^{ADDRESSING IMBALANCES AND DEFICIENCIES}

^{The basic concepts of Chinese Diet Therapy deal with the energy of foods to achieve homeodynamics throughout the Organ systems thereby positively affecting the ‘mind/body/spirit’. A practitioner of Chinese medicine can diagnose and treat imbalances and deficiencies in Qi, Essence, Blood/body fluids and/or Spirit. Basic dietary energetics would address numerous concepts (Table 2 - below).}

^{Practitioners of Chinese Medicine believe it is incorrect even for healthy people to force themselves to drink 8-8 ounce (oz) glasses of water/fluid or more every day. One does not need to tax their physical kidneys by running water through them especially if the adrenal/Kidney system is already under stress. The caution is only - ‘not to use ones kidneys as water filters’ thereby further weakening the body. Common sense, however, should prevail as so many people who are living with HIV must take medications with a full glass of water and may also have more of a need for fluids due to warmer temperatures, exercise regimens, fevers,  activity of ‘latent-heat’ due to viral activity, etc.}

^{Flavors in Chinese medicine as in Ayurvedic play a large role in balancing. Foods and spices and ways of cooking ALL affect the taste/flavor of the food.}

^{To ‘tonify’ means to strengthen and a small amount of all tastes/flavors in fact ‘tonify’ the being. No tastes/flavors are bad in and of themselves. It is the excesses and avoidances that cause or contribute to imbalance. For the HIV compromised individual some sweet cooked fruits or vegetables at each meal helps stimulate the appetite while strengthening the Spleen/Stomach system. Sweet is the taste/flavor belonging to that system.}