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Healthy Hawker Hacks: How to Use Your CDC Vouchers Without Paying for It Later (With Your Health)
07 Aug 2025
It’s no secret that Singaporeans love their hawker food, and now, with the recent May 2025 release of the Community Development Council (CDC) vouchers, there’s more reason to indulge.
The vouchers can be used at participating hawker stalls and heartland merchants islandwide. We all know that hawker food is a beloved part of daily life in Singapore, but frequent indulgence in unhealthy dishes can come with long-term health consequences.
With a little awareness, we can still enjoy the convenience and flavours of hawker food—without sacrificing our health or future medical bills.
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Smart hawker food swaps: Enjoy your favourites the healthier way
Eating healthy doesn’t mean that you have to avoid hawker meals completely. The key is choosing dishes that are naturally lower in fat and sodium. Some ways include:
- Pick clear soups over creamy or oily ones. For example, go for sliced fish soup instead of laksa or curry noodles.
- Choose grilled or steamed proteins. Steamed chicken rice is a lighter alternative to crispy chicken cutlets or fried fish, and it still provides your protein intake for the day.
- Load up on veggies. Add extra greens to your yong tau foo or cai png, or choose dishes like thunder tea rice or bibimbap that offer more vegetables. This way, you’ll also ensure a balanced meal and hit your fibre intake.
These small swaps can make a meaningful difference to your daily calorie and sodium intake, helping you maintain a healthier weight and blood pressure over time.
Small changes, big difference: Master portion control and how to order better
It’s not just what you eat but also how much and how it’s prepared. For instance, when ordering, you can ask for less oil and less salt in your food. Less gravy also reduces your intake of oils, as hawker gravies and sauces are often loaded with oil.
If you’re not a big eater, request smaller portions of rice or noodles to avoid overeating, especially if you’re having multiple dishes.
Remember, excessive sodium and fat increase your risk of high blood pressure, kidney issues, and heart disease.
Portion control and customised orders don’t take away from the flavour, but they do help you stay in control of your health.
Don’t let frequent indulgence lead to chronic health issues
Having a plate of char kway teow once in a while is fine. But daily consumption of calorie-dense and heavily processed meals can lead to lifestyle diseases that creep up quietly.
Chronic conditions like hypertension (high blood pressure), type 2 diabetes, and high cholesterol often develop without obvious symptoms and may go unnoticed until symptoms appear or complications set in. By the time they’re diagnosed, they may already require long-term management, medication, and follow-up care.
The takeaway: It’s not about giving up your favourite foods—it’s about not letting unhealthy habits become the norm. Making conscious food choices now can prevent long-term health problems later.
When your immune system is unbalanced, you fall sick more often
A poor diet weakens your body’s natural defences, making it harder to recover from infections or illnesses.
With Covid-19 cases rising again, a balanced diet rich in nutrients plays a key role in immunity. If your daily meals lack fibre, vitamins, and protein, you may find yourself more susceptible to the flu or falling ill more often than you should.
Eating well supports both short-term recovery and long-term disease prevention.
Why your health insurance matters when it comes to lifestyle-related diseases
- Chronic conditions can require lifelong treatment,
- Health insurance—especially Integrated Shield Plans with added riders—can help cover the costs of hospital visits, diagnostics, and outpatient care.
- Corporate insurance or personal Critical Illness Plans may also help offset the financial burden of managing these conditions.
Managing chronic conditions isn’t just about watching your diet. Many of these diseases require lifelong treatment, including regular screenings, medication, follow-ups and sometimes specialist care.
This is where health insurance comes in. A well-structured Integrated Shield Plan (IP) can help cover hospital stays, diagnostic procedures, and follow-up outpatient care.
Riders can reduce your out-of-pocket expenses significantly, so you’re not left to pay the full cost of your deductible or co-insurance.
If you’re covered by corporate insurance, check whether it includes chronic disease management or outpatient benefits. A critical illness policy may also provide a lump sum payout to ease the financial burden after a major diagnosis.