Eating mutton in winter seems to be a universally recognized health rule. Our country has also had the saying of "nourishing in accordance with the seasons" since ancient times. As the seasons change, health methods should also be adjusted accordingly, and dietary therapy has become the most important aspect of health preservation. TCM experts believe that the custom of eating mutton at the Winter Solstice is quite good.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that man is interconnected with heaven and earth, and climate changes affect human physiological activities. Spring and summer are Yang, with a warm and hot climate; autumn and winter are Yin, with a cold climate. Man also undergoes physiological changes along with the changes of the four seasons' climate.
Irish Stew
The three months of winter are a period of Yang energy storage. The weather is very cold, and one should pay attention to protecting the body's Yang energy, so as not to let it dissipate excessively. If Yang energy is excessively consumed in winter, the body's storage of Yang will be insufficient, which can easily lead to symptoms in the following spring such as limb weakness, dizziness, and fainting. This does not conform to the principles of health preservation.
Therefore, it is very necessary to eat some foods that warm the Yang. However, experts also warn the public not to eat too much mutton, because mutton is also a dry and hot food, and excessive consumption can easily damage Yin, especially for people with a Yin-deficient constitution.
In fact, besides mutton, a warm diet can also include glutinous rice, dog meat, red dates, longan, and sesame seeds, while consuming less cold drinks, seafood, and other cold-natured foods. This can also help support Yang energy through diet. Experts believe that in addition to warming and nourishing foods, some neutral-tonifying foods can also be consumed more, such as lotus seeds, Euryale ferox seeds, Job's tears, red dates, bird's nest, and tremella. These foods have neither a cold nor a warm nature, and they do not have the drawback of being greasy and hindering digestion.
There is another category of nourishing foods that have the effects of nourishing Yin, benefiting the kidneys, replenishing essence, and filling the marrow. These mainly include black fungus, black dates, sesame seeds, black beans, and soft-shelled turtles.
Irish lamb stew