Back when I was a young girl, I was often called negrita because of my dark skin. And it was hard for me especially when I reached puberty. The lack of self-confidence that the shaming brought affected me so much until adulthood.



Dark-skinned kids nowadays will find it doubly hard because of the Internet. Bashing and skin-shaming are prevalent across all social media platforms. Should this really be happening? Should being dark-skinned make one a lesser person?  SkinWhite dares to say no with their recent campaign.



You might be wondering why a skin-whitening brand like SkinWhite would even care to launch such a campaign. Rachelle Layda, Marketing Manager for Whitening of Splash Corporation says that they aim to empower women to choose to define their own standard of beauty. SkinWhite respects whether you choose dark skin or white skin as beautiful.

I think it's about time we all do that to teach our children about beauty regardless of skin color. As Pam Sulit, Splash Corporation's VP for Marketing says, "Skin color should not be about one being better than the other."  Meanwhile, Rachel Villanueva, Creative Director of Petch & Partners, the creative agency that created this campaign for SkinWhite adds, "White and dark are both beautiful."



Whether you choose to have dark skin or white skin, you are beautiful. Wear your skin whichever way you choose. Watch the new SkinWhite ad to be moved a little bit more by this campaign.



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Learning that a loved one has been diagnosed with diabetes can be difficult -- especially when that person is your child. It’s important to remember that you aren’t alone, and that there are plenty of other families going through the same challenges. Pediatric diabetes is manageable and doesn’t have to mean an end to the activities you enjoy as a family.

Photo by Kate on Unsplash

Talking to Your Child

One of the most important things you can do to promote healthy management of your child’s diabetes is to talk openly with them. Make sure that they feel comfortable coming to you with any problems they’re experiencing, and do not berate them when something goes wrong. You should try to encourage a positive environment at home and maintain a supportive, welcoming posture with anything that has to do with diabetes. Families should have these conversations together so that everyone feels included and informed.

One of the first conversations you have with your child should be to explain diabetes as best you can, how your lives are going to change, and what measures you’ll all be taking to manage the condition on a daily basis. Don’t dwell on the negative, but rather focus on diabetes as just a common condition that needs extra attention. Allow your child to ask any questions they have and feel whatever they feel about the diagnosis (whether it be sad, angry, or other emotions). Honest communication is key when managing pediatric diabetes as a family unit.

Develop a Routine

Many child psychologists talk about the benefits of maintaining a routine for your child day-in and day-out. In addition to helping incorporate new habits, maintaining an established routine can actually help a child deal better with periods of change, like a new diagnosis. For pediatric diabetes management, it may be best to make slight modifications to your existing routine at first. Let your child know about the changes that are coming along the way.

If your child requires insulin therapy as part of their treatment, this may be one of the most challenging aspects because it can require finger pricks and injections several times a day. You can work with your child to bake these into their schedule with something that they enjoy, like a favorite TV show or other fun activity. Another way to promote healthy diabetes management and reduce the number of injections received daily is to use an insulin pump with smartphone styling. These devices are easy to use for parents, caregivers, and even older children, and can reduce the struggle and hassle of administering several insulin injections per day.

Planning Meals

As part of your routine, you can also begin to plan meals and mealtimes together. This can often be helpful for monitoring blood sugar and the effects of a meal on your child’s blood sugar. You’ll want to encourage healthy eating and make sure your child is eating regularly enough, as required by their blood glucose readings. Keep in mind that extra preparation may be involved to effectively count carbohydrates and prepare snacks, but that it’s also possible to make this an enjoyable bonding opportunity for the whole family.

Encouraging Physical Activity

Another important aspect of healthy living and diabetes management is staying active. Oftentimes, this is the easiest activity to incorporate into the family routine because you can make it fun! Get outside with the family and play a game of soccer, join a kickball league, establish a daily dance break, or just go for a walk. Make sure to sneak in any necessary blood glucose checks and blood sugar/insulin adjustments as needed but try to focus on the positive aspects of the activity together. Finding small ways to incorporate physical exercise into your routines can improve sugar metabolization, improve cardiovascular health, and promote feelings of closeness among family members.

Don’t Be Afraid to Reach Out

Always remember that there are others that can help you with this difficult transition. If you find yourself having a hard time with your child’s diabetes diagnosis, speak to your doctor, your diabetes educator, or find a support group of parents near you.

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Whether it’s investing in your career, relationships, spiritual growth, or your personal development, it’s important to invest for your future. I strongly believe in investing in assets because I want my husband and I to live comforably in our old age and not rely on our son for our needs. Smart women invest, don’t you agree?



Such is the same philosophy of First Metro Asset Management, Inc. (FAMI), the fund management subsidiary of First Metro Investment Corporation, as it hosted the Smart Women Invest financial literacy workshop for women in celebration of Women’s Month.

Meeting the country’s top female finance experts

It was an afternoon full of learnings and inspiration straight from the country’s top leading female finance experts, Karen Roa and Rose Fres-Fausto. Both women engaged the audience in an animated discussion about finance and both agree that oart of a women’s self-determination is mastering the art of handling money.

Karen Roa

Karen has no less than 25 years of solid experience in the field of finance. With a career that spans both domestic and international banking operations, she has a wealth of experience that fuels her financial skills. She has worked with some of the most reknowned global companies such as Chase Manhattan Bank, SunGard Aisa Pacific, Philam Bank, and Citibank NA. She has also served as President and CEO of Philam Asset Management, Inc. (PAMI) and has taught in Ateneo de Manila and University of the Philippines. It is thus no surprise for me that she’s the first-ever female president of FAMI!

Rose Fres-Fausto

I bet most of you are already following Rose, or the FQ Mom, on Facebook and Instagram. I first listened to her at the Kerygma Conference a few years back as she shared insights on how to teach finances to our kids. Being a former investment banker turned full-time homemaker makes her the most reliable resource on managing the family’s finances. Her books are bestsellers and it’s because of the fact that she makes the usually scary topic of finance for noobs like me less complicated.

The Financial Intelligence Quotient (FQ) Test

One of the highlights of the workshop was the online FQ Test which determined our standing in terms of Financial Intelligence Quotient (FQ). The test measured both our financial literacy and our behavior towards money management and spending. I thought that I’d have a good score on this test since I’ve been building my stock and mutual funds portfolio for almost a decade now. Well, guess what? Pasang awa lang ako, LOL!


Then again, I’m not discouraged because I still have time to improve this score. In fact, I already marked September 21, 2019 as the day of my retake. By the way, you can also take the test by visiting rebrand.ly/FQtest.

Securing a Financial Future

As a member of the Metrobank Group, FAMI holds a veritable reputation in asset management. FAMI’s mutual fund business is adept at promoting savings mobilization and advocates investment literacy, making it the perfect partner for women to learn, live and start loving finance.

Besides the women-centric learning in finance and investment, we also received a free investment in First Metro Consumer Fund. Karen Roa said, “This is our way of thanking the women who attended our workshop. The First Metro Consumer Fund is invested in industries that benefit from the Philippine family consumption and expenditure pattern. These are industries supported by women and mothers in our country. This is a great way to start their investment journey.”

For more information about FAMI, you may visit www.fami.com.ph or follow them on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/firstmetrofunds/) and on Instagram (@firstmetroassetmgt).


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