Ho S S
Soc Sci Med. 1985;20(3):223-30. doi: 10.1016/0277-9536(85)90235-7.
Dietary adjustment for health promotion and maintenance and for helping the body to expedite its recovery from illness conditions has been part and parcel of the Chinese medical culture. The paper reports on the extent traditional dietary beliefs in health and illness persist in a fast changing Hong Kong community. It explores the community interpretation of the role of diet therapy; and the relationship of social demographic variables with peoples' tendency to give traditional dietary suggestions. Traditional beliefs were found to be quite prevalent. Differentiation in responses was seen for different types of belief concepts. Over 80% of respondents had strong belief in the role of diet expediting recovery during illnesses. Measles and anaemia were used as indicators to look at the types of foods suggested for consumption or avoidance and the rationale behind the suggestions. Explanations of diet therapy for measles were in general traditionally based and that for anaemia were based on a mix of traditional and modern concepts. While there is a tendency for the more Chinese culturally affiliated in this study population to have stronger traditional food beliefs, the relationship of social demographic factors with the tendency to give dietary suggestions for specific diseases are not clear. Diet therapy is a form of self-care and is an inseparable part of the total health care system in the community. The efficacy of traditional food remedies and the role of diet therapy in self-care should be further explored.
通过饮食调整促进健康、维持健康以及帮助身体加快从疾病状态中恢复，一直是中医文化的重要组成部分。本文报告了在快速变化的香港社区中，传统饮食观念在健康与疾病方面的延续程度。它探讨了社区对饮食疗法作用的理解，以及社会人口统计学变量与人们给出传统饮食建议倾向之间的关系。研究发现传统观念相当普遍。不同类型的观念在回答上存在差异。超过80%的受访者坚信饮食在疾病康复过程中具有促进作用。以麻疹和贫血为例，研究了建议食用或避免的食物类型及其背后的依据。对麻疹饮食疗法的解释总体上基于传统观念，而对贫血的解释则是传统观念与现代观念的结合。虽然在本研究人群中，与中国文化联系越紧密的人往往对传统食物观念越强，但社会人口统计学因素与针对特定疾病给出饮食建议倾向之间的关系并不明确。饮食疗法是一种自我保健形式，也是社区整体医疗保健系统中不可或缺的一部分。传统食物疗法的功效以及饮食疗法在自我保健中的作用应进一步探讨。
