UCLA Journal of Radiation Oncology SPRING 2024 - Flipbook - Page 49
UCLA RADIATION ONCOLOGY JOURNAL
symptoms--nutrition is important but may not
be the first step as they usually require more
urgent medical care.
L: How did you arrive at this intersection?
What life experiences inspired you?
U: I am honored to pioneer the field of
Nutritional, Lifestyle, and Metabolic Psychiatry,
making dietary recommendations, a form
of a food “prescription,” which are highly
personalized and based on an individual’s
unique makeup. This is a precision medicine
model due to the uniqueness of the gut
microbiome. I learned to cook later in life and
discovered it to become a calming space where
I could be my most creative. This passion led
me to pursue training as a professional chef
inspired by my food hero Julia Child.
L: What is nutritional psychiatry and how
does it differ from widely practiced defensive
medicine?
U: Nutritional psychiatry is the practice of
utilizing the power of diet and the food we eat
to boost mental health and fend off mental
health symptoms. Nutritional psychiatry
incorporates principles from both nutrition
science and psychiatry to develop personalized
dietary interventions aimed at improving
mental health outcomes. These interventions
may involve dietary changes, nutritional
Since childhood, I had been learning about
healthy eating--having spent much time with
my grandparents while my mom was at medical
school. So during the day, I’d help pick fresh
vegetables from the garden and sit down
to a delicious meal with my grandparents.
They also taught me yoga and meditation. I
also experienced Ayurvedic medicine from
members of my extended family. When I
began working with patients in mental health
and studying complex medications and their
side effects, I felt strongly that counseling
patients about nutrition and lifestyle was key
to helping them cope with this. I have always
been fascinated with the nutritional value
of food. I found that diet and mental health
are inextricably linked, and the connection
between them goes both ways. After I graduated
supplements, and lifestyle modifications
tailored to individual needs.
The key difference between nutritional
psychiatry and defensive medicine lies in their
primary focus and approach. While nutritional
psychiatry aims to address underlying causes
of mental health issues through dietary
interventions, defensive medicine prioritizes
the symptoms rather than preventing the
underlying cause. Often there are unnecessary
medical interventions and integrated or holistic
approaches to health and wellness are ignored.
Nutritional psychiatry helps individuals be
proactive by taking charge of their mental
health and building long-term habits to sustain
overall well-being. Of note when someone
is acutely mentally ill such as experiencing
suicidal ideation, or manic or psychotic
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