Food as Medicine
Veterinary Alternatives E-Newsletter—Information about pet health as well as yours, holistic therapies, and the house-call veterinary acupuncture business.
Updates: I have started my certification program in Chinese Veterinary Food Therapy. This modality makes use of certain food ingredients in a method similar to Chinese herbal formulas, but gentler. For example, an herbal formula may have ingredients for cooling, removing dampness, and relieving stagnation. You can choose foods to incorporate into the diet that have the same functions, and over a few month’s time they will have the same effect the herbal formula would. This is a great way to ease your pets into improved health and help them to maintain it without worrying about the stronger actions and possible side effects of herbs. You can also modify the diet according to the seasons or to seasonal issues they have, such as grass allergies or hot spots, or perhaps increased arthritis in the winter. If you are interested in this technique give me a call to schedule an appointment. Suggestions for ingredients to incorporate into your pet’s diet are currently included in the regular house-call cost. For an additional $25 I will put together a recipe or two or three using appropriate ingredients for your pet with all minerals, vitamins, etc needed for a complete balanced diet. The extra cost covers my time online using the balancing program and the math needed to make sure the amounts are appropriate, etc. I would try to give you more than one recipe if their condition allows variations, so they wouldn’t have the same diet all the time. It would take me about a week to complete the process and e-mail or mail the recipes back to you. I can get you the mineral and vitamin mixes needed so you wouldn’t have to buy multiple products in order to provide all the needed nutrients. Rx Vitamins for pets makes both a multi-vitamin and a mineral mix that is free of allergenic proteins and intended to be used in home-cooked pet diets. Both are available for dogs or cats.
Health News: “Invasion of Wind” is a Chinese medical diagnosis. Symptoms can include headaches (in people at least), itching, sneezing, and pains that move from place to place. Acupuncture, herbs, and food therapy may all be used to ease these symptoms. Also, many of our pets get hot spots and ear infections in the summer. If your pet has this problem and is on a dry kibble diet or a chicken or lamb based diet, these foods may actually be significantly contributing to the problem because of their heating qualities. Gradually changing to a fish or duck based diet and using canned food instead of dry may reduce their symptoms. Better yet, have me come evaluate your pet and its diet and see how we can match diet ingredients to your pet and its condition. FOOD AS MEDICINE—can’t get much more holistic than that!
