Text by Zong Liuliu, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine Drinking is the sky and food is the earth. "Diet" provides the material basis and energy source for the human body, and also regulates the balance of yin and yang in the body. However, God created things and the seasons change. Therefore, diet, as the first need of the human body, should also be adjusted according to the changes in yin and yang, cold and heat in the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter, and combined with traditional Chinese medicine theory, so as to maintain the body and prolong life. "Su Wen·Liu Yuan Zheng Ji Da Lun" says: "Use warm to avoid warm, use hot to avoid hot, use cool to avoid cold, use cold to avoid cold, the food should be eaten in the same way." It means taking food with warm and hot properties. Medications should be avoided in the warm and hot spring and summer seasons; cooling food and medicines should not be consumed in the cold seasons of autumn and winter. Based on the annual climate change patterns of spring temperature, summer heat, long summer humidity, autumn dryness, and winter cold, the dietary health principles of spring growth, long summer, long summer change, autumn harvest, and winter storage are summarized. Spring birth: Spring is susceptible to wind evil, and the five elements belong to wood. Tears in the wind hurt the eyes, the taste is sour, and irritability hurts the liver and gallbladder. ① First of all, it should be used in Spring Qing Dynasty - the earth is full of vitality in spring, the human body's Qi and blood flow smoothly, and the functions of the body's organs and tissues are easy to recover. It is suitable to support the human body's righteousness and remove the excess substances absorbed by the human body during the winter. The traditional diet emphasizes that "grains are good for nutrition, but missing beans is bad." This means that grains are nutritious, but without beans, the balance will be lost. Spring is the season when Yang Qi grows. Appropriate intake of high-calorie foods such as beans can nourish Yang Qi through diet and nourish the body. There are many varieties of beans, mainly soybeans, broad beans, mung beans, peas, adzuki beans, etc. ② The intake of some foods and drugs that can soothe liver qi should be increased: such as jujubes, carrots, spinach, malantou, shepherd's purse, celery, water chestnuts, chrysanthemum brain, wolfberry, chrysanthemum, dangshen, astragalus, etc. ③ Since the liver is too strong in spring and inhibits the spleen, it is advisable to choose sweet and mild foods and medicines to strengthen the spleen and stomach and ensure the body's absorption of nutrients. As Sun Simiao said in "Qian Jin Yao Prescription": "Save acid and increase sweetness to nourish the spleen." Appropriately reduce acidic foods and increase sweet foods. Summer Tune In summer, it is very easy to damage body fluids and consume qi, and qi will be depleted along with body fluids, leading to deficiency of both qi and body fluids. The symptoms of Yang Qi deficiency include body sweating, cold limbs, fatigue and laziness, loss of appetite, thin stool, pale tongue and weak pulse; Yin and blood deficiency manifests as five heart upsets and hot flashes, afternoon hot flashes, palpitations and insomnia, dizziness, thin pulse with less coating, etc. ①Relieve heat and dissipate heat, produce body fluids and quench thirst, and avoid heat poison. You should choose light food and medicines that can clear the heart and relieve heat, such as making soup with raw lotus leaves, raw coix seeds, lentils, etc. frequently. ② Strengthen the spleen and stomach, and promote digestion and absorption. Foods include corn, coix seed, mung beans, watermelon, cucumber, loofah, winter melon, eggplant, etc. ③ Summer is especially suitable for porridge supplements. For example, lotus seed porridge has the effects of nourishing the kidneys and strengthening essence, strengthening the spleen and astringent intestines, nourishing the heart and calming the mind, replenishing qi and resisting aging. It is suitable for patients with weak kidneys, weak heart, palpitations, loose stools, and insomnia due to deficiency. , Nocturnal polyuria and other symptoms. Hawthorn porridge strengthens the spleen and eliminates stagnation, dissolves food and disperses blood stasis, and can treat hypertension, coronary heart disease, hyperlipidemia, angina pectoris, abdominal pain, food accumulation, and diarrhea in the elderly. Fungus porridge can moisten the lungs and promote fluid production, replenish qi and stop bleeding, replenish deficiency and strengthen the heart. It is suitable for patients with weak lung qi, physical weakness and excessive sweating, dry and itchy throat, dry stools, chronic bloody stools and bleeding hemorrhoids. Yiren porridge strengthens the spleen and stomach, diuresis and swelling, clears away heat and expels pus, and is suitable for senile edema, diarrhea due to spleen deficiency, rheumatic arthralgia, excessive leucorrhea, etc. In addition, lily porridge, astragalus porridge, grape porridge, tomato porridge, red date porridge, beef porridge, etc., all have their own characteristics, and the elderly can choose and eat them according to their specific conditions. Autumn supplements: In autumn, the temperature gradually cools down and the climate becomes dry. Autumn dryness can easily damage people's lungs, consume people's lung yin, and cause symptoms such as dry mouth and throat, cough with little phlegm, and constipation. Choose foods and medicines that nourish yin, moisturize dryness, and nourish lung qi. ① According to the dietary therapy theory of traditional Chinese medicine, it is believed that Qi is dry in autumn, and "it is appropriate to eat hemp to moisten the dryness." How to do this? First of all, you should eat less irritating, spicy, and hot foods, such as hot peppers, peppers, etc., and eat more vegetables and fruits, such as winter melon, radish, zucchini, eggplant, green leafy vegetables, apples, bananas, etc. ② In addition, Chinese medicine also believes that autumn is a time of union and all things converge, so it also advocates that "you should eat pungent foods to disperse them." This means to avoid the accumulation of various hot and humid gases. Because any food with a spicy smell has the function of emitting odor, it is recommended to eat some spicy food such as celery. ③ "Autumn should be warm", that is to say, you should avoid eating only cool and cold foods in autumn and eat more warm foods. In autumn, the weather gradually turns cooler, and people's mouth, nose, skin and other parts often experience dryness to varying degrees. Therefore, you should eat some moisturizing foods and eat less spicy and fried foods. Foods suitable for consumption in autumn include: lily, which calms the mind and calms the mind, eliminates fatigue, and has the effect of moisturizing and relieving cough; yam, which is characterized by being neither hot nor dry, suitable for consumption by both men and women, old and young, healthy and weak; lotus root, raw lotus root. It can clear away heat, promote fluid production and quench thirst, and cooked lotus root can strengthen the spleen and appetizer. Therefore, there is a saying that "raw lotus roots are better in summer and ripe lotus roots are better in cool autumn. Raw lotus roots are best for freshness and tenderness, and cooked lotus roots are best for strengthening the elderly." Chestnuts can strengthen the spleen and stomach, nourish the kidneys and strengthen bones; walnuts can warm the lungs, relieve asthma, and replenish qi. Nourish blood, moisten dryness and moisturize the intestines; peanuts, when peanuts mature in late autumn, it is better to use fresh flowers and raw kernels or grind them into soup or boil them and eat them, not fried; red dates, eat them in autumn, they are good for the lungs and qi. If you can eat them with Tremella, lily, and yam are best simmered for better results. In addition, it is also suitable to eat pears, water chestnuts, jellyfish, carrots, shepherd's purse, oyster mushrooms, kelp, tomatoes, and rabbit meat in autumn. Astragalus, ginseng, adenophora, wolfberry, fleece-flower root, etc. are suitable for supplementation.
Winter storage Winter is the season for storage. At the same time, the temperature is low in winter, the skin and blood vessels are tightened, and it is easy for Yin and cold to increase and Yang Qi to decline. It is advisable to choose foods and medicines that can warm yang and nourish the kidneys. Supplementing in winter makes nutrients easier to absorb and store, so they can play a better role. Therefore, there is a saying among the people that "if you take supplements in winter this year, you will kill tigers in spring next year." Therefore, it is necessary to follow the principle of warming yang and nourishing the kidney, warming but not dispersing. ① Foods that should be used to nourish the kidneys and strengthen yang are generally such as venison, deer penis, dog meat, dog penis, mutton, sheep kidney, bull penis, sparrow, pig kidney, eel, anchovy, silver carp, shrimp, mussels, garlic, Leeks, peppers, walnut kernels, walnut meat, etc. ② Foods that nourish yin and kidneys and replenish essence and marrow include sea cucumber, abalone, turtle meat, soft-shell turtle, ham, pig (sheep, cow) bone marrow, black fungus, black dates, sesame, black beans, etc. ③ Avoid eating raw or cold food during winter health maintenance, and avoid eating cold food. Such as jellyfish, snails, snails, clams, crabs, frog meat, water snakes, clam meat, snakeheaded fish, duck eggs, goose meat, rabbit meat, kelp, watermelon, winter melon, cucumber, etc. ④ Healthy meals available in winter: rice, flour products, porridge, etc. prepared from various warming and tonic foods. Common ones include sea cucumber porridge, mutton porridge, mutton noodles, walnut porridge, ginger porridge, dog meat porridge, sparrow porridge, leek porridge, lean meat porridge, walnut porridge, beef wontons, etc. There is a famous saying about health preservation: "The wise man's health preservation must be suitable for cold and heat in the four seasons." In short, dietary supplements in the four seasons should be adapted to the time, place and people. According to the actual conditions of different seasons, different regions and different physiques, it is correct to Only by mastering the principles and methods of tonic can we achieve good tonic effects.
Based on the annual climate change patterns of spring temperature, summer heat, long summer humidity, autumn dryness, and winter cold, the dietary health principles of spring birth, summer length, long summer change, autumn harvest, and winter storage are summarized. This column is sponsored by "Youth Social 》Jointly launched with the Science Store of Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine***