Q. Some people these days manage their diet using only McDonald’s menu items. As a practitioner, do you think this is a recommended approach?

I often feel the temptation to grab a quick burger when my clinic is packed with patients, so I truly understand why people seek that convenience. While the precise calorie labeling makes tracking numbers easy, this approach can be detrimental to your health. Over-reliance on processed carbohydrates and excessive sodium inevitably leads to Spleen Deficiency (Biheo). When the digestive system weakens, the body fails to burn energy efficiently, transforming your constitution into one that swells easily. From a Traditional Korean Medicine perspective, this diet causes 'Phlegm-fluid' (Dam-eum, pathological waste) and 'Blood Stasis' (Eohyeol, stagnant blood) to accumulate within the body. Though the scale might show a lower number, your metabolic efficiency is actually plummeting, creating a vicious cycle where you gain weight even after eating very little. Instead of obsessing over numbers, I advise you to examine your fundamental metabolic state first. By diagnosing which of the Five Viscera and Six Fu-organs are stagnant and supplementing those areas, you can achieve a much healthier outcome. I encourage you to visit a clinic to discuss a metabolism-activating plan tailored to your constitution rather than relying on processed foods.