There is such a couple. Their ages add up to over 200. They have lived together for more than 80 years. There is a word called husband and wife, which means that people who live together tend to be more and more alike, mainly because the similarity of diet and living habits will gradually make two people more and more alike in the years.
There is also a saying that fat people can hardly raise thin children at home, and thin people can hardly raise fat children at home. This shows that eating habits have a great influence on us. It is rare for a family to have a centenarian, and it is really strange for two centenarians to appear at the same time. Then their eating habits may be better, which is worth learning to some extent.
Let's take a look at the recipes of the two old people for a day: milk and bread for breakfast, tomato and egg noodles or dregs noodles for lunch, and steamed bread with porridge for dinner. This is just one of the recipes. Generally speaking, we eat like this every day. This recipe is simple at first glance, but on the whole, it is balanced in nutrition. The first is protein such as eggs and milk, followed by carbohydrates and dietary fiber such as vegetables.
Milk can supplement calcium, which is very good for the elderly. Those who are not used to drinking milk can learn from it. Eat a balanced and light diet, and don't overeat.
Traditional Chinese medicine pays attention to health preservation, that is, to reconcile yin and yang to meet their own physical needs. There is a cloud in Huangdi Neijing: "Poison attacks evil, five grains support, five fruits help, five livestock benefit, five vegetables supplement, and the smell is combined to replenish essence." Simply put, whole grains are the staple food we eat, but what doesn't bear fruit is complementary food. Five animals can make up the body, and five dishes can make up the body. If these foods are well matched, they are very beneficial to the health.
Let's see what these four fives mean.
(1) Cereals refer to rice, millet, glutinous rice, sesame and cereals. Grain is an important source of B vitamins, and millet is also rich in protein, fat, iron, vitamin B 1 and B2. Protein contained in beans is of high quality, and its amino acid composition is very suitable for human needs.
(2) Ancient five dishes refer to sunflower, leek, epimedium and onion. Now it refers to many vegetables. Vegetables are indispensable and important foods in people's diet. Vegetables mainly have the functions of clearing away heat, promoting fluid production, moistening intestines, relaxing bowels, invigorating spleen, harmonizing middle energizer, promoting digestion and appetizing. Most vegetables are cool, such as bitter gourd, celery and cucumber. It has the functions of clearing away heat, relieving restlessness, relaxing bowels, relieving cough and resolving phlegm. A few vegetables are warm, such as leeks and chrysanthemums, which have the effect of warming the middle and dispelling cold. According to the structural characteristics and edible parts of vegetables, they can be divided into different types, such as rhizomes, melons and eggplant, edible fungi and so on.
1 rhizome. Such as carrots, have the effects of invigorating spleen, harmonizing middle energizer, nourishing liver, improving eyesight, resolving phlegm and relieving cough, and clearing away heat and toxic materials. It is not advisable to add too much vinegar when eating to avoid the loss of carotene.
Two melons and eggplant. Such as wax gourd, has the functions of diuresis, clearing away heat, resolving phlegm, promoting fluid production and detoxifying. It can remove excess water and fat from human body, accelerate the rate of human body consuming calories and help to lose weight.
3 edible fungi. Such as mushrooms, can benefit qi, strengthen spleen and regulate stomach and kidney, and can be used for edema of eyelids and limbs, abdominal distension and fullness caused by spleen deficiency, anorexia and night sweats.
(3) Five animals refer to cows, dogs, sheep, pigs and chickens. With the improvement of people's living standards, the traditional cattle, sheep and pigs are far from meeting people's needs, so eggs, poultry and aquatic products are often classified here. This kind of raw material has a wide variety and is often used as the main course on the table. Generally speaking, poultry meat tastes sweet and flat, followed by sweet and warm, sweet and flat to benefit qi, and sweet and warm to help yang. Livestock meat is sweet, salty and warm, and salty can enter the blood, benefiting yin and blood.
(4) Jujube, plum, apricot, chestnut and peach are collectively called five fruits. Fruit is also essential in our daily life. Besides vitamin supplements, they also have a good health care function.
The fruit is soft in texture and juicy, and has the effects of tonifying deficiency, nourishing yin, promoting fluid production and relieving annoyance. Fruits are also divided into cold and hot. Cold fruits, such as pears, oranges, lemons, apples and plums, are not suitable for eating. Warm fruits, such as litchi, dragon, jujube and walnut kernel, are not suitable for fever.
In addition, there are hard-shelled dried fruits with less water content, such as walnuts, peanuts, pine nuts and chestnuts. It can nourish liver and kidney, strengthen bones and muscles, and provide energy for brain tissue activities. It is a natural brain-nourishing food, which is very beneficial to the elderly and mental workers.
Combined with the health preserving theory of Chinese medicine, we can review the eating habits of the two old people, such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables, milk and meat, small but refined, and comprehensive and balanced. Although they are relatively simple materials, they are worth learning from.