MANILA — The public should prioritize their health as Chinese lunar year flips to the year of the wooden snake.

Feng shui expert Maxie Tiu, in an interview with ABS-CBN News, said that the year of the snake puts the illness star at the center.

“Kaya lahat ng zodiac sign po natatamaan ng sakit. Ingat lang po. Wag magdalaw sa patay, wag magdalaw sa sakit kasi illness star nasa snake. 'Pag may sakit wag magdalaw sa funeral. Iwas lang baka matama tayo,” she said.

(All zodiac signs are hit by the illness star. We should all be cautious. Do not visit the dead, do not visit those with illnesses because the illness star is with the snake. If you’re sick, don’t visit funerals. Just avoid it.)

Just like previous years, Tiu advised the public to wear red, a color associated to luck, prosperity and a deflector of bad omen. Hygienic practices on the eve of the Chinese New Year is also encouraged.

Despite the grim warning on health, there remains good news.

“Pero marami tayong pera this year! Lagyan ng pera ang mga wallet, puno. Para palaging whole year may pera tayo.  Kung may mga negosyante, yung unang customer, ilalagay ang pera sa angpao at ilagay sa kaha.”

(There is abundance in money this year. Fill your wallets with cash so that you’ll have cash for the whole year. For entrepreneurs, money from your first customer should be put inside an angpao (money envelope) and placed inside a safe.)

Among the lucky animal signs for the year of the snake, according to Tiu, is the dragon, horse, monkey, sheep, rooster and rabbit.

But no matter how much the public believes in astrology and Feng Shui, experts emphasized that these should only serve as a guide when it comes to decision making.