We will be going into the Xia Zhi (夏至) solar term (节气) starting from 21 Jun to 5 Jul 2024. Xia Zhi is the 10th solar term out of the entire 24.
Xia Zhi is the best period to boost one’s Yang energy, especially if you can’t withstand cooler weather during year end.
The reason is that Xia Zhi has one of the highest levels of Yang energy in the environment compared to other solar terms.
By leveraging the high Yang energy in the environment during this time, people with Yang deficiency can benefit from consuming Yang-boosting foods such as walnuts, Chinese chestnuts, ginger tea (in the morning), and cherries.
This also aligns with the Chinese saying “冬病夏治”, which means any winter-related illness/discomfort can be treated during summer time.
Side note: People with Yang deficiency have a lower tolerance to cooler/cold weather, tend to fall sick more often and some may feel weakness/soreness in the lower back or knee area.
As the weather will continue to be warm and humid, the general dietary direction for this solar term is 食宜清淡，不宜肥甘厚味 – which means to adopt a light diet, and avoid oily and sweet stuff.
The following are some of the foods that you can consider consuming more during this time:
Lily Bulb (Chinese name: 百合) – Lily bulb is one of the best foods to reduce heart fire as its main property is nourishing heart Yin energy. When the heart’s Yin energy is sufficient, the heart is less likely to be in a heaty state. You can purchase dried lily bulb at most TCM retail shops or fresh ones at the supermarket.
Chinese Yam (山药) – Chinese yam is very suitable to be consumed during this period because it can help to strengthen the spleen and improve its ability to get rid of accumulated dampness in our body.
Mung Beans (绿豆) – Also known as green beans. You can easily prepare a mung bean drink in 5 minutes, which helps to clear summer heat in the body. It also has the property of quenching thirst, detoxing and reducing dampness. This makes it an ideal drink during this period.
Chinese Barley (薏苡仁) – Another highly recommended food to eat during this period is Chinese barley as it has very strong properties to help with clearing dampness, especially if you have water retention issues in the lower part of your body.
General Wellness Recommendation
In the next 6 weeks (3 solar terms), there will be an increase in cases of 暑湿感冒 (summer flu) as compared to the usual wind heat flu (风热感冒) or wind cold flu (风寒感冒).
The characteristics of summer flu are high and persistent fever, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, and/or skin rashes.
Unlike wind heat and wind cold flu, people with summer flu will not find relief after sweating. Thus, some people may suspect it is dengue fever.
The following are some suggestions to avoid getting summer flu in the next 6 weeks:
- Avoid entering an air-conditioned room immediately after sweating from the heat. Instead, find a sheltered place to cool down and let the sweating subside before entering the air-conditioned area.
- Avoid consuming cold drinks especially when you are feeling very warm and hot. It is best to drink room temperature water in this case so that it won’t hurt your spleen. This is the most common reason why people get summer flu.
- Avoid consuming oily and sweet foods as they will burden and weaken your spleen and increase your vulnerability to summer flu.
- Consume foods that help to strengthen your spleen and clear dampness in the body (such as those mentioned earlier in this post).
For someone who has gotten the summer flu (with the above mentioned symptoms), he/she can try to take 藿香正气丸. This is a proven TCM formula for summer flu that you can purchase in any TCM retail shop.
Have a healthy Xia Zhi solar term!