Food as Medicine
If you have been a patient in my office, then we have probably had a discussion about food. Dietary therapy is an important branch of Chinese Medicine. We focus on the energetic properties of food and how they can help to correct internal imbalances. We can break food down into numerous healing categories - taste, color, temperature, acupuncture channel entered, direction, yin-yang, and organ nourished. Then we individualize recommendations based on your intake and presentation. It can get very detailed and it’s a fascinating study into the food we eat.
Today, let’s just talk simple basics that I go over with most of my patients. My favorites:
Eat local as much as possible. Shop those farmer’s markets!
Eat with the seasons. What does this mean? For example, don’t eat strawberries in December. They are out of season and just won’t be as tasty.
Eat warm, cooked food every day. Our digestive system needs warm food to keep it functioning at its highest level even in the summer.
And now some Chinese Medicine Dietary Therapy basics on taste and color from Scott Suvow:
TASTE
Sour: Liver, Gallbladder
The sour taste is absorbing, consolidating, and astringent
Ex. Lemon vinegar, green apples, tomatoes, chicken, turkey
Sweet: Spleen, Stomach
The sweet taste will strengthen, harmonize, and relax pain
Ex. Grains, sugar, bananas, blueberries, figs, dates, honey, maple syrup
Pungent: spicy – Lung, Large Intestine
The pungent taste disperses, invigorates, promotes circulation, opens pores, expels pathogens
Ex. Onions, garlic, ginger, curry
Bitter: Heart, Small Intestine
Dry dampness, clears heat,
Ex. Kale, lettuce, broccoli, arugula, endive, and collard greens
Salty: Kidney bladder
Salty taste softens and dissolve hardness, lubricates the intestines.
Eggs, tofu, fish, miso, sea vegetables.
Let’s wrap this baby up with a couple of my favorite recipes for the Summer and Fall/Winter/Spring. Good Eats!
Watermelon Feta Salad
This is my current obsession. It’s hot outside which makes me avoid cooking hot meals. It is so simple to make that you don’t even need a recipe. Grab some watermelon and chop it into bite size pieces, crumble some feta cheese, throw in some pine nuts for crunch, sometimes I like to put it on arugula, then drizzle some dressing on top. I’m a big fan of balsamic glaze and I have found that citrus-y vinaigrette’’s go really well with this dish. Also, for those of you that like mint, I hear that’s a yummy addition.
Watermelon: clears summer heat, quenches thirst, relieves irritability
Feta: Moves qi, Warms the Spleen and Stomach, Nourishes Yin
Arugula: bitter, detoxifies the liver
Pine Nuts: Moistens the lung and large intestine, Creates body fluids
Mint: Clears heat
Golden Lentil Soup
From Oh She Glows
https://ohmyveggies.com/golden-french-lentil-stew-from-oh-she-glows-every-day/
This is one of my favorite recipes for when the weather is cooler. It’s a super yummy vegan recipe but sometimes I change it up by using ghee and bone broth when I feel like my digestion needs an extra boost.
Lentils: dries dampness, tonifies qi, harmonizes digestion
Kale: Strengthens stomach, stops pain, promotes re-growth of tissue
Cashews: tonifies Kidney, strengthens bones, nourishes blood, boosts Chi, moistens Yin
Carrots: clears heat, detoxifies, strengthensallinternal organs, benefits the eyes
Cumin: Warms the Kidney yang, dispel cold. Regulates Liver Qi, regulates the Stomach and stops pain
Turmeric: breaks up stasis, moves qi, stops pain