Professor Emeritus Dato Dr Khalid Abdul Kadir, who was conferred the NutraChampion title at our NutraIngredients-Asia awards 2020 is the guest of our 12th podcast.
An endocrinologist, clinical researcher, and medical school professor, Dr Khalid firmly believes that the three professions are deeply complementary.
“[Engaging in clinical research] is the way that it should be, otherwise, we will be stagnant, what we have learned [in medical school] in the 1970s, is not relevant now.
“We must always be on top [of the new medical discoveries] to do the best for our patients,” he said, on why a specialist doctor should be a clinical researcher.
Over the past few decades, his research interest has been on metabolic disorders, especially diabetes, and its link with hormonal change and stressors.
His recent projects have looked at how tocotrienol-rich vitamin E could alleviate kidney, vision, and nerves complications in diabetic patients, and the clinical results have been promising.
Despite his busy schedule with medical and research work, he is also the professor of medicine at Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine at Monash University Malaysia.
“Our concept is this, if you want to learn to fly, you should learn it from a pilot who is still flying,” he said.
What he hoped to pass down, however, is not only the latest knowledge, but also thinking skills, so that the students can apply it on their own and make new discoveries on their own.
A typical day starts early and ends late for Dr Khalid, six days in a week.
While the love for research is what keeps him going even at the age of 72, he also shared how his journey battling stage four lymphoma 12 years ago had motivated him to do more for the scientific community.
Listen to find out more about his research and life stories.
