“Food is the paramount necessity of the people”. Diet is the foundation of health preservation, and its core principle is “light, balanced and syndrome differentiation”, rather than blindly following the trend of “abstinence from certain foods” or “tonic”. People with different constitutions have different ways of dietary regulation. Blind tonic will only be counterproductive and increase the body’s burden.
First of all, the diet should follow the principle of “mainly light, less salt, less sugar and less oil”: daily reduce the intake of high-salt, high-sugar and high-oil foods, and eat less fried, pickled and spicy foods. These foods will increase the burden on the gastrointestinal tract and induce obesity, hypertension, gastrointestinal diseases, etc.; eat more fresh vegetables and fruits to supplement vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber, promote intestinal peristalsis and help eliminate toxins in the body; take coarse grains as the staple food, such as millet, oats, corn, brown rice, etc., instead of part of refined rice and flour. It can not only increase satiety, but also supplement dietary fiber and prevent constipation.
Secondly, it is necessary to regulate according to your own constitution: people with qi deficiency constitution (who are usually prone to fatigue, shortness of breath and excessive sweating) can eat more qi-tonifying foods, such as Chinese yam, astragalus, red dates, longan, chicken, etc., and avoid cold and cool foods; people with yin deficiency constitution (dry mouth and tongue, hot palms and soles, insomnia and dreaminess) can eat more yin-nourishing and dryness-relieving foods, such as tremella, lily, lotus seeds, pears, honey, etc., and eat less spicy and hot foods; people with yang deficiency constitution (afraid of cold, cold hands and feet, loose stools) can eat more warm foods, such as mutton, beef, ginger, walnuts, etc., and avoid cold foods; people with damp-heat constitution (bitter mouth and bad breath, thick and greasy tongue coating, sticky stools) can eat more heat-clearing and dampness-eliminating foods, such as winter melon, coix seed, mung bean, celery, etc., and eat less greasy and sweet foods.
In addition, pay attention to “regular and quantitative three meals” in diet, avoid overeating, and eat until 70% or 80% full each meal; chew slowly when eating to help gastrointestinal digestion and absorption; drink plenty of water, ensure 1500-2000 milliliters of warm water every day, and avoid replacing warm water with beverages, strong tea and coffee. Especially drinking a glass of warm water on an empty stomach in the morning can wake up the gastrointestinal tract and promote metabolism.
