Diet and healing are interdependent. An appropriate diet promotes healing and, conversely, healing that involves critical systems can affect the body's ability to digest, absorb, metabolize and make optimal use of the nutrients it receives.
History
Diet has long been recognized as an important element of healing by ancient healing systems, according to the Mayo Clinic. Ayervedic practitioners as early as 5,000 years ago, Chinese medicine practitioners, Native American healers and more recently naturopaths and other holistic healers have routinely given dietary advice as part of an overall approach to healing.
Doctors of allopathy or conventional Western medicine, osteopathy and chiropractic also include recommendations on diet for healing purposes. Registered dietitians provide medical nutrition therapy. Organizations such as the American Diabetes Association, the American Cancer Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics provide recommendations on diet and healing within their scope of interest.
Function
Four of the top 10 leading causes of death in the U.S. are diet-related, according to Eleanor Whitney and Sharon Rolfes in "Understanding Nutrition." Heart disease, cancers and strokes--the top three causes of death--and diabetes which is number six on the list all have dietary risk factors and dietary treatments. A specialized diet is an integral part of the treatment for chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease and renal disease.
The function of diet in healing is to provide the body's need for energy and nutrients to nourish, repair and maintain its tissues and the integrity of its regulatory mechanisms and to enable the immune system to mount an effective attack against foreign invaders.
Types of Healing Diets
Registered dietitians, as part of the health care team, provide a nutrition care plan that delivers the precise healing nutrients in the amounts needed for specific disease states as well as for general health. Specific nutritional recommendations apply to infectious disease such as upper and lower gastrointestinal disorders, chronic disease such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, renal disease and cancer and conditions such as eating disorders, weight management and hypertension. Nutrition for trauma such as metabolic stress, sepsis, trauma, burns and surgery also require additional amounts of specific nutrients, according to Kathleen Mahan and Sylvia Escott-Stump in "Krause's Food, Nutrition, & Diet Therapy."
Significance
Healing requires the appropriate nourishment to rebuild body tissues and support critical functions. A body deprived of, or deficient in, specific nutrients may be slow to heal or incapable of healing.
A healthy immune system requires arginine, glutamine, vitamin A, antioxidant vitamins such as vitamin C, vitamin E and carotenoids as well as minerals such as zinc, iron and selenium. Probiotics also play an important role in the immune function, according to P.C. Calder, C. J. Field and H.S. Gill in "Nutrition and Immune Function." A compromised immune system cannot mount an effective defense against pathogens and other infectious agents.
Considerations
The quality of nutrition information on diet and healing depends on the provider's knowledge and credentials. Nutrition and healing are hot topics and not all information sources are credible. When seeking advice on diet and healing, consider the source and verify credentials.
References
- Mayo Clinic: Complementary and Alternative Medicine: What Is It?
- "Understanding Nutrition, Ninth Edition"; Eleanor Noss Whitney and Sharon Rady Rolfes; 2002
- "Krause's Food, Nutrition, & Diet Therapy, 10th Edition"; Mahan and Escott-Stump; 2000
- "Nutrition and Immune Function"; Calder, P.C., Field, C.J, and Gill, H.S; 2002
- Cancer Treatment Centers of America: Nutrition Therapy
