Traditional Chinese Medicine considers the proper metabolism of food and water paramount to true health and longevity. Choosing the right food is also considered an important element in the healing and balancing process. Each type of food that you consume can be considered either Yin or Yang. Food types can be categorized into different degrees of heating or cooling, drying or wetness causing, dispersing or gathering and neutral.
Also with food there are Five Flavors that corresponds with the Five Organ Systems, that being:
- sweet-Spleen Organ System
- sour-Liver Organ System
- spicy-Lung Organ System
- astringent-Kidney Organ System
- bitter-Heart Organ System
The western diet is usually overbalanced with sweet [sugar] and astringent [salt]. It isn’t that sweet or salty food is bad or should be avoided. On the contrary, they are absolutely necessary for life to exist.Â
The problem is with excluding the other three flavors that throws your body off balance. By balancing these flavors in equal proportion harmony may exist. Foods substances such as vinegar, rice wine, ginger, peppers and bitter greens can be combined with sweet and salty. These foods are rarely used in western recipes. Once combined and understood, delicious and properly balanced and nutritional meals can be created.
When choosing food it is extremely important in first removing or lowering the intake of toxic-type foods. These foods can cause an internal imbalance that blocks the natural and necessary requirements for good health. Below are general guidelines. Please seek an herbalist or nutritionist for personal, dietary adjustments.
- Reduce concentrated protein [red meat, pork, chicken and fish] intake to less than 15% of calories.
- Reduce fat intake to less than 30% of calories (to less than 20% of calories in overweight individuals).
- Increase complex carbohydrates (broccoli, mushrooms, greens, etc.) to 55% of calories, eliminate refined carbohydrates (sugar, flour products) whenever possible and increase physical activity to at least 2200 calories per week for females and 2400 calories per week for males.
If you have a weak digestion [more common than not] it is important to regulate and strengthen your digestive processes by taking a Chinese Herbal Formula such as the Six Gentleman Teapills that works directly on enhancing and tonifying [increasing metabolic activity] your digestion.
There are many reasons why your digestion may be off and should be assessed by your local Chinese Medicine Practitioner or by using our Online Consultation Services available at Heaven and Earth Chinese Medicine Healing Center.