Q. I've heard that the Mediterranean diet is quite popular these days. How does your clinic incorporate this diet to help with weight loss?

I once had an experience where I blindly followed a trendy diet, only to end up with a noisy stomach and dizziness. Even if a diet is theoretically perfect, it becomes counterproductive if it doesn't suit your specific body type. From the perspective of Traditional Korean Medicine (TKM), we apply the Mediterranean diet through the following strategic steps: 1. Assessing Digestive Function: We first check for 'Bi-heo' (脾虛), a state of spleen deficiency. If someone with weak digestive power suddenly increases their intake of raw vegetables and nuts, it can lead to fatigue and edema (swelling). 2. Clearing Internal Waste: Before adjusting the diet, it is crucial to clear 'Dam-eum' (痰飮, accumulated phlegm-fluid) and 'Eo-hyeol' (瘀血, blood stasis). This ensures that the healthy nutrients from the diet are metabolized efficiently without being blocked by metabolic waste. 3. Personalized Herbal Prescription: We prescribe herbal medicine to 'flip the metabolic switch,' ensuring that the unsaturated fatty acids—the core of the Mediterranean diet—are burned effectively. This process regulates appetite and boosts basal metabolism according to your constitution. 4. Gradual Implementation: We slowly increase the proportion of Mediterranean foods to a level your body can comfortably accept. By pairing this with acupuncture to enhance gastrointestinal motility, you can adapt to the diet much more comfortably. Ultimately, the key is not just 'what you eat,' but whether 'your body can digest and convert it into energy.' Rather than a forced plan, let's create a strategy that aligns with your current physiological state.