During the Spring and Autumn Period, there was an imperial doctor in Qi State of Qin Yueren, namely Bian Que. According to legend, the pulse diagnosis technology of traditional Chinese medicine was initiated by him. Bian Que was the first person who expounded the relationship between medicine and food. He believes that the root of human survival lies in diet, and effective treatment depends on drugs. People who don't know proper diet can't keep healthy easily, and people who don't know drug contraindications can't cure the disease.

Huangdi Neijing written in the Warring States Period? Su Wen systematically expounded a set of theories of food supplement and dietotherapy, which laid the foundation of TCM nutrition and medical science. For example, "Su Wen? In the time of gas storage, food is divided into four categories: five grains, five fruits, five livestock and five vegetables. The five grains are millet, millet, rice, wheat and glutinous rice; the five fruits are peaches, plums, apricots, dates and chestnuts; the five livestock are cattle, sheep, dogs, tapirs and chickens; and the five vegetables are sunflower, Hopkins, onion, leek and scallion.

Su Wen summed up the functions and proportions of these four foods in diet, that is, "five grains are the supplement, five fruits are the help, five animals are the benefit, and five dishes are the supplement". Grain is the staple food, supplemented by fruits, livestock and vegetables.