Your Lifestyle Medicine Doctor & Culinary Medicine Specialist

About Dr. Colin Zhu

Throughout my education and medical career, I’ve strived to ask – and answer – as many questions as possible. This curiosity has led me to fill the gaps in my education by learning about the benefits of plant-based nutrition and Lifestyle Medicine. Now, I am proud to share the broad knowledge I’ve gained and the tools I’ve developed to help my patients thrive and discover lasting health.

The WHY to all this is pretty simple. I want to create a ripple effect, empowering as many people as possible to live a higher state of well-being while bringing forth the most authentic, healthy version of themselves.

Through my online wellness and education platform, TheChefDoc, I can share my unique blend of medical knowledge and skills as a trained chef and health coach. I’m the author of “Thrive Medicine: How To Cultivate Your Desires and Elevate Your Life,” an international speaker and host of the Thrive Bites podcast, which features interviews with the latest health and wellness experts about incorporating a plant-powered lifestyle, enhancing emotional wellness, and creating a thriving mindset. 

My self-educational masterclass series called The THR5 Formula™ combines inspiration, education, and practical tools on how to THRIVE! Here you’ll learn the 5 To THR5™ Pillars: Food As Medicine, Functional Fitness, Relationships, Community, & Emotional Resilience!

He is currently on the Board of Directors of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM), a professional organization galvanized to make Lifestyle Medicine the foundation of all health care. He is also Chair of the Food As Medicine/Culinary Medicine Member Interest Group at ACLM. Dr. Zhu’s main mission is to help connect the dots between individual well-being, community, and environmental sustainability, and how our life choices create a dynamic ripple effect. Look for his upcoming collaborative cookbook, Empowered Kitchen, tentatively set for 2026. 

Currently based in Southern California, Dr. Zhu is available to consult and speak worldwide.