chinese nutritional therapy

By Ban B. Wong, L.Ac Dipl. Ac and Hb, Ph.D.

Chinese Nutritional Therapy is a treatment modality of Traditional Chinese medicine that uses food to help us recuperate when our body is sick or off-balance. The Chinese wisdom is also reflected in the western proverb, "we are what we eat." Based on the theory of Ying and Yang, the ancient Chinese discovered that all foods have their individual energetic properties; for instance, Chili has warming properties as opposed to Cucumber which has cooling properties. The different energetic properties of the food we eat can affect the energy flow in our body. Thereby selecting the foods that best fit our health conditions and eliminating the foods that creates pathogenic environment in our body, we can greatly improve our overall health and energy (Qi).

However, the process of selecting and eliminating the right combination of foods requires the comprehensive diagnosis of our conditions according to the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine. When our pattern of illness is identified, then we will customize a diet that will strengthen the body and facilitate the healing process. It is important to remember that Chinese Nutritional therapy does not interfere with Western nutritional therapy because it mainly concentrates on diet modification and food group selection. Therefore, vitamins and supplements can be taken together with these foods.