This week, I would like to share the benefits of cherries from the TCM dietary perspective.
Cherry is one of the rare fruits that can strengthen the kidney and spleen Qi. Just take note to consume cherry in moderation as it is warm in thermal nature and eating lots of it might make you heaty!
In 南川《常用中草药手册》(one of the ancient TCM classics), it is stated that cherry can 补血补肾,预防喉症. This means cherry can strengthen kidneys and act as a tonic food for the blood. It can also help to prevent throat-related diseases.
Here are the two main properties of cherry:
Strengthen Kidneys – Very few fruits have kidney-strengthening properties like cherry. This means eating cherries can help to strengthen your back and legs (and also relieve lower back pain/back soreness that is caused by weak kidneys). Having a strong kidney will also strengthen your body immunity.
Strengthen the Spleen and Remove Dampness – Again, very few fruits can strengthen the spleen like cherry. This makes it a great fruit to eat especially if you have a weak spleen (loose/sticky stools and stomach gets upset easily after eating cooling stuff).
Do take note that people with flu or constipation should avoid consuming cherries for the time being.
Cherry is a great fruit to consume during the current Da Xue solar term as well as for the next two solar terms (until the end of January), so do find some time to enjoy this tonic fruit if you can!
As the year end approaches and the weather turns cooler, this is the time when people with blood stasis body constitution may experience increased discomfort compared to other times of the year.
Purplish or brownish spots/patches appear out of nowhere
Forgetfulness
High blood pressure
Hence it is important to improve blood circulation during this time of the year (this applies to other body constitutions as well).
Black beans are an ideal food to include in your diet during this time.
Black beans help to improve blood circulation, boost kidney Qi/essence and resolve issues caused by weak kidneys (e.g. lower back pain, weak knees, hearing loss and reduction in bone density). During year end, we want to be consuming foods that help to boost kidney Qi so as to strengthen our body’s immunity against the cooler weather.
Nowadays, you can easily find black beans in the market and they can be added to most kinds of soups. I have a soup recipe for improving blood circulation, which can be found here – https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BA61sdUfC/
Another way of consuming black beans is to add fermented black beans to your dishes. Check out my quick and easy recipe for spinach and king abalone mushroom with fermented black beans here – https://www.facebook.com/share/p/15ZLhpE9iA/
If you dislike eating whole black beans, you can also purchase black bean powder and add them to your favorite beverages!
I believe many people underestimate the healing effects of dried tangerine peel (陈皮). I hardly leave the house without dried tangerine peel as it is one of the foods (snacks) that I’ve personally experienced real, positive healing effects from!
In many Asian countries, most people eat dried tangerine peel as a snack, but rarely do people consume it for its healing benefits.
The first time I learned about its healing benefits was during my class at Singapore College of TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine), where the professor shared that dried tangerine peel is excellent for harmonizing the Qi flow in our stomach!
Ever since that class, I will always carry some dried tangerine peel with me, especially if I know that I will be having meals outside.
Providing Relief For These Three Situations
There are three situations where dried tangerine peels can be especially useful:
1) Motion sickness – Dried tangerine peel is highly effective for relieving motion sickness, especially when traveling on winding roads towards higher altitudes.
People experiencing motion sickness, whether on the roads or the sea, often feel bloated and may even feel nauseous. This happens because the Qi in the stomach is disturbed.
During this time, eating some dried tangerine peel can bring relief, often after a few burps.
2) Anxiety – I also use dried tangerine peel to help ease my anxiety when I need to do public speaking, which sometimes make me feel so nervous that I can throw up. Eating dried tangerine peel helps calm my nerves and provide relief in such situations.
3) Indigestion – I’m not sure if you’ve experienced this, but sometimes after eating some oily foods or drinking some beverages that contain dairy, I feel bloated. It’s as if my stomach has stopped digesting, leaving me with no appetite for the next meal.
This is the time when dried tangerine peel will have a miraculous effect on me. After I eat a few pieces of dried tangerine peel, I will let out a few burps after a while, and then I feel better and normal again. This is the reason why I always carry dried tangerine peel with me whenever I go.
Now, let’s get down to its properties!
The thermal nature of dried tangerine peel is warm. This means people who are heaty should avoid consuming it for the time being.
Dried tangerine peel has properties that benefit the spleen and lungs as follows:
Harmonize the Qi flow in the spleen and stomach (理气健脾): Whenever you feel bloated from eating oily or dairy foods, or experience nausea from motion (like traveling on the seas or in high altitude areas), dried tangerine peel can help to soothe the Qi in your stomach and relieve the discomfort.
Dissolve phlegm in the lungs (燥湿化痰): Dried tangerine peel can also help to dissolve phlegm in your lungs especially if the phlegm is caused by the cold food that you eat, or sudden changes in the surrounding air temperature.
The daily dosage recommendation is 3 to 10g.
Who Should Avoid Eating Dried Tangerine Peel
Most people will not have issues eating dried tangerine peel, but do make sure that you don’t eat it every day.
Also, you should avoid consuming dried tangerine peel if you are having a sore throat or fever.
Two Types of Dried Tangerine Peel
There are two forms of dried tangerine peel.
The first is the kind that requires cooking as shown in the image below. This type of dried tangerine peel is best for cooking desserts like red bean soup.
This is the kind that you need to cook it before eating.
The second type of dried tangerine peel is the ready-to-eat kind that you can enjoy as a snack on its own.
I will usually choose those with darker skin because the darker the colour, the stronger the healing effects!
This is the kind of dried orange peel that you can just eat it without cooking.
Most Convenient Way to Eat Dried Tangerine Peel
The most convenient way to enjoy the benefits of dried tangerine peel is to buy the ready-to-eat kind that does not require any soaking or cooking. You can purchase them at any TCM retail shops in your area or online at Amazon.
One vegetable that I recommend most people to eat during these few weeks is 苋菜 (also known as Chinese Spinach or Amaranth).
There is a saying, “六月苋,赛鸡蛋;七月苋,金不换”. What it means is this:
In the month of June (lunar calendar), the nutritional value of Chinese spinach is equivalent to an egg (as you know, egg is a highly nutritional food that contains a holistic range of vitamins and minerals that our human body needs). And when it comes to July (lunar calendar), eating Chinese spinach has so much benefits that people don’t even want to exchange it for gold!
The above saying may be too exaggerated in our times but the Chinese spinach does have its unique benefits.
First, it helps in detoxification, particularly in the large and small intestines.
Next, it can also help in relieving constipation. In the upcoming months as the environment gets drier, some people may experience constipation (especially if they don’t increase water intake), thus eating the Chinese spinach is highly recommended.
Lastly, Chinese spinach is also cooling so it can help to reduce the heatiness in the body for most people.
Do take note that Chinese spinach also contains 草酸 (oxalic acid), just like normal spinach. Oxalic acid can easily combine with calcium to form stones in the body (kidney/bladder), especially for people who have low water intake. Thus, do avoid consuming Chinese spinach together with foods that are high in calcium (such as tofu, milk, soy, etc) in the same meal.
To reduce the oxalic acid, you can blanch the vegetable in boiling water before you cook/stir fry it.
Hope you find this post useful and do share the information with your friends if you think they can benefit from it too!
Have a great day ahead, everyone!
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