Why do old Chinese doctors think that spring health care should be less sour and more sweet?
Old Chinese medicine believes that keeping in good health in spring should be less sour and more sweet, that is, reducing the intake of sour food and increasing the amount of sweet food. This is because spring corresponds to the liver in the five internal organs. Spring is warm, sunny and full of vitality. Although such conditions make people more relaxed and free, they also promote the growth of bacteria and microorganisms, leading to the epidemic of diseases.
In addition, when many people enter the spring, they will have a strong liver qi more or less, which will affect their temper to a certain extent. Spleen bears the function of water and dampness transport in human body and is the foundation of the day after tomorrow. And sour taste into the liver, sweet taste into the spleen, so eating too much acid, liver qi will be more vigorous, temper will fail, is tantamount to adding fuel to the fire, adding insult to injury. Therefore, spring health care should suppress the liver and strengthen the spleen and promote good health.
Less acid and more sweet, how to eat?
A diet that is less sour and more sweet, many people will think that it is less jealous and more sugar. However, sweetness is not exactly the same as sweetness. Sweet taste in traditional Chinese medicine not only refers to sweetness, but also attaches importance to the efficacy of strengthening the spleen and regulating the stomach.
Therefore, we should eat more sweets in spring, such as rice, glutinous rice, cowpeas, lentils, soybeans, Chinese cabbage, spinach, taro, sweet potatoes, black fungus, mushrooms and chestnuts. In addition, you can eat nourishing foods such as lean meat, eggs, sesame seeds, honey, garlic and onions. In addition, some seasonal vegetables, such as shepherd's purse, celery, Toona sinensis and wolfberry head, can also be eaten in moderation, which can clear away heat and calm the liver, stimulate appetite and ensure good health.
In the field of traditional Chinese medicine, red dates and yam are typical sweet foods. It can also improve human immunity and reduce the risk of illness. So you can usually cook porridge with red dates and rice, with a fried yam, which is a very good healthy food.
Need to be reminded that spring health, but also pay attention to regional differences. For example, in the south, there is much water and it is not easy to get angry. As long as you don't eat spicy food, you will rarely get angry. But in the north, due to seasonal reasons, many people will have symptoms such as sore throat, constipation and bad breath. At this time, you should eat white radish, tremella, honey and bananas, which can nourish yin and moisten dryness and relieve physical discomfort.
Diet and health, but also from their own situation. If the spleen and stomach are weak, the mouth is bad, and the qi and blood are insufficient, it is best to add peanuts, sesame seeds or a small amount of pig liver to supplement the qi and blood and maintain the spleen and stomach.
In spring, besides paying attention to diet, we should do two things well.
First of all, don't get angry.
Chinese medicine believes that anger is the source of all diseases. Often angry, liver qi stagnation, liver fire exuberant, the liver will be damaged. In addition, frequent anger and bad mood will also lead to the secretion of harmful hormones, which will affect your health.
Therefore, in life, we should maintain an optimistic attitude, even if we encounter something unsatisfactory, we should adjust our emotions in time, control our anger in time, and maintain emotional stability.
The second thing is to exercise more.
Exercise can improve the body's resistance, soothe the liver and regulate qi, and improve the body's metabolic function. At the same time, exercise and sweating help the body to detoxify, reduce the burden on the liver to a certain extent, and ensure good health.