Living Well (or Trying To) with Janet Episode 29: Food Therapy and Nutrition with Chinese Medicine Food Therapist, Zoey Gong RD
May 22, 2024
In this engaging discussion, Zoey Gong, a registered dietitian and Chinese medicine food therapist based in New York and Shanghai, explores the intersection of Eastern and Western nutrition. She shares her journey through different dietary practices and highlights how Chinese medicine can enhance wellbeing. Fascinating insights on seasonal eating, the balance between yin and yang in diets, and traditional food therapy habits offer listeners practical tips for healthier living. Zoey emphasizes the importance of joy and simplicity in nutrition, drawn from her grandmother's wisdom.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Health Wake-Up In America
- Zoey moved from Shanghai to the U.S. as a teen and shifted from home-cooked Chinese food to processed Western cafeteria fare.
- Within months she gained weight and developed rashes, joint pain, and benign breast tumors, which pushed her to study nutrition.
Vegan Results Then Chinese Medicine Success
- Zoey became a strict vegan and saw rapid improvements: her skin cleared and weight stabilized within weeks.
- Later, Chinese medicine (acupuncture and herbs) resolved lingering women's health issues, inspiring her to study both systems.
Numbers Versus Individual Balance
- Western nutrition emphasizes quantitative, one-size-fits-all targets while Eastern food therapy focuses on individual constitution and qualitative balance.
- Chinese medicine treats root causes and values joy and appetite in eating, which Western textbooks rarely mention.