#5 branches

The Basics of Food Therapy in TCVM (Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine)

Food therapy is one of the five branches of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), along with Herbal Medicine, Acupuncture, Tuina and Physical Activity (Tai Chi and Qi Gong - not applied for animals). It is based on basically 3 different principles:

1. Food Energetics and Actions

2. Pattern Differentiation

3. Individual constitution (age/ health status)

Food is the most fundamental substance for life maintenance and should be enjoyed and prepared with love and awareness as well as eaten with pleasure and delight.

Hippocrates says "Let thy food be your medicine and thy medicine be your food". I would like to add to that idea that what can be cured with diet should not be treated with prescription drugs. When diet is prepared and eaten according to the principles and ideas described above food can used as preventative nutrition and health maintenance. Also as treatment of specific diseases or as adjunct therapy to complement the primary treatment of diseases.

It is important to make a differentiation between modern nutrition and  Chinese Food Therapy. While the former focuses on energetics that is measured with calories and break down the components of food into fats, carbohydrates and proteins the latter considers Food Energetics which counts as the tastes, energetic quality (thermal nature: cold, neutral, warm, hot), movement of Qi, channels and organs affinity.

Another interesting perspective of Chinese Food Therapy is that the diets are formulated to each individual, especially when disease is present, taking into consideration the Bian Zheng (pattern differentiation). Also food therapy can be adjust seasonally and geographically which translates that the foods that are locally grown are far more nutritious and therapeutic than foods that are not.  The diets are balanced over a period of time and not on a daily basis like modern nutrition emphasizes.

The optimum diet for each pet is combined by modern nutrition and food therapy. I would like to finish this post with a saying from Victor G. Rocine circa 1930:

"If we eat wrongly no doctor can cure us;