{"id":2095,"date":"2014-08-03T21:15:50","date_gmt":"2014-08-04T04:15:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.balancedmeridian.com\/?p=2095"},"modified":"2014-08-03T21:15:50","modified_gmt":"2014-08-04T04:15:50","slug":"ancient-way-eat-modern-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/ancient-way-eat-modern-people\/","title":{"rendered":"Eating Healthy"},"content":{"rendered":"

What to eat and what not to Eat:\u00a0 The Chinese Medicine Way to Healthy, Enjoyable Eating.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"20140725_red<\/a>What should I eat to be healthy?\u00a0 That is a question I believe a lot of people are asking these days.\u00a0 If you are noticing signs of aging, are overweight, are considered obese, underweight, have diabetes, heart disease, auto-immune disorder, cancer, or you just plain want to stay healthy, you might be wondering which diet therapy is best for you.<\/span><\/p>\n

I believe that a whole foods diet based mostly on plants, while taking into account individual needs, without all the processed foods, is the way to go.\u00a0 This is not a new way of eating, rather it is based on ancient Chinese Medical philosophy.\u00a0 The ancient way to eat for modern people.<\/span><\/p>\n

Michael Pollan’s book, \u201cIn Defense of Foods\u201d, capitalizes on this idea of a plant based diet when he states, \u201cEat food. Not too much.\u00a0 Mostly plants\u201d. \u00a0This is my new mantra!<\/span><\/p>\n

I have put together some bullet points for you about the balanced way of eating according to Traditional Chinese Medicine.\u00a0 I will describe the philosophy behind healthy eating that engenders a healthy relationship with food.\u00a0 I think it is important to for you to understand what digestion entails (TCM calls this Spleen-Qi Digestion), and how it relates directly to a good diet. \u00a0In part 2 of this subject, I will give details about what good and bad Spleen-Qi Digestion looks like along with the good and bad habits that leads to one or the other. \u00a0\u00a0For further knowledge on the subject of eating whole foods, I highly recommend reading books from Michael Pollan.\u00a0 One in particular, \u201cFood Rules\u201d, can be invaluable in deciphering where and how to shop for real whole food ingredients while avoiding the processed varieties. \u00a0Another awesome book I found by accident.\u00a0 While browsing the library I found, \u201cStop aging, Start living:\u00a0 The Revolutionary 2-Week pH Diet That Erases Wrinkles, Beautifies Skin, and Makes You Feel Fantastic\u201d by Jeannette Graf, M.D, with Alisa Bowman.\u00a0 Dr. Graf gives very easy to follow diet guidelines with some nice recipes.\u00a0 Her diet recommendations are very balanced. Although, these books aren’t Chinese Medicine nutritional books, I feel that they reflect many of the same principles of TCM. \u00a0There are many great sources about Chinese Medical diet therapy that I recommend. \u00a0My favorites include, “Live in The Balance:\u00a0 The Ground-Breaking East-West Nutrition Program”, by Linda Prout, M.S., “Healing with Whole Foods:\u00a0 Oriental Traditikons and Modern Nutrition”, by Paul Pitchford, and, “Chinese Natural Cures”, by Henry C. Lu.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) evolved over five thousand years ago.\u00a0 It is really amazing that much of what the ancient sages knew about health then, can be true today.\u00a0 The medicine\u2019s core philosophy is based on the concept that everything should be done in balance and moderation.\u00a0 This means balance in exercise, work, play, sleep, diet and more.<\/span><\/p>\n

Just as an aside, when I speak about moderation in eating, I mean well-rounded, moderate portions, this diet should not include eating fake, processed, and synthesized, GMO, hormone ridden, pesticide and chemical laden junk foods. \u00a0If you must, do so sparingly!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

General Philosophy of Chinese Medicine and Healthy Eating:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

-Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) meals focus on whole plant foods including vegetables, beans, sea vegetables, rice, millet, and other grains, with smaller amounts of animal foods such as meat, poultry, and fish than the typical American diet.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

-Animal products, fats, oils, are considered concentrated foods; so, although, individual needs vary for animal products, it generally takes a smaller amount than plant foods for balanced health.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

-Chinese culinary practices are a major factor relating to the reduced risk and rates of chronic diseases in China that are so prevalent in the United States.\u00a0 They stay slim even though they consume more calories than we do.\u00a0 There was much research documented in Dr. T. Colin Campbell\u2019s book, \u201cThe China Study\u201d, giving credence to this claim.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

-There are some General Food Rules for Balanced Health for all constitutional types and patterns of imbalance.\u00a0 These guidelines help to Balance and prevent the signs of weak, damp spleen-pancreas Qi and poor digestion.\u00a0 Spleen-pancreas Qi is explained further below.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

-Most food in TCM can be used therapeutically depending on quantity (dose dependent), quality, season, and needs of the person.\u00a0 This even includes coffee and chocolate.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

-When out of balance, or when a pattern of disharmony is present, Chinese Medicine (TCM) emphasizes specific foods and restricts others to balance the organs and pattern of disharmony contributing to signs of discomfort and disease.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

First, it is imperative to understand what healthy digestion is before any guidelines can make sense.<\/span><\/p>\n

-Good Digestion is Good Spleen-Pancreas Qi, it<\/span><\/p>\n

Requires appropriate food choices for one’s individual body pattern.\u00a0 Each person may differ in physical needs, mental, emotional tendencies; we each respond differently to foods.<\/span><\/p>\n

Foods we think are good for us can lead to digestive and other health problems if we are unable to assimilate them properly.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

-The organs and tissues that digest our food into body tissue, warmth, and energy are called the Spleen or even better the Spleen-pancreas.\u00a0 It more closely resembles a system and not just one organ.\u00a0 It includes digestive functions of liver, gall bladder, and pancreas as well as their hormones, enzymes, acids, and other secretions.<\/span><\/p>\n

The pancreas releases most hormones and enzymes involved in digestion.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

-The stomach acts like a “cauldron” that receives our food. \u00a0It should be warm at body temperature, and low pH.<\/span><\/p>\n

-Food-Qi or vital energy is the equivalent of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the energy the body uses for warmth and physical activity.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

-The key to good digestion is a balance between moisture, dryness, and optimum temperature.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The following post will detail signs of the good and the bad Spleen-Qi Digestion along with bad and good habits that influence our Spleen-Qi Digestion.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Michele Arnold-Pirtle, L.Ac.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What to eat and what not to Eat:\u00a0 The Chinese Medicine Way to Healthy, Enjoyable Eating. What should I eat to be healthy?\u00a0 That is a question I believe a lot of people are asking these days.\u00a0 If you are noticing signs of aging, are overweight, are considered obese, underweight, have diabetes, heart disease, auto-immune […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2105,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[60,50],"tags":[57,58,59,61],"class_list":["post-2095","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nutrition","category-uncategorized","tag-diet","tag-food","tag-healthy-lifestyle","tag-nutrition-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2095","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2095"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2095\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2105"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2095"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2095"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.staging-wmplo.xyz\/acu-tom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2095"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}