Q. I'm planning to eat things like chicken breast or cream soup for my diet. What kind of meal plan do you recommend, Doctor?

To be honest, I once struggled with stomach issues while following a trendy diet myself. High-protein diets, such as those centered on chicken breast, certainly have advantages: they provide lasting satiety and help preserve muscle mass, making dietary management feel more straightforward. However, there are clear drawbacks. Protein-heavy meals generate significant internal heat during digestion and can create a 'heavy' environment in the gut. In particular, patients with Spleen Deficiency (Bi-heo, 脾虛)—where the digestive function of the Spleen is weak—often experience bloating and excessive gas when sticking strictly to chicken breast. Similarly, dairy-based meals like cream soups can exacerbate the accumulation of Phlegm-Fluid (Dam-eum, 痰飮), making the body feel heavy and sluggish for those prone to waste accumulation. Ultimately, the answer is that it depends on the individual. For those with strong digestion and high activity levels, a protein-focused approach is efficient. However, for those who frequently suffer from indigestion or edema, combining warm-natured vegetables with moderate carbohydrates is far healthier. Depending on whether you are experiencing Blood Stasis (Eo-hyeol, 瘀血)—meaning stagnant blood circulation—or a simple functional digestive issue, the recommended diet changes completely. Rather than blindly following a popular diet, I suggest we determine what your body specifically needs based on your current physiological state.