Chinese medical theories involving diet follow along much the same lines as herbal theory; essentially, each food is an herb and has its own characteristic effects on the body. (A variation of this system known as macrobiotics has become famous.)
The relative importance of the two fields has waxed and waned over time. Herbology reached a state of high development in the 14th and 15th centuries; acupuncture then reached what might be called a golden age under the Ming dynasty in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Subsequently, herbal medicine gained in importance; by the time acupuncture came back in vogue in 20th-century China, it had undergone a major transformation sometimes called the “herbalization of acupuncture.”