Nutrition And Health
“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” – Hippocrates
Nutrition and health go hand in hand. When the Chinese discovered farming and agriculture in the early days, they also discovered the medicinal properties of food. This helped them to use food as their first line of defense to ward off sickness and disease. The four food groups in the Chinese diet are grains, fruits, meats, and vegetables.
The Niejing defines “grains for sustaining, vegetables for filling, fruits for supporting, meats for enhancing.” Foods are further classified by the five tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and pungent. Each taste acts on or has direct influence on a specific vital organ. Chinese medicine defines the natures of foods as hot, cold, warm, cool, wet, and neutral.
Knowing your body’s constitution, and the nature of foods are necessary to eating the right way for you. Working on your nutrition and health the right way balances the body, causing it to be more resistant to disease, weight gain, and external stressors. TCM has long understood the importance of Nutrition in maintaining optimal health, and our goal at Xu Wellness Center is to help our patients to understand this as well.
The word “nutrition” is derived from the word “nourish.” Unfortunately much of the food Americans consume can hardly be said to nourish the body. Our culture is one of impatience that results in chains of fast food restaurants and people slowly killing themselves to save 30 minutes in meal preparation.
Common diseases are caused by this lack of nutrition and knowledge. We have the ability to research what is best for our bodies, but instead, we opt out taking the easy path to self destruction. A little research can go a long way into keeping you informed and healthy!
Organic Options
The word “health” comes from the Anglo-Saxon term “hal.” It means “Wholeness.” We want to provide you with the best options available, so we focus on organic food here at Xu Wellness Center.
100 years ago the term “organic food” wasn’t even used. We didn’t need it. Farmers used natural means to feed their stock, crops, and to keep pests away. Once the 1920s rolled around, newer and “more interesting” ways of farming developed with the creations of insecticides.
We promote the consumption of organic food, we believe they safer than purchasing food that is sprayed with pest repellent and animals fed hormones, and they also do not contain GMOs.
What are GMOs?
GMO means “genetically modified organisms” and it is found in foods everywhere in the country. The Non GMO Project describes GMOs as “living organisms whose genetic material has been artificially manipulated in a laboratory through genetic engineering, or GE.” Genetically modified are found to be unhealthy and have been banned or highly restricted in more than 60 countries.
We won’t be advising you to put that in your body. We want you to be able to trust us with the nutritional information that we provide!
How Can Xu Wellness Center Help?
People’s dietary needs vary depending on their health, age, weight, food preferences, and lifestyle. At Xu Wellness Center, we help to develop the right nutrition plan for you. We customize our clients’ and patients’ meal plans and even offer ready made meals just for you! Please ask the front desk for more information or call (901) 737-8282!
*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.