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All foods can be classified according to the two main Yin, Yang categories, although balanced food is classified under another list that of Neutral Foods (balanced Yin∫Yang). These classifications are the result of considerations which have to do with the energy (temperature, seen as a continuum going from hot to very cold), taste (sweet, spicy, salty, sour and bitter) and with the movement (floating, sinking etc) of each foodstuff.
1. The ‘four energies (qualities)’are: hot, warm, temperate, cool and cold. Hot and warm foods are strengthening and warm up the body. When the winter comes and with it the winter chills, it is therefore advisable to consume warm or hot foods to invigorate the organism and push the cold away from it. Yang foods, as lamb or beef, cinnamon, ginger, garlic etc. as well as hot soups should be preferred in this time. If a person suffers from pain aggravated by cold warm or hot foods may relieve it. Cool and cold foods, on the other hand, are cleansing and cool the body gently. When running a fever, for instance, people should consume cool foods like water or Chinese pears to reduce it. If someone suffers from skin eruptions which become worse in the summer heat, this may be also be relieved by eating cooler foods, like water melon or Chinese pears (very juicy and hard).
Yin | Yin | Balanced | Yang | Yang
| Cold | Cool | Temperate | Warm | Hot |
Vegetables: Bamboo shoots, lotus root, water chestnut, lettuce, sea grass, seaweed, Fruit: watermelon, banana, grapefruit, muskmelon, star fruit, persimmon, , Sea food: clam, crab, Sweeteners: sugar cane Seasoning: kelp, salt |
Fruit: Apple, loquat, mandarin, orange, pear, strawberry, tangerine Vegetables; common button mushroom, radish, spinach, cucumber, eggplant, Job's tears, lily flower, marjoram, peppermint, mug beans Cereals: wheat, wheat bran, barley bean Sea food: oyster, Meat: chicken, Dairy: egg, cheese bean curd cream, yogurt Oils: sesame oil |
Vegetables and beans: Corn, , beetroot, black mushroom, potato, pumpkin, radish leaf , horse bean, olive, kidney bean, black sesame seed, black soybean, red bean, cabbage, sweet potato, white mushroom, yellow soybean, liquorice, sour plum, (Chinese), carrot, Japanese mushroom, castor bean, celery , sunflower seed Fruit: papaya, pineapple, lotus fruit and seed, plum, fig, apricot, grape, dry mandarin orange peel, peanuts Meat: chicken, duck, beef, pork,, Fish: abalone, carp, oyster, cuttlefish, Dairy: milk, egg yolk, Cereals: rice, rice bran, sweet rice, Sweeteners: honey, sugar |
Herbs and vegetables: Apricot seed, caraway, squash, cinnamon twig, coriander (Chinese parsley), chive, clove, star anise, sweet basil, dill seed, fennel, garlic, ginger (fresh), green onion, leek, ginseng, leaf mustard, nutmeg, walnut, spearmint, rosemary Fruit: cherry, raspberry, chestnut coconut, date, peach, grapefruit peel, guava, kumquat, lychee, fruits Meat: mutton, ham, chicken Fish: shrimp, eel, carp Seasonings: vinegar, brown sugar, maltose Others: tobacco, coffee, wine |
Spices: Cinnamon bark, pepper, cottonseed, dried ginger, red and green pepper Oils: soybean oil. |
People who eat more Yin foods tend to have more Yin energy. Their energy in other words, is slower, colder and inhibited. On the contrary, people who eat more Yang foods, tend to have more Yang energy. Their energy, in other words is hot, fast and outgoing. 2. The ‘five tastes’ and their actions are summarized in the table below: Organs | Taste | Actions | Examples of foods | Urinary Bladder Kidney | Salty | It dissolves masses and t is purgative | Most sea foods, bean curd, egg, crab | Gall Bladder Liver | Sour | The astringent properties retain fluids loss (helpful in perspiration, diarrhoea etc. | Chicken, tomatoes, lemon | Small Intestine Heart | Bitter | Calms body heat, helps defecation | Celery, chicory, kale | Stomach Spleen/Pancres | Sweet | Strengthening, smoothes and calms the liver in stress situations | Dates, honey sugar | Large Intestine Lungs | Spicy | Helps perspiration and makes the energy circulate | Onions, garlic, ginger |
3. Food movements and their significance are summarised in the table below:
Food movement |
Function helped |
Healing properties |
Food example |
Taste, and temperature (average) | Uplifting | Moves upwards from the lower part of the body | This works against all descending illnesses like ‘prolapsed anus, uterus, organs etc, haemorrhage, diarrhoea |
Alcohol |
Warm / hot, pungent/ sweet | Floating | Moves to the surface of the body from the inside | Promote perspiration and can reduce fever |
Ginger | Descending | Moves from the upper part of the body to the lower | This works against all ‘ascending’ illnesses like vomit, belching, hiccup |
Salt |
Cool / cold, sour /bitter /salty in flavour. | Sinking | Moves from the surface to the interior of the body | It helps to concentrate energy inside the body and promote movement in otherwise sluggish or stuck organs. |
Vinegar |
To have a balanced diet, from this perspective, the diet should take into account the energy, the taste and the movement of food. As a general rule, it is good that a balanced mixture of warm and cool foods as well as all five tastes is always present on the table. Constitution Constitution plays an important role in establishing the kind of foods most suitable for each individual. People who tend to have a more Yin constitution (therefore colder and wetter) may benefit from consuming more Yang foods whereas, on the contrary, people who tend to have a more Yang constitution (warmer and drier) may need to consume more Yin foods (cooling and moistening). Depending, further, on the element which dominates them (water, wood, fire, soil, metal) people may need to reduce or increase one of the five tastes in their diet.
Water | This people have a delicate body and can very easily feel cold especially in their limbs. This leads them to prefer to eat warm, cooked food and drink warm teas. They have a pale complexion, abundant and transparent urine, soft, cream like stools and, sometimes, diarrhoea. They are healthy cautious, capable of having original ideas, powerful and wilful. They can, however, also be over-fearful. They are often tired and may lack will power. Normally dislike winter and cold temperatures. | Wood | This people’ body is rather muscular and flexible, they move lightly, but with sense of direction. They are very capable of planning, organizing and making decisions which they can turn into action. Their strong vision of the future makes them capable of being ahead of their times in whatever they undertake and be assertive. They can however, become inflexible and over-judgemental, rigid and intolerant, and their vision can be totally obstructed to the point that they may even loose the sense of purpose in life. | Fire | This people’s body tends to be stronger at the top than at the bottom, they feel hot easily and normally dress lightly, feel thirsty and may want to drink lots of ice cold liquids. Their face tends to be reddish. As far as their personality is concerned, they are spontaneous, have a good sense of humour; they can be great leaders by inspiring others. They are sensitive to other people’s feelings and, generally, optimistic. They may, however, be too jovial or crave too much ‘stage’. By and large they are characterized by qualities of creativity and warmth They might suffer from insomnia, constipation and, also, might have scanty, yellow urine. These people may be unable to handle high temperatures and, by enlarge, prefer cooler weather | Earth | . These people are normally quite ‘round’ and hold firmly on their legs. It can be that the lower part of the body is more solid than the upper part. They may feel heavy, bloated, swollen, dizzy and tired in their muscles. They easily become overweight both because they have a tendency to eat sweet foods, and because of water retention. They are great carers and compassionate, understanding and stable, but can also overwhelm other with excessive worry for their well being. They normally dislike damp weather. | Metal | This people‘s body is rather emancipated, they do not put on weight easily and are not big eaters. They are often ‘dry’ not only I their skin, eyes, nose, ears and so on, but also in their personality. They have a good sense of values and are honest and correct in their dealing. They also have a great sense of aesthetics. On the other hand, when hurt they may cut themselves off and prefer to be alone. They may suffer from dry stools and dislike too dry weather conditions | Balanced | This people look healthy and have a pinkish skin colour, normal appetite, sleep well and are not overwhelmed by weather conditions. Their tongue is pinkish with a thin coating and their emotions and thoughts harmonious. |
In the case of case of illness, food can also be used as medicine. In this case a proper diagnosis aimed at establishing the Yin or Yang (hot, cold, deficient, excess etc) nature of an illness has to be performed, before the right food can be prescribed. It goes without saying that each case is unique and should be dealt with by taking into account not the symptoms but the whole picture presented by the individual patient. ‘Neutral Foods’ are temperate and have a fairly neutral taste. They are quite versatile, in as much as they are suited to a larger number of people and are easier to manage in illness. Illness should not be confused with constitution, although it may well happen that one’s constitution makes someone more susceptible to a specific kind of energetic disharmony which then leads to a real illness. It must also be noted that a disease is simply a manifestation of an underlying cause, which should be treated accordingly. Cooking methods Even when the right food has been chosen, cooking can both enhance its properties and totally destroy them. Cooking methods are especially useful in balancing the qualities of some food stuffs when this are too extreme and the person can not tolerate them easily. Cooking methods also are also subdivided into Yin and Yang categories depending on the amount of water used in the cooking and the amount of heat needed for it. In this way, Yin food can be made more Yang through either deep frying, roasting or stir frying. Likewise, Yang food can be made more Yin by boiling, poaching or steaming it. Yin Cooking | Boiling | Poaching | Steaming
| Yang Cooking | Deep frying
| Roasting
| Stir frying |
Another way of creating a healthy diet is that of selecting the food according to the season: if people use seasonal food, they can be more in tune with the energy of the season and in harmony with the environment. In this way it is possible to adapt better to changes and maintain one’s health. When eating according to the season the basic principle is that of "upholding the Yang in spring and summer time, and feeding Yin in autumn and winter time”. Eating food in season and grown locally ensures that this principle is applied throughout.
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