Nutrition
The Chinese Medicine perspective on diet is similar to the Mediterranean diet, with one major distinction: We encourage that all foods, especially in cold weather months, be cooked and consumed warm. Eastern medicines do not believe that steaming, sauteeing or roasting food cooks out its nutrients, but instead that cooked foods are more easily digestible and compatible with our body temperature of 99 degrees.
We mostly discourage smoothies, fruits, bars, salads, yogurt or cold drinks, as cold constricts blood vessels, which inhibits circulation and turns food that is thought of as healthy into an inflammatory ball of undigested phlegm in our gut. We condone an omnivorous diet that is 70-80% vegetarian, depending on the individual and time of year, also the time of day.
It is imperative to eat cooked, in-season vegetables in AT LEAST 2 MEALS/DAY. We encourage some red meat, and believe part of its bad reputation comes from Americans historically eating it in excess quantity and not enough quality. Grass fed/finished beef in small portions and wild fish are considered indispensable to long term health.
- Minimize processed foods, fried food, sugar, dairy, and white flour.
- Minimize especially rich, spicy, or heavily seasoned foods.
- Avoid plastic and microwaves. Get a HOT-LOGIC!
- Cook with butter or Avocado Oil, top with Olive Oil once plated. Click HERE to ensure you’re purchasing brands that offer its true health benefits.
- Eggs with cooked vegetables are a perfect breakfast. Get them hormone free. If you can’t get from a farmer’s market seek Vital Farms or Pete and Gerry’s brand.
- Lunch can be difficult for busy people with limited time. Best recommendations are leftovers from dinner, otherwise canned organic soups or canned wild fish.
- Bone broth is the best source of iron, collagen, and hemoglobin. You can PURCHASE ONLINE or make yourself with this recipe.
- INTERMITTENT FASTING can be beneficial, but to different extents for each individual. 14 hour gaps are generally safe, but there are certain cases who do better with 12, others who do better with 16. In Eastern medicine we strongly recommend skipping dinner instead of breakfast, as morning is when we are most sensitive to the insulin hormone to optimize digestion.
- Caffeine is OK until 11am. Tea is most advisable, but if the tea comes as powder in a bag it is not real tea, and you’re not getting the medicinal benefits. Best brands are ARBOR, Mariage Freres, or Harney and Sons.
- Nut butters or dark chocolate are best to satiate sweet cravings.
- Exercise 3-5x/week, depending on the season, your age and body type. Important to sweat and raise our heart rates, but also to not over-do it. Over-exercising depletes vital body fluids and cellular energy that will ultimately lead to negating its benefit.
