Chinese dietary advice from the Yin Shan Zheng Yao

[Guest guest]

Some general dietary advice from the Yin shan Zheng yao. Of course,

all of these are merely guidelines, which may not apply to you

depending on your condition or constitutional health.

 

My interpretations of these quotes may be faulty. If anyone sees

anything that seems odd, please say something.

 

" Thus those who are good at nurturing their natures, are hungry

before eating. When they eat they do not eat to satiation. They are

thirsty before drinking, and do not drink to excess. "

 

Essentially, eat and drink only when you are hungry and thirsty. This

sounds fairly obvious but many people fall into the habit of eating

simply because it is " lunchtime " or because they haven't eaten in a

while. Many times I personally have to stop and double check with

myself; Am I *really* hungry or am I eating for other reasons?

 

" In eating there should be frequent meals of small intake. There

should not be a few set meals with eating to excess, lest one

experience hunger amidst satiation or satiation amidst hunger. If one

eats to satiation it wounds the lungs. If one is hungry it wounds the

chi. If one eats to satiation one will not sleep well. The hundred

illnesses then arise. "

 

Eating small meals throughout the day keeps one from putting too much

stress on the Spleen and Stomach. If one goes too long without

eating, it can stress your supply of qi. However, eating till your

full can sometimes overwhelm the digestion mechanism and give rise to

Phlegm and Dampness. If I understand correctly, Phlegm often

accumulates in the lungs, hence " If one eats to satiation it wounds

the lungs. "

 

" One should not eat much at night. One should not eat to satiation in

the evening.. Eat little congee after the shen hour [3-5 pm] "

 

As I understand it, this has to do with the Horary cycle, (a photo is

available in the Photos section of the group) which shows that at

certain times of the day, certain Organs of the body are more or less

active. Between approximately 7 and 9am, the Stomach is most active,

and between around 9 and 11am, the Spleen is most active. This

conversely means that between 7 and 11pm, the Stomach and Spleen are

at their lowest functioning, and are less capable of handling the

stress of digestion between these times.

 

" One cannot eat anything which is not in season. "

 

Eating foods which are in season in the area where you live is a very

sensible way to avoid imbalances. The food which grows during the

Spring, for instance, is generally food which is most beneficial for

balancing the problems associated with that Season.

 

" The chi of spring is warming. It is beneficial to eat wheat to cool

it. There cannot be a complete correspondence with the warmth.

Warming drink and foods are prohibited, and hot clothing. "

 

Eating with the Seasons is something of a fine balance; on the one

hand, you want to go with the natural movement of things, but wish to

avoid exaggeration. In the Spring, it is important to balance the

rising heating energy of the season with some sinking, cooling foods.

 

" Summer chi is heating. It is suitable to eat pulses to make it cold.

There cannot be a complete correspondence with the heat. Warm drink

and foods are prohibited, [as are] eating to satiation, swampy

places, and damp clothing. "

 

During the Summer, the environment is hot and somewhat wet. Thus it

is helpful to eat foods which are somewhat cooling and

drying. 'Pulses' here refers to things such as beans, peas, lentils,

etc., which generally have a cooling nature. Again, eating in Season

can help here.

 

" Autumn chi is drying. One should eat sesame to moisten the dryness.

Cold drinks and foods, and cold clothing are prohibited. "

 

In the Autumn, the weather is starting to become colder and drier.

Eating foods which are slighly Warming and Dampening may be

appropriate.

 

" Winter chi is cold. One should eat panicled millet to regulate the

cold with its heating nature. Hot drink and foods, warm clothing

dried at the fire are prohibited. "

 

In the Winter, it is important to balance the Cold nature of the

Season with warming foods. However, one should avoid eating foods and

drinking drinks of an excessively Warming nature, as these will

activate your bodies balancing mechanisms and cause an opposite

Cooling effect within your body, which can leave you vulnerable to

external pathogens.

 

" The Five Grains are to be made [staple] food.

 

The Five Fruits are to be assistance.

 

The Five Meats are to augment.

 

The Five Vegetables are to fill up. "

 

Generally vegetables and grains should be the foundation of your

diet, with fruit or meat varying depending on the Season. In the

colder Winter months (if you live in a place with cold Winter months,

of course) more meat is appropriate, while in the warmer Summer

months (again, assuming you have four distinct Seasons where you

live) more fruit may be the right idea.

 

" If chi and flavors are harmonized and the food eaten, it will then

be a tonic for the essence, and augment chi.

 

However, even if the five flavors are flavored [evenly], and the

mouth wishes to eat and drink, one cannot eat large amounts of any

food. If too much is eaten it gives rise to illness. Small amounts

augment. Rare delicacies of the hundred flavors, and careful

moderation daily, that is the best thing. "

 

Variety is important in the diet. It can be difficult to avoid

getting stuck in a " rut " of habitual foods and beverages, but eating

the same foods and drinking the same drinks can lead to problems.

From a Western perspective, if you only eat certain foods, you often

are deficient in certain vitamins and minerals, while excessive in

others.

 

" When one eats one should not wish for [too much] variety. If there

is [too much] variety then there will be what violates. The one in

the know separates his foods [eats them separately] and avoids this. "

 

Having a varied diet doesn't mean going overboard. There's no need to

import exotic foods from around the globe to have a balanced diet;

eating a wide variety of foods which grow around your local area

should be quite enough to keep one's diet varied.

 

" If a vegetable is covered by a frost, it cannot be eaten. "

 

" If flour has a stinking smell, it cannot be eaten. "

 

" If fresh ingredients are [dis]colored and stink, they cannot be

eaten. "

 

" If broth is old and food is watery, it cannot be eaten. "

 

" Putrid fish cannot be eaten. "

 

" If the various meats smell and are spoiled, they cannot be eaten. "

 

" Things such as marine delicacies and pickled preserves, if they have

spoiled due to been exposed moisture or heat, and if they are old,

they should not be eaten. "

 

Although these pertain to the obvious (don't eat rotten food), they

also imply that the fresher the food, the more beneficial it is for

the body. Foods which have been heavily processed to increase shelf

life often lose many nutrients. Even fermentation must be taken

cautiously. Fermentation usually seems to concentrate Flavors, making

them more potent. In Chinese theory, most foods contain within them

five types of Flavor, generally with one or two predominating.

 

" Sour and astringent are to gather together. If too much is eaten the

bladder is blocked. IT gives rise to dysuria.

 

If one eats too much sour food, liver chi thereupon collects and the

spleen chi is cut off. There will be thickenings of the flesh and

splitting of the lips. "

 

The Sour Flavor tends to cause Qi to gather or constrict. Why then is

it associated with the Liver, you may ask, which controls the

circulation and dispersal of Qi? When Sour food is eaten in moderate

amounts, I believe that the constricting effects of the Flavor

activate the body's defensive balancing mechanisms, stimulating the

Liver. However, eating an excessive amount of Sour food overwhelms

the defensive mechanism of the Liver, leading to Qi stagnation.

 

" Bitter and dry are to make firm. If too much is eaten then the

triple burner is closed up. It gives rise to vomiting.

 

If one eats too much bitter food, lung chi will not be moist, and

stomach chi will be full. The skin will then become dried and

withered, and the hair will come out. "

 

Bitter foods tend to have something of a cooling, drying effect. I

believe that eating moderate amounts of Bitter food activates the

defenses of the body and stimulates the Heart. However, eating an

excess overwhelms the Heart's countering effects.

 

" Acrid flavors produce hot vapor. If too much is consumed then it

rises up into the lungs. The blood and the constructive and

protective chi will not be seasonal and the heart will become hollow

[chi deficient].

 

IF one eats too much acrid food, sinew and blood vessels will become

injured and slack. The essence and spirit will then be finished. The

sinews will then be anxious, and the feet withered. "

 

Acridity tends to disperse. Again, I believe that the reason it is

associated with the Lungs, a condensing Organ, is that the Acridity

activates the body's defensive mechanisms, stimulating the Lungs.

However, eating too much Acridity will overwhelm the Lungs.

 

" Salty flavors cause discharge through vomiting. If too much is eaten

the stomach becomes soft and slow, and worms pass. Therefore there is

abdominal flatulence and a pressing in the chest.

 

If one eats too much salt, bone chi becomes exhausted and short. The

chi of the fat is cut through. The blood fvessels then congeal and

the face changes color. "

 

The salty flavor tends to be warming and moistening. Again, I believe

that the effects of the Flavor activate the body's balancing

mechanisms when eaten in moderation, and thus stimulate the Kidneys.

If you consume an excess of this Flavor, it overwhelms the Kidneys'

balancing effect.

 

" If one eats too much sweet food, the heart chi will become full

rapidly, the color become black, and kidney chi will be out of

balance. The bones will then be painful, and the hair fall out. "

 

Sweet tends to be dampening. A moderate amount will aid the Spleen,

but an excessive amount will complicate its function.

 

Whew. To review:

 

1. Eat only when hungry, drink only when thirsty, and stop before

full.

 

2. Avoiding eating excessively after 5pm or before 3am.

 

3. When possible eat foods which are fresh, in season, and locally

grown.

 

4. Try to eat a moderately varied diet.

 

5. One's diet should consist of vegetables and grains as the

foundation, with fruits and meats supplementing according to the

seasons.

 

6. Eat Cooling (Not excessively Cold) foods during the Summer months

and Warming (Not excessively Hot) foods during the Winter months.

 

7. Try to eat many small meals over eating a few large ones.

 

Whew! Hope this helps. If anyone sees anything erroneous, please

speak up. I always like to know when I am in error.

 

" If one has few cares, quick-witted understanding will shine. "

 

....And don't forget to relax!

 

Mbanu

[Guest guest]

Thanks, Mbanu. You've done a lot of work on this.

 

Chinese Traditional Medicine, " walmart_hurts " <jcc@c...> wrote:

> Some general dietary advice from the Yin shan Zheng yao. Of course,

> all of these are merely guidelines, which may not apply to you

> depending on your condition or constitutional health.

 

I want to emphasize this paragraph to readers. These are general

guidelines that will change based on individual need.

 

> " Thus those who are good at nurturing their natures, are hungry

> before eating. When they eat they do not eat to satiation. They are

> thirsty before drinking, and do not drink to excess. "

 

Sometimes it is best if a person does force him/herself to eat or

drink. I kept winding up in ER with dehydration because I only drank

when I felt thirsty. I had a real aversion to drinking because of

the Kidney Yang Deficiency and the Dampness problems. The doctors

would ask, " Are you getting enough liquids? " , and I would answer yes

because I did drink when I felt thirsty. The problem was, I didn't

realize that I wasn't feeling thirsty like I should.

 

A nurse in a doctor's office finally realized what was going on, led

me out to a water cooler, handed me a cup, and instructed, " Drink

until you feel better. I had to force myself to drink, and I was

very skeptical that it would help, but I started feeling better.

 

The nurse taught me the warning signs of dehydration. At first I

only forced myself to drink when they started to appear. Then I

decided to start taking preventative measures and force myself to

drink before I started having problems. Gradually it got somewhat

easier to drink.

 

Eventually I learned about TCM. Even after starting on the herbs, I

still had to force myself to drink. (Kidney Yang Deficiency takes a

long time to correct.) Gradually, I began to feel thirsty. Forcing

myself to drink was a part of the treatment that helped me - even

after starting on the herbs. Of course, the herbs did make it a

little easier to do this.

 

Only eating when one feels hungry or drinking when one feels thirsty

is more or less good advice if a person is basically healthy and

balanced. Sometimes it will be best if the person forces him/herself

to eat or drink. (Provided the person is not emotionally upset when

eating, and makes an effort to calm down first.)

 

From a Western standpoint, a part of the brain called the

hypothalamus plays a big role in feelings of hunger and thirst as

well as temperature and some other basic things. A lot of PWCs

(People With CFIDS) appear to have problems in the hypothalamus. Not

feeling thirsty when they should (dehydration problems are common

among PWCs), not feeling hungry when they should or feeling hungry

all the time, having trouble obtaining homeostasis, etc. A lot of

the CFIDS research around the world is concentrating on the H-P-A

axis - the Hypothalamus - Pituitary - Adrenal axis. The pituitary is

the master gland, but the hypothalamus influences the pituitary. The

pituitary sends out hormonal messages to the other endocrine glands,

including the adrenal glands and the thyroid gland (when the

circulating blood levels of their hormones fall below a certain

level), telling these glands to manufacture their hormones. Glandular

problems can be primary (arising within the gland itself), secondary

(arising because of problems in the pituitary), or tertiary (arising

because of problems in the hypothalamus).

 

Thanks for a lot of hard work and sharing it with us.

 

Victoria

[Guest guest]

> I want to emphasize this paragraph to readers. These are general

> guidelines that will change based on individual need.

 

Before eating with the Seasons, one should always eat with the

individual needs of the body. I believe that these guidelines were

set forth for one who is relatively free of disharmony wishing to

maintain that state. Eating and drinking to counteract imbalances

appears to be quite different than eating and drinking to maintain

balance.

 

> Thanks for a lot of hard work and sharing it with us.

 

I have learned many things from this group, and enjoy contributing.

 

Mbanu