Ching-He Huang - Eat clean : wok yourself to health

Thorsons
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First published by Thorsons 2015

Text Ching-He Huang 2015
Photography Myles New 2015

Cover layout design HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2015
Cover photographs Myles New

Ching-He Huang asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library

Food styling: Alice Hart and Marina Filippelli (cover)
Prop styling: Wei Tang
Recipe analysis by Consultant Dietician: Fiona Hinton BSc, M Nut Diet, Registered Dietician

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Source ISBN: 9780007426294
Ebook Edition MARCH 2015 ISBN: 9780007427505
Version: 2015-03-11

Contents

In 2011, I began suffering from allergic reactions - my face and skin would turn blotchy after eating shellfish and nuts. For three years my foodie life was in disarray and I was very unhappy. I carried antihistamine tablets with me and had to constantly monitor what I ate because I didnt know what specifically was causing the reaction. So, to try to solve the problem, I decided to detoxify my body of any pollutants or preservatives that might send my system into overdrive.

Through my own research, I found the cause of the reactions I was allergic to any foods that had been treated with sulphites. This encompassed a wide variety of foods, ranging from wines, frozen shellfish and frozen pizza dough to yoghurt.

Different types of sulphites are added to many processed foods and they are also used in the production of toiletries and cleaning products. In food, sulphites are used as preservatives, acting by inhibiting moulds, yeasts and bacteria. The long-term effects of ingesting sulphites are unknown. Many people are unaware they are allergic to sulphites; a long testing process involves sulphites being slowly introduced into the body to determine a reaction. My own allergies were due not to any specific food, but to the sulphites used to preserve the ingredients. So eating foods such as nuts and shellfish was like an allergy roulette I never knew if I would suffer a reaction. However, once I eliminated them from my diet, the allergic reactions stopped.

Food legislation may determine that these preservatives are safe, but the problem is that our bodies react differently to different products and what adversely affects some people doesnt affect others at all. This is due to each individuals ability to detox or get rid of these additives from their bodies. It cannot ultimately be proved that sulphites are safe in the long term, as no one really knows their full effects.

I knew my diet had to change. I was overworked and stressed, too, and being on the road I had little time to cook for myself or to exercise. My weight increased during this time. I had always been able to maintain a healthy weight of 55kg, but it jumped to 64kg. For the first time in my life, I was overweight. I wasnt happy with the weight increase and I knew something was not right.

OK, this wasnt life threatening, but I didnt feel myself. I craved sugary high-carbohydrate foods all the time, I was hungry an hour after eating, I wasnt sleeping through the night and then felt sluggish when I woke up in the mornings, and my bowel movements were irregular. I knew I had to do something drastic but I kept putting it off.

Then in 2013, during the filming of Restaurant Redemption in America, my make-up artist and I went out for dinner at a seafood restaurant and we ordered salmon. Right under the skin of my portion I found two dead roundworms perfect little things, still intact. Being a cook, I was used to dealing with insects, but after further research I discovered the ugly hidden truth of parasites that live in the human gut. If there were worms in my salmon, I started to consider what might be living inside me. It was food for thought!

Being paranoid, I was convinced I had worms, so I decided to clean up my diet. Our intestine is as long as the height of our bodies, and that is a lot of tubing. Conventional medical experts believe that the gut is self-cleaning, but perhaps this is assuming your body is in tip-top health. Going through periods of eating the wrong foods, having irregular lifestyle habits, or simply feeling anxious can all affect our bowel movements. If we periodically have to deep-clean the pipes and drains in our kitchen to unclog our sinks, then we must surely have to do the same with our insides? It got me thinking about the deeper issues happening inside my gut.

So I decided to go for a general medical health check-up in Taiwan and the doctor confirmed what I had suspected. A chest x-ray showed that my intestines were full and clogged up, so the doctor prescribed laxatives to help me. My gut was unhappy! I decided my diet and lifestyle needed an overhaul, so I embarked on a three-month diet of fresh greens, salads, soups and fruit in an attempt to clean my gut. What I saw and experienced in the toilet was a revelation. However, after the three months I started to lose more of my muffin top and belly fat, my skin and eyes glowed, I was more regular and my sleep had returned. The result was that my body was able to digest my food more efficiently and therefore absorb more nutrients.

Being a cook, I have always been mindful of eating healthily but my own experience really opened my eyes. Now I truly believe that you are what you eat and my own personal experience has taught me this. Its funny that when you become more attuned to your bodys needs you also start to realise that you are very much what you think too. These two truths go hand in hand. When you eat good, you feel good, and then you look good a cycle of positivity!

This direct action of intervening in my own health made me feel better and more in control of my body. It felt good to have energy and know that I was clean on the inside and out.

As a result of my own personal cleanse experience, I became even more discerning about the quality of my food ultimately, the quality of the ingredients and produce we eat becomes the building blocks of who we are. After further research, I was given books by friends, including Clean by Alejandro Junger M.D. Inspired by their work and research I decided to share my collection of the recipes and dishes that helped me on my journey to health (which is still work in progress). I hope it helps you on your journey, too.

What I have learnt is that our bodies are amazing and work efficiently to clean and detoxify us every day if we are in good health. Generally, we dont really need drugs and prescriptions. If we are ill, it is because we are not feeding ourselves with the right nutrients to allow our bodies to work optimally. Of course, illnesses may also be caused by viruses and cancers but if the body is truly healthy, our ability to fight disease is greater and good health may prevent these illnesses in the first place. This is the basis of Chinese medical food therapy that prevention is better than cure.