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Long lists of forbidden foods are rarely helpful. Christine links any food suggestion to you and your bottle of granules, and explains which advice is essential and which is traditional preference.

Ask a few relatives about diet during herbal medicine and you may come away with a list of forbidden foods long enough to cover the fridge door. Some of that advice has a reason behind it; much of it has simply been passed along. Dr Christine Shen, Acupuncturist, likes to sort one from the other with each person she sees in Freshwater.

Starting with how you really eat

A generic list of foods to avoid cannot say what suits everyone taking Chinese herbal medicine. When you come in, Christine will ask about your usual meals, any food allergies or intolerances, and whether regular, varied eating is hard at the moment. Shift work, caring for family and a tight budget all affect what is realistic. Guidance that ignores those circumstances tends to be abandoned quickly.

Bring the bottle as well as the menu

Christine dispenses herbal medicine as granules in labelled bottles, each with written directions. Bring the exact bottle and its sheet, because any food suggestion should relate to that particular product and to you, not to herbal medicine in general.

Three questions worth asking

1. Is this suggestion connected to my particular formula?
2. Does it apply only while I am taking the granules?
3. Is it a traditional preference rather than a firm requirement?

Christine is happy to explain which category each piece of advice falls into, and to clarify any instruction that seems hard to follow.

Avoiding unnecessary restriction

Cutting out many foods without a clear purpose can leave you hungry, tired of cooking and short on variety. Christine aims for suggestions that sit comfortably alongside advice from your GP or dietitian. If something she says seems to clash with what another health professional has told you, raise it so the two can be reconciled.

Paperwork that saves confusion

Keep the product name, the measuring directions and any food notes with the original bottle. If you begin a new medicine, mention it to Christine. Should you feel unwell and suspect the granules, contact her for advice instead of experimenting with the dose.

Before your next Freshwater appointment, try writing down what you eat across an ordinary weekday and a weekend day. Christine can look at it with you, and many people are relieved to learn how little needs to change.