Mei Liu,, Dr. Jengyu Lai - Healing Steps to Wellness
Welcome to Healing Steps to Wellness with your hosts Dr. Jengyu Lai and Mei Liu1. In this episode, Dr. Lai reflects on his featured presentation at the Navajo Nutrition Summit, hosted by the Navajo Nation Public Health and Diabetes Prevention Program.

As a podiatrist board-certified in lifestyle medicine with Mayo Clinic fellowship training in physical medicine, rehabilitation, and wound care, Dr. Lai explains that a diabetic foot ulcer is far more than a localized wound—it is a critical indicator of systemic metabolic dysfunction. Native American populations face severe health disparities, including twice the risk of developing diabetic foot ulcers compared to the general population, a 50% two-year re-amputation rate, and high five-year mortality rates following an ulcer.

To reverse these outcomes and preserve limbs, Dr. Lai outlines his three-part Food as Medicine framework for wound healing and metabolic restoration:

1. Diabetes & Metabolic Management: Reversing insulin resistance through whole-food, plant-based nutrition, addressing saturated fat and calorie-dense processed foods rather than treating diabetes solely as a carbohydrate issue.

2. Systemic Anti-Inflammatory & Gut Support: Reducing systemic inflammation with antioxidant polyphenols from dark berries, while using dietary fiber and resistant starches to feed the gut microbiome. This produces short-chain fatty acids that stabilize blood sugar, improve insulin sensitivity, and repair the gut lining.

3. Targeted Wound Healing & Tissue Repair: Combining dietary protein with Vitamin C, Zinc, and Copper—the three required cofactors for mature collagen synthesis—alongside dark leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables that supply natural nitrates to dilate blood vessels and boost peripheral circulation.

The episode also highlights practical community health tools—including CDC REACH produce prescription programs, mobile cooking demonstrations, and community gardens—while honoring traditional Indigenous foods (such as corn, beans, squash, wild greens, berries, and seeds) and emphasizing cultural sensitivity around body part preservation and limb salvage.

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Food as Medicine for Diabetic Ulcer Prevention & Healing Navajo Nutrition Summit 2026

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