The Wisdom of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Seasonal Food and Beverage
2024-01-23
Three meals of fireworks are warm, and all seasons are peaceful. Three meals a day are the most basic elements of daily life and an important guarantee for providing daily energy for the human body. As an important component of excellent traditional Chinese culture, traditional Chinese medicine has unique insights and rich practical experience in food intake and health preservation. So, what are the traditional Chinese medicine wisdom in seasonal food and drink? The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon states: "In ancient times, those who knew it were guided by the principles of yin and yang, combined with the principles of numerology, and had a balanced diet and drink. They lived a regular life and did not engage in excessive labor, so they were able to form themselves in harmony with the gods. As a result, they lived until the end of their lives and passed away at the age of a hundred." In this passage summarizing the key points of ancient health preservation, it is particularly mentioned that "food and drink have a balanced diet.". "Jie" has two meanings: "moderation" and "rhythm". One is to have moderation in diet, not excessive or excessive; The second is to have a rhythm in diet and eat regularly and quantitatively. This can keep the body's digestion, absorption, excretion and other functions normal, and avoid diseases caused by improper diet. On the one hand, control food intake and avoid overeating. As stated in the Comprehensive Compendium of Traditional Chinese Medicine - Universal Prescriptions: "Diet is a key health care task, valued for essence but not for excess. When hungry and full, one should not be too short." According to the principle of "seven parts full", the amount of food consumed in the morning, middle, and evening should be distributed in a ratio of 2:2:1. Nowadays, people work at a fast pace. Many people have the best dinners. If they have dinner parties or supper, they are more likely to eat fat and sweet at dinner. Over time, in addition to causing heavy gastrointestinal burden, they are also likely to cause sleep problems and metabolic diseases such as hyperlipidemia and diabetes. On the other hand, diet should have a rhythm. We should eat regularly and quantitatively. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that eating rhythmically is an important prerequisite for protecting normal spleen and stomach function, supplementing qi and blood supply, and maintaining qi and blood circulation. As stated in "Bao Sheng Yao Lu": "Do not wait until extremely hungry to eat, and wait until extremely full to eat." This is a reminder not to eat until extremely hungry, and to eat regularly and on time. The usual three meal times we advocate for a day are: breakfast at 6-7 o'clock, lunch at around 12 o'clock, and dinner at 18-19 o'clock. The unhealthy dietary rhythm of modern people, such as skipping breakfast or having dinner too late, can cause gastrointestinal dysfunction. Modern medicine also believes that this can cause abnormal secretion of bile and insulin, which is not conducive to digestion and stable blood sugar. "Five Flavors Harmony" originally referred to five flavors: sour, bitter, sweet, spicy, and salty, but later referred to various flavors of food. "Five Flavors Harmony" has two meanings: one is not to be overly fond of, and the other is to try to be as light as possible. Why not indulge in it? From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, the five flavors enter the five organs. As stated in the "Su Wen Zhi Zhen Yao Da Lun": "The five flavors enter the stomach, and each goes to its preferred direction. Therefore, sour first enters the liver, bitter first enters the heart, sweet first enters the spleen, spicy first enters the lungs, and salty first enters the kidneys.". If there is an excessive preference for a certain flavor, it may cause an imbalance in the function of the organs. "Eating too much salt can cause blood to concentrate and blood pressure to rise."; Excessive sugar intake can easily lead to osteoporosis, yellowing of hair, and other metabolic problems. Therefore, the diet should be reasonably matched with the five flavors to achieve the best results
Edit：GuoGuo Responsible editor：FangZhiYou
Source：gmw.cn
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