as the years roll on
Your health password is hidden in the 24 solar terms.
Guangming Daily reporter Qin Weili
Beginning of spring season, the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics. On the night of the opening ceremony, when everything is revived and spring returns to the earth, with unprecedented pomp and circumstance, the 24 solar terms, the crystallization of wisdom passed down by the Chinese nation for thousands of years, are displayed in front of the world together with exquisite scrolls.
Twenty-four solar terms are a time knowledge system and practice formed by observing the annual movement of the sun in Chinese. After the formation of the Yellow River Basin, it was gradually popularized as a production and life time guide for farming society. The resulting seasonal culture and health-preserving culture have gradually become an important part of Chinese traditional culture. Many of them still have positive guiding significance to human health in modern society. February 19th is the second solar term rain of the 24 solar terms. The reporter interviewed experts and scholars and compiled a health guide for the 24 solar terms for everyone.
In spring, there are degrees, less acid, more sweetness, more movement, more optimism.
Beginning of spring is the first of the 24 solar terms, which symbolizes the beginning of spring. There is a folk custom of "biting spring" by eating radish. In the view of Professor Chen Diping, the leader of the discipline of TCM health preservation in Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, spring is the season when the human body’s yang rises, so we should eat more sweet and divergent foods, and radish just meets this demand. At the same time, radish has the effects of promoting digestion, invigorating spleen, moistening lung and resolving phlegm, which has a positive effect on preventing digestive problems caused by excessive edible oil and insufficient exercise during the Spring Festival.
February 18th or 19th every year is a rain solar term, which is one of the solar terms with the most cold waves in the whole year, and it is prone to the phenomenon of "cold in spring". The folks are known as "the spring covers the autumn and freezes". "Sun Simiao mentioned in" A Thousand Daughters Should Be Prescribed "that clothes should be appropriate in spring ‘ Thick on the bottom and thin on the top ’ Pay attention to keep your lower body warm. Of course not ‘ Spring cover ’ It also depends on the weather, ‘ Wu ’ The degree of warmth should be based on your own feelings, and it is appropriate not to sweat. " Chen Diping reminded.
Before and after the fright, the temperature rises fastest in the whole year, and some folk areas have the custom of eating pears. "This actually has a certain scientific basis. The increase in rainfall in most areas is limited, and the climate is relatively dry, so it is easy to get thirsty and cough due to exogenous factors. Pear is cold and sweet, and has the effects of clearing away heat and nourishing yin, relieving sore throat and promoting fluid production, moistening lung and relieving cough. " Chen Diping said, "At the same time, pears are rich in fruit acid, iron and vitamins, which are especially suitable for this season. However, for people with deficiency of spleen and stomach and loose stool, pears should not be eaten. When eating pears, it is recommended to cook rock sugar, which can not only avoid the cold food, but also help to moisten the stomach and lungs. "
The vernal equinox is a period in which yin and yang are balanced, day and night are equal, and cold and temperature are half. Chen Diping introduced that the human body’s yang in the spring equinox season conforms to nature and has the characteristics of rising upward and outward. Confucius said, "From time to time, don’t eat". At this time, it is most timely to eat fresh shepherd’s purse, spring leek, willow bud, Chinese toon bud, Malantou, spring bamboo shoots, asparagus, carrots and other spring bud foods. However, we should pay attention to too much, and pay attention to balance and moderation in diet.
Qingming means that the sky is clear and the earth is clear. When it is clear, the rising of the sun’s spirit begins to show an accelerated state, bringing more "living" energy to everything. Qingming Festival is also a traditional festival in China to pay homage to ancestors. It is inevitable to be sad and overthinking to pay homage to ancestors and miss old friends. Chen Diping suggested that white tea, green tea (a small amount), chrysanthemum tea and jasmine tea are good drinks for health, which will help to reconcile emotions and soothe the liver and stomach. Of course, Tomb-Sweeping Day is also an outing festival. It is also a kind of relaxation to have an outing while offering sacrifices and sweeping. In some areas of Tomb-Sweeping Day, there are customs of eating raw and cold food, rice cakes, green balls, etc. Chen Diping reminded that these cold, greasy and sticky products are easy to hurt the stomach yang, and should be eaten as little as possible.
Grain Rain is the last solar term in spring, which originated from the ancient saying that "rain gives birth to hundreds of valleys". During Grain Rain, the pollen and other particles in the air are higher than usual, which is the most likely to cause allergic symptoms. Chen Diping reminded that people with allergies should choose outdoor sports at the lowest pollen index as far as possible, such as early morning or after a shower. With the approach of summer, there are many spring rains in the south and other places. In spring, it is necessary to keep the room clean, avoid microbial growth, and pay attention to wind and dehumidification.
Reasonable cooling in summer, balanced diet, healthy exercise and hydration in the morning and evening.
May 5th or 6th every year is long summer. People used to regard long summer as an important solar term with obvious temperature rise, approaching summer heat and more thunderstorms. Li Qizhong, a professor at Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said that bitter foods, such as bitter gourd, bitter vegetables and green tea, can be properly supplemented in summer. Bitter foods can reduce fire and damp, nourish the heart and clear heat. Modern research also shows that alkaloids contained in bitter food have the functions of diminishing inflammation, reducing fever, promoting blood circulation and relaxing blood vessels.
Xiaoman means that the seeds of summer crops have borne fruit and started to fill full, but they are not yet mature. Xiaoman also indicates that the sultry and humid summer is coming. People often think that after the weather turns hot, the diet should be light, blindly follow the light route, eat less or even not eat more nutritious food, but the combination of meat and vegetables and reasonable nutrition is the correct way to keep fit. Li Qizhong reminded that in Xiaoman season, everything flourishes and grows most vigorously, and human physiological activities consume the most nutrients. Therefore, timely and appropriate nutrition supplementation can protect the internal organs from damage.
The word "awn seeds" means "the wheat with awn is harvested quickly, and the rice with awn can be planted". "Miscanthus" is also called "busy planting", which indicates that farmers have started a busy field life. At this time, the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River in China began to enter the rainy season, the air was very humid, the weather was very sultry, all kinds of articles were prone to mildew, and mosquitoes began to breed. According to Deng Cong, director of Nansha Hospital of Guangzhou No.1 People’s Hospital, moisture is pervasive during the awning season, and some people will choose to close doors and windows to prevent moisture, which will accelerate the reproduction of fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms and affect the indoor environment and human health. The correct way is to open the window often to keep the indoor air fresh, and those who have conditions can use air conditioning to dehumidify.
The summer solstice is the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, and the surface heat is still accumulating, but it has not reached the strongest. However, heatstroke prevention and cooling have been put on the agenda, among which drinking mung bean soup is one of the most common methods to relieve summer heat. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that mung bean is sweet and cool, non-toxic, and has the effects of clearing away heat and toxic materials, relieving summer heat and relieving annoyance, quenching thirst and strengthening stomach, promoting diuresis and relieving swelling. "But people with spleen and stomach deficiency or cold constitution should not use it. In addition, people who suffer from iron deficiency anemia and take iron are also forbidden to eat mung beans. Because mung beans are rich in phosphorus, it is not conducive to the human body’s absorption of iron. " Li Qizhong reminded.
Summer solar terms, the temperature continues to rise, followed by dog days. There is a saying among the people that "summer training is in the dog days". Li Qizhong reminded that, as far as individuals are concerned, whether it is traditional health-keeping exercises or modern sports, it is the basic principle to do according to one’s ability and aerobic exercise. You must not be obsessed with "summer training is in the dog days" and act forcefully, so as to avoid exhaustion, exhaustion and even heatstroke and fainting. In addition, working in a high temperature environment for too long, being exposed to the sun for too long in summer, and the difficulty of heat dissipation caused by crowds are easy to cause heatstroke. Li Qizhong suggested that to prevent heatstroke, it is necessary to arrange the work and rest schedule reasonably, take heatstroke prevention measures when going out, drink more cold salt and boiled water, mung bean soup, etc., and take Huoxiang Zhengqi water to prevent it if necessary.
The summer solar term is just before and after the "mid-summer", which is the hottest period of the year, and cooling down has become a top priority. Nowadays, heatstroke prevention and cooling are inseparable from air conditioning, but Li Qizhong reminded that long-term use of air conditioning can easily make the air mobility in the room worse, leading to microbial growth, and excessive temperature difference between indoor and outdoor can easily lead to colds. Therefore, we should pay attention to reducing the temperature difference between indoor and outdoor, change wet clothes and dry sweat in time when entering the air-conditioned room, and avoid standing in front of the air-conditioned outlet. Of course, natural ventilation is the most ideal for cooling rooms in summer.
Autumn tonic properly prevents dryness and cold, goes to bed early and gets up early to get out of autumn depression.
Beginning of autumn means the beginning of autumn. Although there is still the afterglow of "autumn tiger", the overall trend is gradually cooling. There is a saying among the people that "it is good for autumn" and "beginning of autumn supplements". Wu Yichun, deputy chief physician of Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said that beginning of autumn’s tonic depends on his physical fitness, and not everyone needs it. Nowadays, with the improvement of living standards, most people’s physical condition is in a state of overnutrition. At this time, if you eat food with higher calories, your body will not be able to eat it.
August 23 or 24 of each year is the summer, and "Chu" means termination, indicating that the summer is about to pass. The summer season is an allergic period. As the saying goes, "When autumn comes, rhinitis is troublesome." Every year, when summer and autumn alternate, the temperature drops, and some people will have allergic rhinitis symptoms such as itchy nose, stuffy nose, sneezing and runny nose. Wu Yichun suggested that under the guidance of doctors, we should standardize and systematically use anti-allergic drugs to control symptoms, and cooperate with Chinese medicine prescriptions and other Chinese medicine therapies to treat symptoms. At the same time, we must pay attention to strengthening exercise, preventing cold and keeping warm, and enhancing immunity.
After the Millennium, the temperature began to drop, the weather turned cold, and there was dew on the vegetation in the morning. There is a saying that "Don’t show your body in the white dew", and there is also a saying among the people that "spring covers your face and autumn freezes". Regarding these two contradictory statements, Wu Yichun pointed out that autumn freezing cannot be simply understood as wearing less clothes, but should be scientifically "autumn freezing". In early autumn, freezing is good for health. In late autumn, when the temperature drops, it will be counterproductive to insist on "autumn freezing" blindly. Moreover, patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, chronic stomach diseases, respiratory diseases, arthritis and diabetes, as well as the elderly with poor body regulation function and infants who are growing and developing are strictly prohibited from "autumn freezing".
The autumnal equinox, also known as falling points, is equal in length day and night and equally divided in autumn. After the autumnal equinox, the dryness of the sky becomes more and more obvious, and the importance of preventing dryness continues to increase. Wu Yichun introduced that dryness hurts people, and it is easy to hurt body fluids. When body fluids are consumed, symptoms such as dry lips, dry nose, dry throat, dry skin and even chapped skin may occur. To prevent autumn dryness, you can eat more foods rich in vitamins, and you can also choose some Chinese medicines that nourish yin and replenish qi. Going to bed early and getting up early in daily life can make the body full of body fluids and energy.
Cold dew, lower temperature, colder dew, everything gradually falling with the cold, coupled with "an autumn rain and a cold", has become a period of high incidence of colds. Wu Yichun reminded that Chinese medicine has a distinction between wind-cold colds and wind-heat colds, and blindly taking medicine without distinguishing the types of colds can not only treat colds, but may also aggravate the condition. In view of the wind-cold cold, parsley, scallion or ginger can be boiled in the early stage of the cold to achieve the effect of relieving exterior symptoms and dispelling cold. For wind-heat cold, Radix Isatidis or Chinese patent medicine for clearing away heat and toxic materials can be selected.
First frost is the last solar term in autumn. In late autumn, when the wind is bleak and the rain is miserable, the grass and leaves fall, and people feel that the change of season is easy to worry. According to Wu Yichun, after autumn, the pineal gland in the human brain secretes melatonin relatively, and people’s mood is correspondingly low and negative. Therefore, properly adjust your mood, go outdoors, feel the beauty of the seasonal changes in nature, and drive away the autumn depression.
Proper winter tonic, attention to warmth, moderate exercise and peace of mind.
Beginning of winter not only represents the beginning of winter, but also has the meaning of collecting everything and avoiding the cold. There is a folk saying that "winter tonic will kill tigers in the coming year" and "three nine supplements one winter, and there will be no illness in the coming year". According to Professor Wei Wu, director of the Department of Internal Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese medicine believes that winter is the best season for tonic, but not everyone can make it, and individual tonic is needed according to physical fitness. According to the principle of "deficiency is tonic" and "cold is warm" in traditional Chinese medicine, food that warms and tonifies yang is used to improve the cold tolerance of the body. Watermelon, cucumber and bitter gourd should be eaten less because of their coolness.
Light snow is the second solar term after entering winter. Because of the cold outdoors, heavy clothes, indoor heating, evaporation of body heat, and lack of drinking water, it is easy to breed internal fires, which are manifested as dry nose and mouth, oral ulcers, etc. Wei Wu suggested drinking some soup to relieve body heat, such as Chinese cabbage tofu pork soup, spinach sliced pork soup, mutton red and white radish soup, etc. Moreover, Chinese cabbage and radish are seasonal foods in winter, rich in vitamins and various trace elements, which are very suitable for eating. You can also drink some light tea, such as Longjing tea, Maojian tea and jasmine tea.
Snow and solar terms, the weather began to become colder, strong winds, heavy snow, sudden drop in temperature will often appear, Wei Wu reminded that this is the high incidence of colds, breathing, digestion, cardiovascular diseases and other diseases, which need to be actively prevented. In addition to not eating raw food, eat more isothermal beef and mutton, but also pay attention to keep warm, especially protect the head, chest (back) and feet to prevent wind and cold pathogens from invading. In addition, going to bed early and getting up late and exercising properly are helpful to improve immunity. At this time, the soup spectrum should be nourishing, such as Danggui Ginger Mutton Soup, Mushroom Chicken Soup, etc., and you can also drink some tea with warm stomach, such as aged Pu ‘er, black tea, dried tangerine peel ginger tea, etc.
The winter solstice is the shortest day and the longest night in the northern hemisphere all year round. After the winter solstice, three or nine days kicked off. According to Wei Wu, the folk proverb says: "Practice in winter", and participating in winter sports can enhance physical fitness, promote blood circulation, improve cold resistance and relieve brain fatigue. However, the choice of sports varies from person to person. Extreme exercises such as winter swimming are suitable for people with strong physique, no heart and lung diseases and no hypertension. The general population can choose jogging, aerobics, Tai Ji Chuan, Baduanjin and indoor equipment practice.
Slight cold is generally the solar term with the lowest temperature in a year. There is a saying in the northern folk saying that "slight cold is better than great cold, which is common and not rare". Wei Wu reminded that human blood vessels "contract when they are cold". Eating more high-calorie foods to keep out the cold in winter is easy to induce cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Patients with the risk of such diseases need to monitor their blood pressure and heart rate, and adjust the use of antihypertensive drugs under the guidance of doctors. Middle-aged and elderly patients with cardiovascular diseases are advised to take nitroglycerin tablets or aromatic Chinese patent medicines with them for emergency treatment.
The Great Cold is the last solar term in a year. With the handover of beginning of spring, we can already feel the signs of spring returns, and the function of human vitality will also start. According to Wang Dongcai, director of the Center for Prevention of Diseases of Shenzhen Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Great Cold is slightly different from Little Cold in diet. First of all, the amount of supplements should be gradually reduced to adapt to the seasonal changes. Some foods with ascending and dispersing properties, strengthening the spleen and regulating qi should be appropriately added in tonic to prepare for the rising and dispersing characteristics in spring.
The pictures in this edition are all issued by Xinhua News Agency.
Guangming Daily (11th edition, February 19th, 2022)
