Nursing CEUs
Nursing Continuing Education Course Online
Sample/Excerpt: High Cholesterol Pt. 3: Food Therapy
12 Nursing Continuing Education Units
This course is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing for 12 nursing CEUs for nursing continuing education credit.
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This is Part Three of a three part series on hyperlipidemia (dyslipidemia). This course focuses on Chinese Medicine prevention and treatment of dyslipidemia, including practical and in-depth discussions of lifestyle practices, dietary therapies, and simple herbal remedies. Please note that Part Two is prerequisite to understanding the treatment principles in Part Three. The combined series empowers nurses and healthcare professionals with an in-depth understanding of dyslipidemia and the tools necessary to prevent and treat this disorder safely and effectively.
Course Outline for Pt. 3: Chinese Medicine Dietetics:
3. Prevention & Treatment of Dyslipidemia in Chinese Medicine
3.1 Lifestyle
3.1.1 Sleep Hygiene
3.1.2 Elimination
3.1.3 Dietary Habits
3.2 Food Therapy
3.2.1 Individual Foods
3.2.2 Lipid-Reducing Food Formulas
1. Teas
2. Congees
3. Soups
Conclusion
Excerpt from the main text of the course:
3. Prevention and Treatment of Dyslipidemia in Chinese Medicine - 3.1 Lifestyle - 3.1.1 Sleep Hygiene
Chinese medicine holds that regular sleeping habits are crucial to good health. Modern research shows that sleep habits have an effect on serum lipid levels and BMI . However, the majority of modern studies only look at total amount of sleep, ignoring other aspects of sleep hygiene such as bedtime, and regularity of bed/wake times. Chinese medicine contends that sufficient sleep time and regularity of bedtime and wake-time are all important. In general, 8 hours of sleep is considered an appropriate amount for most individuals. For sick and/or weak patients more sleep may be necessary. Bedtime ideally should be around 9pm, and preferably no later than 10pm, and it is important to go to bed at roughly the same time each night. Children need around 11 hours of sleep each day, including naps, and should generally sleep earlier than adults. While this author was unable to find modern studies substantiating all of these ideas, the experience of CM physicians over the last 2000+ years indicates they are valid.
3.1.2 Elimination
Bowel Movement
CM has long recognized that healthy bowel movements are key to health and longevity, and the importance of this cannot be overstressed. The stool is made up largely of metabolic waste products that need to leave the body in a timely manner. If they do not, these metabolic waste products cannot completely leave the body and a host of problems can result.
While allopathic medicine may not recognize any connection between bowel movements and dyslipidemia, CM does. The metabolic waste that stagnates in the body as a result of poor bowel movements often manifests as dampness and heat, both of which are implicated in conditions such as dyslipidemia, atherosclerosis, and CHD, as well as many other conditions.
Most patients will report having “normal” bowel movements. However, this often means “normal” (read, “usual”) for them, and is not “normal” in the sense of what is healthy or ideal. According to CM, a normal, healthy bowel movement consists of the following:
1. Occurs once each day at a regular time, preferably in the morning shortly after waking.
2. Stool should be thick, formed but soft, and in one long piece which does not float. Stool should not be thin, dry, hard, sticky, loose, or in many pieces. There should be no undigested food in the stool, exceptions being things like seeds, nuts, corn, and other difficult to digest items.
3. There should be a large quantity of stool, which is very easy to pass (no straining, and finished within a minute or so), and after evacuation the abdomen should feel very empty and light.
4. Stool should not be sticky. When wiping the anus, one wipe should be sufficient, and even then there should ideally be very little, or even nothing to wipe off. The stool should not stick to the toilet bowl. If one needs to wipe many times, or stool is sticking to the bowl, this is considered “sticky”.
Bowel movements not meeting these requirements cannot be considered normal according to CM. Furthermore, these requirements must be met everyday. If they are only occasionally met, the bowel movements cannot be considered normal. Likewise, even if they are only occasionally missed, the bowel movements cannot be considered entirely normal or healthy. Ideally, these requirements are met everyday.
While the CM diagnosis and treatment of abnormal bowel movements is complex and beyond the scope of this course, there are practices that help promote healthy bowel movements.
1. Cultivate a regular bowel movement schedule. If one does not already have a bowel movement each day shortly after waking, one should cultivate this habit by sitting on the toilet each morning in an attempt to pass the stool. One should not strain at the stool, or worry if the stool does not come, but rather try to coax the body into feeling that this is the correct time to go. If practiced routinely, this can help promote a regular movement.
2. Self-massage to stimulate intestinal peristalsis and help induce a timely, more complete bowel movement. Upon waking, but before getting out of bed in the morning, one can perform abdominal self-massage. Lying supine in the bed, gently rub the abdomen in a clockwise direction (the direction of peristaltic movement; clockwise, as if the abdomen itself were the face of a clock) with both hands flat over the abdomen for several minutes. Then, starting just above and to the left of symphysis pubis, make small, somewhat deeper, clockwise motions over the large intestine with an emphasis on the stroke in the direction of large intestine peristalsis. Massage a small section of the large intestine in this manner for 5 to 10 seconds, then move in a counter-clockwise direction to the next, more proximal section of the large intestine and massage there for 5 to 10 seconds. Continue in this manner until coming full-circle. Finish off the routine by repeating the first method again for a minute or two. For best results, this massage should be performed each morning.
3.1.3 Dietary Habits
Diet plays a major role in the development, prevention, and treatment of dyslipidemia. A huge amount of modern research shows that foods have significant impact on serum lipid levels, and some studies show correlation between regular mealtimes and serum lipids . CM also recognizes these connections, and has long maintained that dietary habits have significant effects on health. The following are some basic principles of eating according to CM.
Learn more about the foods and recipes in the actual course material coming soon for nursing continuing education online credit. Earn your nursing CEUs today!
