Geoffrey Wilson has recently developed the Oriental Nutritional Medicine Course. The basis of Oriental Nutritional Medicine is its philosophical and spiritual praxis, a unique blend of principles that have evolved since ancient times.
The Oriental Nutritional Medicine Course is designed to extrapolate the essential concepts of Oriental Medicine and apply them to diet and health. Food Therapy (or ‘Shí liáo’) is one of the eight limbs of classical Oriental medicine and is arguably the foundation of its healing praxis. In this course, students will draw from the classics (‘Su Wen’ and ‘Pi Wei Lun’) and learn how to select and prepare medicinal food dishes, using both common and exotic ingredients (including the use of herbs) to treat specific health conditions. Included is a study of the dynamics of dietary balance and the comprehensive analysis of medicinal foods with a view to operating an Oriental nutritional medicine practice.
The course is relevant for and will provide invaluable assistance to:
• PRACTICING NATURAL THERAPISTS (e.g. Naturopaths, Homeopaths, etc)
• ACUPUNCTURISTS and REMEDIAL THERAPISTS
• CHEFS and COOKS
• HEALTH CARERS and CARE GIVERS
• INDIVIDUALS interested in optimum health for personal or business interests
OVERVIEW
The Art of Health Certificate Course in Oriental Nutritional Medicine has been specially designed to facilitate distance learning at the student’s own pace without compromising on syllabus breadth or the quality of knowledge imparted. The course in Oriental Nutritional Medicine comprises 10 modules encompassing: the basis of nourishment, medicinal foods and classification systems, the diagnosis and treatment of many common Western diseases and their corresponding Oriental medicine syndromes (including internal, external, deficiency and excess patterns), Gynaecology, Paediatrics, and holistic business practice.
Art of Health Education specialises in sharing the secrets of the Oriental healing arts, the ancient paradigm that introduced the concept of holistic healing to the world. Recognising that many enthusiasts of Oriental nutrition and medicine may not always be able to attend a classroom session due to existing commitments or constraints, we have developed our programs to facilitate step-by-step study at home. The Certificate Course gives students the ability to study and revise lessons at their own speed and time. In addition, the Art of Health Certificate Course in Oriental Nutritional Medicine and its collaborative support system ensures that students of the course will always have somewhere to turn to when questions arise.
COURSE STRUCTURE
Our courses are distance education or correspondence courses that avoid the constraints of a class room session. After registering for these courses, you will be provided with the study materials either via a download or a physical delivery to you.
STUDYING
Students are expected to undertake the courses and study the materials at their own speed. However, they must complete the course within a reasonable time frame in order not to lose the effectiveness of their efforts.
SUPPORT
Students will be able to receive assistance and guidance in their education via an on-line community created especially for this purpose. From time to time, as the course schedule or course requirements warrant, students may be invited to attend an on-line tutorial class to reinforce their learning.
MODULE 1 OVERVIEW:
Medicinal Foods and Patterns
‘Shí liáo’ is in short, the preparation of medicinal food dishes, using carefully selected food ingredients as well as superior herbs, in order to derive the necessary nutrients to treat specific health conditions. It is also the result of accumulated experience (i.e. knowledge passed down from generation to generation) and based on the strict monitoring and refinement of recipes.
The ingredients used in recipes for the correct practice of ‘Shí liáo’, can generally be classified into the following categories: health promotion; sickness prevention; disease; support; recuperation; and rejuvenation.
In terms of detail however, the classification of medicinal foods is specifically based on the identification of a broad group of unique energetic properties, functions and actions. These qualities (such as temperature and taste) are considered comprehensively in order to produce a medicinal food profile that is relevant for treatment practice.
To make sense of medicinal food classification theory, it is also necessary to become acquainted with the functions of the five fundamental substances. Students will also investigate the main principles underpinning the framework of Oriental medicine in order to diagnose and treat health problems accurately and competently.
Highlights:
• The Medicinal Properties of Foods
• Basis of Chinese Medicine: Understanding the Basics
• The Zang Fu Organ Systems
• Identifying Patterns
MODULE 2 OVERVIEW:
The Basis of Nourishment
Food Therapy (or ‘Shí liáo’) is one of the eight limbs of classical Oriental medicine and its origin can be traced back to 2,000 BC. However, The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine (written around 300 BC) established the theoretical basis of Oriental food therapy including classification of foods according to the four major food groups, the five tastes, and, their natures. Of the four pillars of health (i.e. lifestyle, nutrition, exercise and mind), diet is generally regarded as the most important and urgent because food is understood to be the primary cause of sickness, as well as the pivotal source of longevity.
Throughout the course of Chinese history, for example, healthcare has never been viewed as the responsibility of the state. Rather, it is the moral and ethical responsibility of each and every ordinary citizen. People living in a community have subsequently used and shared their own resources to find cures for sickness, implementing traditional folk wisdom, the philosophical and medical principles of Yin and Yang, and an understanding of ‘Wushen’ (the five spirits).
In this module, students will explore the basis of nourishment including a comparative analysis of the gamut of applications to dietetics today, in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the holistic approach to food therapy. Students will also examine the essence of the teachings of Huang di (the Yellow Emperor) as presented in the classic ‘Su Wen’ (the Yellow Emperor’s classic of Internal Medicine) over two thousand years ago and Li Gao, the author of the classic ‘Pi Wei Lun’ (Treatise on the Stomach and Spleen) in the eleventh century, thereby establishing guidelines for best practice.
Highlights
• Advice from the Yellow Emperor and Li Gao
• The Dynamics of Balance in Food Therapy
• The Seven Levels of Eating
• Principles of Remedial Diet
• Doctrine of Signatures
• Food Classification Systems
MODULES 3-6 OVERVIEW:
The Spleen as the Palace of Thought,
The Liver as the Ethereal Soul,
The Kidney as Will-Power,
The Heart as Mind and
The Lung as Corporeal Soul
The Spleen nourishes the muscles and limbs and consequently plays a vital part in the production of Qi and Blood. The Yang component of the Spleen is responsible for activating the processes of transformation and transportation that ultimately convert the crude elements of nutrition (food and drink) into the refined essence that eventually becomes Qi and Blood, the two basic building blocks of the human body. The Spleen is also called the ‘palace of thought’ and is associated with the intellect.
The Liver sustains a ‘free-flowing’ network of Qi and Blood transmission throughout the body including the meridians, organs, and tissues. The Liver is also called the ‘blood chamber’ because it stores and releases blood. The Liver is said to store ‘the Hun’ and is associated with the movements of the Ethereal Soul.
The Kidneys store Jing (the reproductive essence), represent the source of pre-natal energies and are responsible for hereditary characteristics. Over the course of a lifetime, the Kidneys also govern the process of decay within the organs. Jing (stored in the Kidneys) produces marrow from which the brain is activated, the spinal cord is nourished and the bones are developed. The Kidney is also said to store ‘the Zhi’ and is associated with Willpower.
The Heart governs the Blood and the vessels and is considered the ‘supreme ruler’ of all the other organs. The Heart requires adequate Blood to store ‘Shen’ and therefore if Blood is deficient, the ‘Shen’ can have no residence. If the Blood is deficient, the ‘Shen’ becomes scattered, and if the ‘Shen’ is disturbed, the Mind becomes restless. The Heart stores ‘Shen’ (Mind) and this is responsible for consciousness, thinking, affections, memory and sleep.
The Lung as a distributor of Qi and Jin-ye (body fluids) around the body is strongly connected to the Kidneys in a number of ways. The Lung descends Qi to the Kidney where it is grabbed and received. The Lung is then responsible for also sending Jin-ye to the Kidney where these fluids are vaporised and sent back to the Lungs for distribution. The Lung is said to store ‘the Po’ (Corporeal Soul) and this is responsible for physiological activities, sensations, sight, hearing, smell, and taste.
In these modules students will learn to diagnose and treat common Western diseases using Oriental nutritional medicine principles and techniques including Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Diarrhoea, Anaemia, Conjunctivitis, Migraine, Hyperthyroidism, Hepatitis, Hyperthyroidism, Chronic tonsillitis, Nocturia, Palpitations, Insomnia, Chronic respiratory disease and Influenza.
These Western diseases will be differentially diagnosed in relation to corresponding Oriental medicine syndromes including Spleen Qi Not Producing Blood, Damp Heat in Liver and Gallbladder, Kidney Yin Deficiency, Heart Fire Blazes, and Lung Qi Deficiency.
In this module, students will then apply specific food cures that are relevant to each syndrome, and design recipes and menus that are appropriate including a medicinal wine and congee with selected herbs.
Highlights
• Differential Diagnosis
• Recipe and Menu Design
• Medicinal Wines and Herb selection
• Congee and Herb selection
MODULES 7-8 OVERVIEW:
Resolving Phlegm and Draining Damp
Shifting Stagnation
Dampness and Phlegm are similar in nature and significantly, both can originate from the spleen’s inability to transform and transport fluids. There are significant differences between them however. Dampness mostly affects the lower part of the body, including the spleen, stomach, gallbladder, bladder and intestines – with the exception of the spleen, yang organs.
Phlegm mostly affects the middle and upper parts of the body, including the lungs, heart, kidney, and stomach – with the exception of the stomach. Dampness generally affects the internal organs, skin and joints. Phlegm on the other hand, can be retained in the channels and under the skin causing swelling and lumps.
Qi can easily fail in its effort to produce movement and subsequently stagnate. This applies mostly to the movement of Liver Qi, and to a lesser extent, the Intestines and Lungs. Qi is also the motive force for Blood. And so it is said, ‘When Qi moves, Blood follows’, and ‘If Qi stagnates, Blood congeals’. Consequently, if Qi is deficient or stagnant, it cannot push the Blood (which will also stagnate).
In this module students will learn to diagnose and treat common Western diseases using Oriental nutritional medicine principles and techniques including food poisoning, Asthma, Bronchitis, Bruxism, Gallstones, and Breast lumps.
These Western diseases will be differentially diagnosed in relation to corresponding Oriental medicine syndromes including Retention of Phlegm-Damp Congestion in Lungs, Heart Blood Congealed, and Cold Mucus Obstructs Spirit.
In this module, students will then apply specific food cures that are relevant to each syndrome, and design recipes and menus that are appropriate including a medicinal wine and congee with selected herbs.
Highlights
• Differential Diagnosis
• Recipe and Menu Design
• Medicinal Wines and Herb selection
• Congee and Herb selection
MODULE 9 OVERVIEW:
Gynaecology and Paediatrics
Diet is particularly relevant to gynaecology and paediatrics. This is because gynaecological and paediatric health depend so much on maintaining the integrity and strength of Spleen function. In the context of women’s health, the reproductive faculties are also influenced significantly by the functions performed by the Liver and Kidney. Learning how to manufacture sufficient supplies of Yin Essences and Blood, Yang, Qi, and the clearing of obstructions therefore, determines the relative quality of gynaecological patterns, rhythms and cycles.
The role performed by the Spleen in governing the digestive faculties of infants and children cannot be underestimated. Nor can the role performed by the Kidney in establishing the quality of constitutional strength. Until children reach the age of ten, their digestive systems are relatively immature and subject to malfunction.
As the manager of post-natal Qi, the Spleen regulates this process and deficiencies or weaknesses in the processing mechanism are exposed easily and readily. It should be noted also that the immune system is linked to both Spleen and Lung function. In the event that the roles performed by either become dysfunctional, adaptation to the environment is jeopardised.
In this module, students will have the opportunity to correlate Western disease states related to gynaecology and paediatrics with the identification of specific patterns of disharmony classified according to the praxis of Oriental medicine. It is crucial for students to adhere strictly to the principles of comparative analysis when applying a differential diagnosis to the identification of specific Western disease states in relation to Oriental medicine syndromes. In terms of food therapy, the differential diagnosis based on a pattern of disharmony determines appropriate dietary corrections and modifications.
In this module students will learn to diagnose and treat common Western diseases using Oriental nutritional medicine principles and techniques including Endometriosis, Amenorrhoea, Polycystic Ovarian disease (PCOS), bed wetting, febrile convulsions, and ENT disorders.
These Western diseases will be differentially diagnosed in relation to corresponding Oriental medicine syndromes including Jing deficiency, Yin deficiency and food stagnation.
In this module, students will then apply specific food cures that are relevant to each syndrome, and design recipes and menus that are appropriate including a medicinal wine and congee with selected herbs.
Highlights
• Differential Diagnosis
• Recipe and Menu Design
• Medicinal Wines and Herb selection
• Congee and Herb selection
MODULE 10 OVERVIEW:
Holistic Business Practice – Oriental Nutritional Medicine Practitioner
In this module, students will be required to investigate their relationship to setting up a business based on the skills they have cultivated over the duration of the course. It is therefore necessary to increase awareness of the marketplace in terms of Oriental nutritional medicine. This will equip students with marketing and business skills to allow them to build their client base and share their gifts with society.
There are several key tasks that must be performed in order to accomplish the goal of meeting the marketplace. Students will be taken through this step-by-step process and have plenty of opportunity to refine it.
There are also several key tasks that must be performed in order to accurately identify personal goals, construct a SWOT analysis and extrapolate personal options. Once these tasks have been completed, students will be in a position to design strategies and plans related to the selling and marketing of their products and services in the context of setting up an individual practice including the production of a brochure and business card that reflect the unique qualities of the student and practice.
Highlights
• Unique selling proposition
• The value of customers
• Customer loyalty
• Generating advertising
• Joint ventures
• Products
• Internet maximisation
• Growing your business
Geoffrey Wilson
Geoffrey began his career in Oriental medicine 30 years ago. Since then, he has devoted his professional life to the process of awakening people to soul’s purpose as when people are aligned with this, healing becomes a profound spiritual experience.
‘Art of Health’ was founded by Geoffrey in 2000. Prior to this, he long held the position of Principal of the Australian Institute of Applied Feng Shui. He also founded and was former President of the Oriental Health Practitioners Association of Australia Inc. He remains on the professional advisory board to this day.
Geoffrey’s teaching career extends to a number of leading natural health colleges in Australia including Nature Care College, College of Complimentary Medicine, Australian College of Natural Medicine, and the Australian Institute of Applied Feng Shui. He also held the positions of Head Lecturer and Head of Faculty for Oriental Health Science. Currently he is the Director of Art of Health Holistic Therapy Centre in Sydney.
