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The soup is warming, so it’s great for winter, and especially for those with Blood Deficiency (e.g. pale, dry skin, lips and tongue, dry scalp/hair, possible insomnia, dull headaches, and general achiness) and/or Kidney Yang weakness, which manifests as chronic, dull low back pain, frequent clear and copious urine, cold legs or overall body (do you wear more clothes than other people?), looser bowel movements, possible reproductive health issues. READ MORE
Spring is a time of rebirth, cleansing, and renewal. In Chinese medicine, Spring is the time of the Wood element, or ‘Liver’ energy system (TCM ‘Liver’ is not the same as your physical liver organ).
The ‘Liver’ circulates energy (Qi) and blood around your body and is responsible for clear vision and direction in life, creativity, assertion, calm, and regular menstruation. A balanced Liver is pivotal to the maintenance of good health, and one of the most susceptible to emotional stress.
Taking care of it preventatively can help avoid or reduce many chronic imbalances. In the face of life’s challenges and injustices, it is common to experience “Liver Qi Stagnation”, which feels like:
Physically
• body pains, stiffness and tension (especially neck, back and hips)
• digestive problems, e.g. bloating, heartburn, reflux, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, etc.
• PMS (premenstrual syndrome), breast distention, painful/irregular periods
• difficulty rising in the mornings
• a “wiry” (tense-feeling) pulse
Emotionally
• feeling frustrated, irritable, angered, negative, or depressed (if we suppress our anger)
• emotional ups and downs
• difficulty expressing ourselves or addressing conflicts constructively
• feeling stuck, uncreative, inflexible, or without a clear vision and purpose in life
A Quick Liver Stagnation Remedy
If you experience many of the above signs, this recipe is great to quickly stimulate the Liver out of its stagnancy.
If you have heat signs (red face, red, dry eyes, splitting headaches, insomnia, high blood pressure, dry constipation, etc.), replace the vinegar below with lemon or lime juice. This recipe is helpful in the short term but shouldn’t replace making longer-term dietary or lifestyle changes you want to make (for your Liver’s sake)
Ingredients
• 1 tsp unrefined vinegar (e.g. apple cider, brown rice, rice wine vinegar)
• 1 tsp raw honey
• 1 cup warm water
Keep a Happy Liver
The Liver is one of the most involved organs in emotional processing. How emotions affect our physical health and vice versa is an exciting area of research and exploration these days. Check out this article I wrote about emotions and your body.
So, how can we keep our ‘Liver’ (not the anatomical liver, by the way) systems happy this season?
• Laugh! Prioritize fun, relaxation, and enjoying the moment (meditation helps with this!)
• Find friends & safe spaces where we can assert and express ourselves (creatively too)
• Practice being thankful for what we have now, focusing less on what we are dissatisfied with
• Seek support/ways to let go of, move through, or find peace with old emotions. Remember that spring is a time of new beginnings, and the Liver gets stuck with holding old grudges.
• Yoga, tai chi, expressive movement, acupuncture, herbs and massage all move stuck Qi
Nutritionally, many people gravitate toward cleansing during the Spring. Speak to your TCM practitioner about what kind of cleanse would work best for your body type. Also ask about personalized herbal formulas that can help.
Eat Your Greens
Green is the colour of the Liver and Spring (according to Chinese Five Element theory).
Enjoy plenty of young plants, greens, sprouts, mung beans, radishes, and lightly cooked foods. Use less fats, salts, processed foods, and strong spices in cooking. Honeymint tea and herbs such as basil, rosemary, caraway, dill, bay leaf, fennel, chamomile, chrysanthemum, dandelion root, milk thistle seeds, peony root, lemon balm, peppermint, etc. are all helpful to balance the Liver.
Asparagus is one of the first vegetables ready for harvest in the spring. See below for delicious seasonal recipes to help your Liver Qi flow:
1. Warm Asparagus Salad with Basil + Mint Pistou
Enjoy! For a personalized Chinese medicine assessment, nutritional and other recommendations, contact me.
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Bundle up to get some winter outdoorsy time, even if your colours clash
Winter is the season of the “Kidney-Adrenal” energy system according to Traditional Chinese Medicine. The TCM Kidney-Adrenals (not the same as your physical kidneys, please note) are the foundation of all life energy the body. So winter is a time to focus inward, conserve energy, and nurture our long-term strength through rest, reflection and gentle exercise. Here is a beautiful reflection on embracing, not just enduring, this season.
Maintain your spirits and energy by layering up to get fresh air and sunshine, keeping your lower back and legs warm at all times (leggings, long johns, leg warmers, body warmers, fuzzy slippers, hot water bottles, etc!), and sleeping earlier. Dressing properly to protect your body’s Qi is vital not only to preventing colds and flus, but to preventing and healing from other chronic health imbalances.
Seasonal nutrition is another great way to take care of yourself. Chinese medicine dietary principles consider each individual’s balance, the season, the properties of the foods themselves and how we cook them. Come in for a personalized assessment and diet plan, or click here for more general info: 5 winter food tips, and some simple winter recipes!
Sometimes aches and pains are worse in the cold, so this year might be especially painful. Some types of low back pain, for example, can worsen in the winter. If low back pain is chronic, it is also often associated with the Kidney-Adrenal energetic system. Support your low back with qi gong exercise, gentle stretching and strengthening, rest, acupuncture, moxibustion and Chinese medicine. Click here for an article I wrote about low back pain.
I spent a wonderful 10 days over the holidays volunteering at the Ontario Vipassana Meditation Centre and highly recommend the experience. Check out my meditation resource sheet, or ask me for details.
Acupuncture and Chinese medicine are excellent for maintaining your energy and immune levels, minimize aches and pains, and balance yourself emotionally. In my clinic, I like to use a lot of moxibustion (mugwort) during winter acupuncture, as it deeply warms the acupuncture meridians and gives more energy to the body that way. You can use moxibustion on your own at home. If you’re not sure how to, or want to discuss what would benefit you the most, consider getting a custom consultation or treatment. I also offer a free 15 minute phone consultation for new patients.
Got your own ideas for surviving and thriving in the winter season? Add them in the Comments below to share with others… thanks!
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NOTE: The info below is for general information only. It doesn’t replace a personalized assessment and a therapeutic food plan specific for your constitution (yin/yang, hot/cool, dry/moist, organ system balances, etc.). A more personalized Chinese medicine therapeutic diet should take priority over these general seasonal suggestions, especially to address specific health concerns.
Click here for a few winter recipes!
1) How we eat is at least as important as what. Enjoyment and mindful eating (paying full attention to tastes, textures, smells, etc. while eating) is the single best ‘dietary’ change we can make. A keen ear for your body’s messages is more important than memorizing all the rules in a nutrition textbook.
Relaxed eating is good from both the Chinese medicine and Western biomedicine point of view. When you’re stressed and in ‘sympathetic nervous system’ (i.e. ‘fight or flight’ mode), your body shifts blood circulation away from digestive functions. Stress reduces stomach acid levels, hampering digestion and absorption. In Chinese medicine, not only stress but any ‘pensiveness’ interferes with digestion (you digest ‘thoughts’ as well as the food). So, don’t stress about what you eat! Nourish yourself with a kind, loving, accepting, and gentle attitude. Eat a slow meal while relaxing and enjoying the food – deliciousness and joy is important for nutrition too!
2) Include the 5 flavours daily, but slightly more salty and bitter flavours in the winter. The 5 flavours are: sweet, salty, sour, pungent (a.k.a. acrid/spicy), and bitter. The ‘sweet’ flavour means the ‘full sweet’ tastes of grains, vegetables, etc. (not ’empty sweets’ of sugars, desserts, etc.), and this flavour should predominate in all seasons. In the winter, however, a slight increase in the salty and bitter flavours can benefit the Kidney-adrenals and the Heart (closely tied to our mental-emotional state). Some foods with bitter (and other) tastes include: kale, turnip, celery, asparagus, burdock root, carrot top, lettuce, watercress, parsley, endive, rye, oats, quinoa, chicory root, and many herbs. Salty foods include seaweeds, salt, millet, barley, miso, etc.
3) Eat to minimize ‘Dampness.‘ Dampness = fluid where it’s not supposed to be. This can manifest in phlegm/mucus problems, foggy thinking, edema, cysts, tumours, yeasts, low immunity, feeling heavy/sluggish/foggy (physically and mentally), etc. Dampness impairs your digestive ‘fire’ and overall warmth/energy; and it contributes to allergies, low immunity, and chronic illnesses.
Damp-causing foods include: dairy (especially cow), almost all sugars (including most fruit), wheat (sprouting helps), overly-salty food, meats and eggs, most fats and oils, yeasted breads, alcohol (i.e. liquid sugar), food that is hard to digest (raw, cold, inadequately chewed, etc.), and refined, processed, stale or rancid food (including most commercially shelled nuts and seeds, especially peanuts).
Eating excessive amounts, too quickly, overly complex meals, and late at night also contribute to Dampness, as do toxins, anxiety and worry.
4) Eat warmer and protect your digestive & life fire. In winter, it is best to cook foods longer, at lower temperatures, and using less water. These factors increase the meal’s warming qualities. Making your food “warmer” and easier to digest will preserve your ‘digestive fire’ and help you absorb more nutrients.
Easier to digest = (1) at least slightly cooked or broken down, (2) in moderate amounts (“until 70% full”), in simple combinations (unless all cooked in the same pot like a stew or soup), (3) warm in temperature, and (4) well-chewed.
If you have cold signs, eat warming foods such as oats, parsnips, mustard greens, winter squash, butter, quinoa, walnuts, onion family, chicken, lamb, trout and salmon. Warming spices include dried ginger, cinnamon, cloves, fenugreek seeds, fennel. Food that is too ‘hot‘ actually releases warmth and cools you (e.g. chilies, hot peppers).
5) Be Kind to your Kidneys. Eat dried foods, small dark beans (adzuki, black beans, etc.), seaweeds, steamed winter greens, millet, barley, legumes, goji berries, and black/blue foods, which are good for the Kidney-Adrenals. Avoid toxins in food and water, intoxicants and environmentally, sleep early, don’t overwork, keep your low back, legs and feet warm, and make sure to get plenty of rest. Check out these basic Qi Gong exercises to support the Kidney-Adrenals!
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Winter Warming Breakfast Cereal
This quick breakfast can warm you from the inside out, strengthen the foundation of your body’s energy, and having you ready to face the cold weather outside!
Chinese Medicine agrees with the adage that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. 7:00 to 9:00 am is the time of the day when energy concentrates in our Stomach. Our Yang (active, warming) energy is growing at that time in the morning, and we need good fuel to support the rest of the day. Here’s some basic steps to make a quick, nutritious hot cereal to support your Kidney-Adrenal system and to warm the body.
Optional prep:
Main recipe:
Variations:
Cooked Pressed Winter Salad
From Paul Pitchford, Healing with Whole Foods.
Roasted Brussel Sprouts
Did you know brussel sprouts can be absolutely delicious? They’re a perfect winter green, hardy and hearty, and I’ve surprised many people by making them delicious and desirable.
As members of the Brassica family (including broccoli, kale, turnip, cauliflower, cabbage, etc.), in Chinese medicine’s view, they help move Liver Qi Stagnation – this means they have a mild effect on improving and unblocking energy circulation. Qi Stagnation is a very common factor in imbalances, pains, and chronic illness. The National Cancer Institute in the US recommends Brassica vegetables for its anti-cancer, antioxidant properties.
Generally, you wash and cut the brussel sprouts in half, season them, and roast for about 25 minutes on 375F, turning once or twice for even roasting. Check on them: you’ll want them tender and still somewhat bright green, not overcooked and dull-looking. Here are my favourite ways of seasoning (do this before cooking):
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As the temperatures continue to change suddenly, one of winter’s challenges is fending off the colds and flus that makes their rounds in our communities. Most people don’t realize how effective Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is for preventing and treating these ailments, so keep reading for info, tips and nutritional advice. Years ago, I had a severe cold almost monthly, followed by coughs that would persist for weeks. Now, thanks largely to TCM, I only get a mild almost-cold once or twice a year, and am usually able to ward it off very early. Less sick days = more productive and fun days!
We take colds, flus and coughs seriously!
Out of all the audacious claims any medicine can make, I feel it’s safe to say that TCM understands colds, flus, and coughs well. One of the earliest medical texts in China (and the world) analyzed colds and flus, it’s causes, stages, levels in the body, and consequences if left untreated. The text has 397 sections and 112 herbal prescriptions – just to give you an idea of the level of detail! Modern research continues to update this knowledge and has also examined the anti-viral and anti-biotic properties of specific herbs, some of which are incredibly effective.
While many people consider colds to be temporary annoyances, TCM has also analyzed what happens when the original pathogen (i.e. the virus or bacteria) manages to lodge deeper into the body. This can lead to well-known complications such as bronchitis and pneumonia, but also to lesser-known, chronic struggles with allergies, ear infections, insomnia, chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia, chronic coughs and sinusitis, anxiety or depression, lympatic congestion, digestive difficulties, autoimmune disorders, arthritis, cancer, MS, diabetes, and much more. Indeed, some biomedical research has also begun to find evidence that some of the many illnesses classified as idiopathic (without known cause) may actually be traceable to an initial infection.
This is not to alarm you, but to explain why even the common cold is taken seriously in TCM! Today we have acupuncture, herbal and even tuina (therapeutic massage) prescriptions for the many different types and stages of colds/flus/coughs, and always take into account the individual’s pre-existing state of health. These approaches go beyond simple symptomatic treatment, address the ‘whole picture’, and bring your body back into overall balance without side effects such as impaired digestion (a frequent result of antibiotic use).
Prevention: Protect your Qi!
As usual in this medicine, one size doesn’t fit all: frequency, type and severity of your cold/flu will depend not only on the ‘bug’ you’ve caught, but also largely on your pre-existing balance and state of immunity. Catching a cold or flu is seen as a situation where outside pathogens (we call them “Wind”, “Cold”, “Heat”, “Dampness”, etc.) manage to overcome the body’s “defensive Qi” (similar to the concept of “immune system”) and end up battling the body’s own “righteous Qi”.
Because the pre-existing condition of your body’s own Qi is so important in this analysis, you can help prevent colds and flus by:
Protect your body’s Qi – dress warmly! Many people in our car-oriented culture don’t wear many layers in the winter. This horrifies some of my colleagues from China, where apparently they layer much more. In my practice, I’ve noticed many clients’ symptoms worsen in the winter, partly because Cold reduces circulation (increases stagnation/pain, etc.) and requires more Qi to warm the body and maintain functioning (so problems due to weak Qi get aggravated).
As winter is the season of the Kidneys, it’s especially useful to wear warmer layers on the legs and lower back.
Cover your skin to protect yourself from wind exposure, especially your neck and upper back.
Get lots of rest and sleep, and get it earlier if possible (if you can be in bed by 10 pm, that is excellent for the body, especially in the winter). Slow down – are you so busy that you’re always using more Qi than you replenish (through sleep, good whole foods, etc.), and relying on coffee to keep going?
Emotions are a major factor in the state of your Qi. Minimize any Qi-draining relationships, social obligations, etc. Let go of emotional stressors as much as possible, or find tools and resources for coping with them (see my Resources page for Counselling and Meditation resource lists).
Minimize spread of pathogens by washing your hands regularly, and being mindful not to rub your eyes or handle food without cleaning them
Exercise moderately and regularly to keep the Qi and Yang flowing, and to keep your pores opening and closing properly.
Using moxibustion on yourself, taking an appropriate Chinese herbal formula, or going for acupuncture sessions regularly can also make a big difference in supporting your Qi
Eat with the season. As the weather gets colder, eat more warm, cooked foods, and cook them for longer periods of time (e.g. roasting, baking, slow-cooker). Raw salads, cold sandwiches, and cold cereals in the morning can all impair your body’s ability to produce strong Qi.
Minimize mucus-producing foods such as dairy; alcohol; sugar; wheat; refined breads, pastas and rices; fried foods; cold temperature and raw foods, etc. Pre-existing mucus in your system is a major factor in developing stuffy noses, phlegmy coughs, etc.
I have other general lifestyle tips, and a qi gong exercise, for Winter Yin/Yang balance in my handout on “Winter Wisdom from TCM”
Coming Down with Something? The Early Stage
Sore or scratchy throat? Fatigue, headache? Feeling under the weather and wanting to avoid windy areas? Maybe a mild fever or chills? It feels a bit different for everyone, but when you start to feel the very beginnings of a cold/flu, the best strategy is to ‘sweat it out‘. Certain foods such as “cong bai“, i.e. scallion / green onion (see picture — the most important part is the white part of the stalk), peppermint or mulberry leaf (good for when you have an early stage sore throat or early cough), ginger (good for when you feel chills, thin phlegm, and have no sore throat), etc. are used at this stage. Make a hot tea out of some of these ingredients, take a warm bath and then get under the covers to sweat sweat sweat! Make sure you replenish your sweat with lots of fluids.
For children, you can make a paste out of cong bai and fresh ginger, and put it in their belly button or rub it onto their chest. To encourage them to eat it, you can combine with brown sugar. These foods also work well in a chicken soup with garlic.
Some people swear by Vitamin C, Vitamin D, etc. but as this is not exactly Chinese medicine, I won’t speak much of these here, other than to say some non-citrus food sources of Vitamin C include sweet bell peppers, tomato juice, sweet peas, berries, potatoes, watercress, brussel sprouts, cabbage and broccoli. Citrus fruits and juices, which many take for the Vitamin C, can contribute toward phlegm.
You can also help ward off the cold, or make it pass faster, by getting daily acupuncture for 3 days in a row, and by getting an herbal formula prescribed to match your symptoms. Many Chinese herbs have much stronger diaphoretic and cold-dispelling properties than the foods listed above, if you’re willing and able to search beyond a regular supermarket!
Too late? The full-blown cold and the cough that never ends
When your cold involves some kind of phlegm or mucus (in your nose, throat or lungs), it’s best to avoid mucus-producing foods, as mentioned above (dairy; alcohol; sugar; wheat; refined breads, pastas and rices; fried foods; etc.).
Rest is most important, as is an adequate fluid intake. Herbs, acupuncture (and other hands-on treatments done by TCM acupuncturists, such as cupping and guasha) can be extremely effective, especially for colds that turn into a continuous cough. (There are days in the winter when I do cupping on several coughing people in a row!) Nutrition can go a long way too, such as a congee or chicken soup that includes certain foods and herbs. Congee is excellent for recovery from many types of imbalances.
Especially if your cold doesn’t go away on its own after a couple days, or even gets worse, go to a TCM practitioner to get an assessment and personalized prescription for exactly your type of cold, flu or cough. Even a few days of herbs can often make all the difference in your pace of recovery.
As I mentioned, Chinese medicine has identified many different types and categories of these illnesses, so giving general advice is difficult for me.
However, for those who end up with sore throats and coughs, try this soothing Pear Tea Recipe:
Self-Acupressure for Cold Symptoms
Less time feeling sick means more time having fun
Colds and flus are a reality in our climate, but they can be less of a drag on your and your family’s well-being. Protect your Qi, or even boost it with a incorporating self-care into your lifestyle, getting regular treatments, and eating appropriately for your body’s own balance. Take care of your body, mind, emotions and spirit year-round, and you will find it easier to cope happily and energetically with the change of seasons.
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pauline sok yin hwang 黄淑燕 