of these plans, the said strategy lacked details on how the country could achieve some of the goals without the availability of widespread testing and adequate health facilities. Loan guarantees, cash transfers, and other forms of subsidies can revive disrupted supply chains but cannot restore productivity in the middle of a persisting health crisis, while the uncertainty of a possible outbreak can keep workers from supplying goods and services. It is crucial to have these programs and institutions in place since a number of cities, regions and provinces have started to reopen. A modified community quarantine without the necessary health system investments, protection measures, and economic recovery plan risks amounting to an unregulated herd immunity strategy. Opting for herd immunity allows governments to blame the failure of the health and economic system on the virus, rather than on bad governance. Under current GCQ protocols, the burden on containing the virus is mostly transferred to the public. Unless the government provides mass testing, the problem of information is aggravated, probably raising the transmission risks. Moreover, unregulated herd immunity will be differentially felt by the poor. As healthy workers may recover their earnings from the modified quarantine, the poor, who have limited access to the health services and are thus more susceptible to the virus, are unlikely to benefit from this system. In effect, this will only exacerbate the inequality that prevails in the country. Moving towards a responsible new normal requires a strategy that addresses both people’s wellbeing and the socio-economic weaknesses exposed by COVID-19. Thus, the strategy should have the following elements

Analysis of apparent amylose content of market milled rice via digital image photometry using a smartphone camera

Apparent amylose content (AC) of market milled rice was analyzed through digital image photometry (DIP) utilizing a smartphone camera and a free-access software (ImageJ). The DIP-AC method was validated using seven test samples and applied to a set of 17 commercially available milled rices varying in AC. A light box was constructed to accommodate a cuvette and a smartphone while ImageJ was used for digital image analysis towards quantifying AC. Smartphone camera settings were also optimized using the red, green, and blue (RGB) values of the digital images of amylose-iodine blue solutions. ISO 100 combined with shutter speed 1/640 was the optimum and most suitable settings combination when B values were used to generate calibration curves yielding a high degree of linearity (r = 0.995–0.998). Validation showed the DIP-AC method to be accurate based on the conventional ultraviolet–visible (UV-vis) spectrophotometric AC assay. It was also found to be repeatable and precise for non-waxy rice samples only, yielding RSD values below 7% among all replications made within one day and across different days. With the optimized DIP-AC assay, limits of detection and quantitation of AC that is capable of iodine binding at alkaline pH and influencing cooked rice texture, were 0.2% and 0.4% (milled rice basis at 12–14% moisture), respectively. The reported DIP-AC method can be a reliable and accurate assay for determining AC of non-waxy milled rice alternative to UV–vis spectrophotometry. Further refinement of the DIP-AC method is warranted to improve precision in measuring AC of milled waxy rice

In vitro α-amylase inhibitory and antioxidant properties of soluble proteins and their peptic hydrolysates from raw and cooked commercially available oatmeal

Background and objectives: Ready-to-eat cereal-based foods like quick-cooking oatmeal are commonly available in the market often highlighting the levels of nutrients and the effects of dietary fiber. Information about the proteins in these foods is limited to content only. This study measured two health-related bioactivities of the salt-soluble proteins in commercially available oatmeal using in vitro assays. Soluble proteins and their peptic hydrolysates extracted from raw and cooked commercially available oatmeal were analyzed for their in vitro α-amylase inhibitory activity and antioxidant properties in an attempt to determine the health-promoting potential of the protein portion of oatmeal. Total soluble proteins were extracted from the raw and cooked oatmeal samples using saline solution, precipitated, and dialyzed, and their gel electrophoretic profiles were also studied. Findings: Two major protein bands were found in both extracts with estimated molecular weight range of 22–24 and 54–56 kDa, respectively. Soluble proteins generally had low inhibitory activity toward α-amylase (~5%) but increased when these were hydrolyzed with pepsin. The crude proteins from cooked oatmeal showed the highest α-amylase inhibitory activity. Metal-reducing ability was higher for the unhydrolyzed proteins from raw (48%) and cooked (32%) oatmeal than for their peptic hydrolysates (5% and 9%, respectively), while radical-scavenging activity was higher for the peptic hydrolysates (65%–90%) than for the unhydrolyzed proteins (3%–12%). Conclusions: The soluble proteins of commonly consumed quick-cooking oatmeal offer health benefits such as glucose-lowering potential via α-amylase inhibition and antioxidant properties via metal-reducing capacity. Their peptic hydrolysates may slightly reduce starch digestibility but showed promising radical-scavenging potential. Significance and novelty: Current findings may be useful to cereals manufacturing industry and to consumers who consider other health-related benefits of whole grain food products aside from nutrient content and beneficial effects of dietary fiber

Chronic methanol toxicity through topical and inhalational routes presenting as vision loss and restricted diffusion of the optic nerves on MRI: a case report and literature review.

Methanol intoxication can cause irreversible neurologic sequelae if unrecognized and untreated. Ingestion is the most common form of toxicity; however, dermal and inhalational exposures likewise occur but are documented rarely. While acute intoxication is commonly encountered, chronic exposure to methanol should also be highlighted. We report a case of a 57-year old female presenting in the emergency room with progressive dyspnea, metabolic acidosis with high anion gap, and metabolic encephalopathy. After emergency hemodialysis, the patient complained of vision loss on both eyes. Initial non-contrast cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed restricted diffusion of the intraorbital segment of both optic nerves. A thorough history revealed that she was applying a clear colorless liquid bought online all over her body for alleged pruritus for more than a year. The syndrome of metabolic acidosis with high anion gap, metabolic encephalopathy, vision loss, and laboratory findings led us to suspect a diagnosis of chronic methanol poisoning with an acute component. The liquid in question was sent for chemical analysis and result showed that it consisted of 95.5% Methanol. This case highlights the need for high index of clinical suspicion for methanol toxicity in the absence of oral consumption, the complications of chronic form of methanol intoxication, and the uncommon radiologic finding seen in diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI)