Skip to main content
  • Individuals
    • Individuals
    • Business
    • Adviser
    • Financial Wellbeing
    • About us
    • Contact us
    • Claims
    • AIA Vitality Member Login
  • Search
  • AIA Australia
  • Health Insurance
    • Member Benefits
    • Member Login
    • Get a quote
    • Make a claim
  • Life Insurance
    • Life Cover
    • Total and Permanent Disablement
    • Crisis Recovery
    • Income Protection Core
    • Business Expenses
    • Make a claim
    • Medix
  • Retirement & Investment
    • Guaranteed Annuities
    • Investment Growth Bond
    • Unit Prices
  • AIA Vitality
    • Partners and Rewards
    • Already a member? Login
  • Content Hub
    • Move Well
    • Plan Well
    • Eat Well
    • Think Well
  • Help & Support
    • Making a Claim
    • Forms & Documents
    • Policyholder Information
    • Complaints process
    • Contact AIA
    • Customer feedback
    • COVID-19
AIA
  • Individuals
  • Business
  • Adviser
  • Financial Wellbeing
  • About us
  • Contact us
  • Claims
  • AIA Vitality Member Login
  • Health Insurance

    Health Insurance

    Cover that protects and rewards.

    • Member Benefits

      Learn more about the range of benefits available to AIA Health Insurance members.

    • Member Login

      Existing members login here to your online account.

    • Get a quote

      Ready to get started?

    • Make a claim

      Get help with making a claim.

  • Life Insurance

    Life Insurance

    We’re here to help protect your family, your lifestyle and your future.

    For Individuals

    For Business

    • Life Cover

      Helps protect your loved ones if you are diagnosed with a terminal illness or pass away.

    • Total and Permanent Disablement

      A lump sum benefit if you can’t work due to injury or illness

    • Crisis Recovery

      Helps ease the financial burden should you suffer a traumatic event.

    • Income Protection Core

      Can provide you with a monthly income if you become disabled due to injury or illness.

    • Business Expenses

      May assist to pay expenses of your business if you cannot work due to injury or illness.

    • Make a claim

      Get help with making a claim.

    • Medix

      Personal Medical Case Management.

  • Retirement & Investment

    Retirement & Investment

    Plan for a more comfortable tomorrow.

    • Guaranteed Annuities

      Can provide you with a regular, guaranteed income stream throughout your retirement.

    • Investment Growth Bond

      Also known as an insurance bond, it offers a tax-effective way to invest for the future and is flexible enough to suit a wide range of needs.

    • Unit Prices

      Find unit prices for a range of superannuation and investment products.

  • AIA Vitality

    AIA Vitality

    AIA Vitality is a personalised, science-backed health and wellbeing program that supports you every day to make healthier lifestyle choices.

    • Partners and Rewards

      Learn more about our partners and rewards.

    • Already a member? Login

      Check your AIA Vitality Status and get access to the tools you need to help improve your health.

  • Content Hub

    Content Hub

    The AIA Vitality Content Hub is your go to for science-backed, health and wellbeing inspiration and advice.

    • Move Well

      Find your further when it comes to exercise and fitness.

    • Plan Well

      Tools and support for your future, because a good tomorrow starts today.

    • Eat Well

      Care for your body with food that makes you feel good.

    • Think Well

      Tools and information to help you cultivate a healthy frame of mind.

  • Help & Support

    Help & Support

    We strive to assist you for all your inquiries with high touch customer service.

    Contact AIA
    • Making a Claim

      Get help with making a claim.

    • Forms & Documents

      A selection of forms and other important product related documents.

    • Policyholder Information

      Useful information for policyholders.

    • Complaints process

      If you have a complaint, we'll do our best to resolve the situation.

    • Contact AIA

      How to get in contact with us.

    • Customer feedback

      Let us know how we're doing.

    • COVID-19

      How we are responding.

  • Search
  • Contact Us
    • Call Us

      Open: 8am to 6pm, AEST Mon - Fri

    • Find an adviser

Eat Well
Prev | Next
Back to Top
  • {{title}}

    {{label}}
  • Is food an effective medicine?

    Nithya Iyer - 3 min read

    30 May 2017


    Much has been said of the healing powers of food, but it’s important to understand its role in our wellbeing, and where it’s a complementary therapy versus the be-all-and-end-all.

    food effective medicine

    The modern day dining table – and what goes on it – has changed a lot in the last 2,500 years. But the phrase ‘food as medicine’, as coined by Hippocrates around 370 BC, has become the catch-cry of an increasing movement of people that believe that food can, and should, be used to treat and cure serious illnesses.

    Whether sugar-free, ketogenic, Mediterranean or paleo, health blogs and even some scientists are turning their attention to the role of specific dietary habits in addressing disease. The question is, can food ever be substituted for medical interventions?

    There’s now a considerable body of research in this area, particularly with regards to mental health and age-related illness. Research into the impacts of diet on depression and Alzheimer’s disease suggest that there may be some truth to the theory of food being used as medicine.

    Deakin University’s Food and Mood Centre recently conducted a randomised controlled trial to measure how changes in diet impacted participants with major depressive disorder. The results found that a third of participants who received dietary support showed an improvement in their condition, far greater than the eight percent who received social support alone. The dietary support focused on eating more vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, fish, lean red meats, olive oil and nuts, while simultaneously eating less sweets, refined cereals, fried food, fast-food, processed meat and sugary drinks.

    Similarly, research into the ‘Mediterranean diet’ continues to champion the benefits of extra virgin olive oil in treating age-related illnesses, while medical journals report that glutathione – a potent antioxidant found in vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower and brussels sprouts – may have a role to play in reducing the impact of Alzheimer’s disease.

    But is this evidence strong enough to suggest food alone is the cure?

    According to dietician Joel Feren at The Nutrition Guy, diet is an important factor in the overall picture.

    “Food certainly has a role to play in disease prevention and maintaining health. When we look at rates of mental illness, its occurrence certainly seems to be lower in those who have well-balanced diets. But we need to keep in mind that there are also other contributing factors, like chemical imbalances in the brain and circumstantial impacts.

    “The biggest myth about food as medicine is that it can be the sole treatment. Absolutely in diseases such as diabetes and heart disease, diet is core to achieving better outcomes, but when it comes to most chronic illnesses the primary method of therapy should be medicine, with food as an adjunctive therapy.”

    For the average person, moderation, variety and endorsed dietary guidelines are still considered our best line of defence.

    “These days, the messaging around sugar-free and low-carb diets means fruits and grains get a bad rap. But people who consume fruits, vegetables and wholegrains as per Australian dietary guidelines have been shown to have better mental health down the track.

    “We need to see diet in the context of everything else, rather than as single food groups and single nutrients. It’s not a silver bullet, but the quality of a person’s diet absolutely factors into their long-term health and well-being.”

    Make your #onechange

    Interested in boosting your diet? Have a read over the Australian dietary guidelines. A little education can go a long way.

    Staff writer icon

    Nithya Iyer is a Melbourne-based writer with interests across health, well-being, arts and holistic therapy. The information in this article is general information only and is not intended as medical, health, nutritional or other advice. You should obtain professional advice from a medical or health practitioner in relation to your own personal circumstances.

    Disclaimer:
    The information in this article is general information only and is not intended as financial, medical, health, nutritional, tax or other advice. It does not take into account any individual’s personal situation or needs. You should consider obtaining professional advice from a financial adviser and/or tax specialist, or medical or health practitioner, in relation to your own circumstances and before acting on this information.


    This content is brought to you by AIA Vitality

    AIA Vitality is a science-backed program that helps you learn more about your health, offers ways to improve it and motivates you with rewards along the way.

    Contact AIA

    Choose your preferred way to receive information and support

    Contact AIA

    Choose your preferred way to receive information and support

    Help and support

    Make a claim

    Frequently asked questions

    Customer feedback

    Complaints process

    Whistleblower disclosure

    Forms and documents library

    Target Market Determinations

    Explore AIA

    AIA Vitality

    Health insurance

    Life insurance

    OneLife

    About AIA

    Careers

    Our people

    Our commitments

    Media centre

    Our awards

    FSC commitment

    Help and support

    Make a claim

    Frequently asked questions

    Customer feedback

    Complaints process

    Whistleblower disclosure

    Forms and documents library

    Target Market Determinations

    explore Aia

    AIA Vitality

    Health insurance

    Life insurance

    Retirement & investment

    Content Hub

    about AIA

    Careers

    Our people

    Our commitments

    Media centre

    Our awards

    FSC commitment


    Copyright © 2021. AIA Group Limited and its subsidiaries or affiliates. All rights reserved. Priority Protection and Priority Protection for Platform Investors products are issued by AIA Australia Limited (ABN 79 004 837 861, AFSL 230043). AIA Vitality, a personalised, science-backed program that supports members every day to make healthier choices, is available with eligible products issued by AIA Australia. AIA Health with AIA Vitality is issued by AIA Health Insurance Pty Ltd ABN 32 611 323 034, a registered private health insurer governed by the Private Health Insurance Act 2007, Private Health Insurance Rules 2007 and the AIA Health Insurance Pty Ltd Fund Rules. The information on this website is current as at 1 April 2021 and may be subject to change. It is general information only and is not intended in any way to be financial, legal, tax, health, medical, nutritional or other advice. You should consider your own personal circumstances and needs and view the relevant product documents, fact sheets, fund rules and terms and conditions before making a decision to acquire such products. If necessary you should obtain professional advice from a financial, tax, medical or health professional. Unless expressly stated, any views or expressions of opinion (including any video content) do not represent the opinion of AIA.
    Terms of Use | Privacy