Diet and Food in Iranian Traditional Medicine: Hints for Further Research

DEAR EDITOR, Iranian traditional medicine (ITM) is a medical system that is based on temperament; the main objective in ITM managements during health and disease is returning and maintaining the human being to an equilibrium in which the organ systems works at their optimal status. The life style rules in ITM are mainly focused on six most essential items: “Setah Zaroriah”; within them one of the most important sectors is about nutrition and diet. There are certain rules of healthy eating and drinking in ITM for the whole population as well as during illness. For example, some of these commands are listed below; these recommendations are not evidence-based and are extracted from ITM literature that may be used as research subjects in future studies; recommendations in ITM are mainly based on estimations of “Gastric temperament and natural temperature”, and “Food natural temperature and quality”: • Using of the medicinal food as routine daily recipes should be avoided; they must be used only to modify body temperament or other foods temperament. Medicinal food means those that can change body temperament significantly • The food should be chewed enough and one should be in complete relaxation in mealtime • Man must not resist against hunger and food must not be eaten without hunger. Eat only Department of Iranian Traditional Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, I.R. Iran, 1Iranian Traditional Medicine Research Center, Shahed University, Tehran, I.R. Iran, 2Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, I.R. Iran, 3Department of Pharmacognosy, School of Pharmacy, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, I.R. Iran Correspondence to: Dr. Fariba Khoshzaban, Iranian Traditional Medicine Research Center, Shahed University, Tehran, I.R. Iran. E-mail: [email protected]