If you ever want to know how to say “show me your tongue” in Mandarin, Lisa Greene is the person to ask.

The South Surrey resident and mother of three learned basic Mandarin phrases during her training to become a traditional Chinese medical practitioner, a designation she received five years ago while living in Nelson.

Greene decided to pursue Chinese medicine after becoming frustrated with the health care system when a family member was terminally ill.

“People were getting prescriptions for things that were just adding to their health problems, they weren’t getting the care that they needed,” she said.

Greene now works as an acupuncturist in South Surrey, and continues to take courses in specific areas of Chinese medicine, including one of her favourite areas, facial rejuvenation acupuncture.

“I love it because not only does it help women to slow down the aging process, it takes off some of the fine lines they already have,” she said. “Women leave feeling amazing and empowered, and they go out into the world and share that gift.”

A major aspect of health that Greene promotes is healthy eating, and she tries to incorporate healthy items into foods patients already enjoy to make it easier to adjust to healthier choices. One such food is coconut oil, which Greene describes as “very misunderstood.”

Some of the benefits of coconut oil include the prevention of heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke and osteoporosis. According to Greene, it can also aid in weight loss, as it stimulates metabolism and improves thyroid function. Greene tries to cook with coconut oil at home whenever possible, and will often sneak it into her kids’ favourite foods when they’re not looking.

“Even though I’m their mom and I know about nutrition, they’re teenagers, and they still don’t listen to me,” she said.

One of her family’s favourite recipes is coconut banana bread, which includes not only coconut oil, but xylitol – a natural sugar substitute derived from corn cobs and birch trees. When it comes to making healthy food choices, Greene emphasizes the importance of making small adjustments to the way you cook.

“That way, people are not having to make huge lifestyle changes, but they try it and think, ‘Hey, that’s pretty good.’”

Coconut Banana Bread

Ingredients:

1/2 cup coconut oil 

1 cup of sugar (or 1/2 cup of xylitol and 1/2 cup sugar)

3 oz of crushed pineapple with juice

2 eggs

1 ripe mashed banana

2 cups of flour

1/2 cup of shredded coconut

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Instructions:  

Preheat oven to 350 F. Stir together coconut oil and sugar. Mix in pineapple with juice, eggs and banana. Add flour, coconut, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Pour batter into a greased 9x5 loaf pan. Bake for about 60 minutes, or until knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Each slice of bread contains about one tablespoon of coconut oil.