Good health comes from eating the right foods and leading a physically active lifestyle. With the variety of food available in the supermarket, how do you choose what benefits you and your family?
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, it is believed that eating according to the seasons will get you the best results for optimal health. We may not have all four seasons like other parts of the world, but our bodies are still very well in tune with weather changes.
Spring is the season of growth and fresh beginnings! It is suggested that we reduce the intake of sour flavours while increasing consumption of sweet and pungent flavours for a more robust liver.
Try:onions, leeks, leaf mustard, Chinese yam, wheat, dates, cilantro, mushrooms, spinach and bamboo shoots.
Feel more energized when the sun is out? It's no coincidence! The heat, combined with our rainy climate, however, may make a person more irritable and turn restless. Foods with sour and salty flavours may help ease these symptoms!
Try these foods to keep your body cool and balanced, too: bitter gourd, watermelon, strawberries, tomatoes, mung beans, cucumbers, wax gourd, lotus root, lotus seed, Job's tears, beansprouts, duck and fish.
As the weather turns pleasantly cool in the third quarter of the year, nourish your lungs and prevent excessive loss of body fluids.
Try: lily bulb, white fungus, nuts or seeds, pear, lotus root, pumpkin, honey, soy milk and dairy products.
Try more foods with sour flavours, such as: pineapple, apple, grapefruit and lemon. It would be an interesting idea too, if you could incorporate these foods into your breakfast juices or evening soups!
As the weather turns cold for winter season, consume more energising herbs such as ginseng and wolfberry. During this time, eating foods that are bitter encourages healthier heart functions and lowers your kidney's stress levels.
Try: apricot, asparagus, celery, coffee, tea, grapefruit and kale.
If you've overindulged in the holiday season and suffer from dry throat, bad breath, constipation and general heatiness, try some foods to reduce the excessive heat: bananas, pears, water chestnuts, sugar cane, celery and cucumber.
Too many to remember? It's easier than you think! Simply eat whatever grows naturally in a particular season, just like nature intended. Check out our Thermos® recipes that use some of these wholesome ingredients for different seasons: Chicken Stew With Black Mushroom for spring, Pumpkin Soup for autumn, and Apricot Jasmine Tea for winter.
