On a scorching summer day, the intense heat can make it hard to find an appetite. Eating pumpkin regularly not only helps to tonify the middle and replenish Qi, but it is also beneficial for certain respiratory diseases. Patients with asthma or chronic bronchitis can try the following dietary remedies:
1. For persistent coughing and asthma: Use one pumpkin, 50 grams of honey, and 25 grams of rock sugar. First, cut a small opening in the top of the pumpkin, scoop out some of the flesh, pour in the honey and rock sugar, cover it, and steam it in a large bowl for 90 minutes. Eat once in the morning and once in the evening.
2. For bronchitis and chronic bronchitis in the elderly: Use about 300 grams of peeled pumpkin, 20 red dates, 5 grams each of Ophiopogon japonicus and bitter almonds, and an appropriate amount of brown sugar. Boil these ingredients in water to make a soup for consumption. This remedy has the effect of tonifying the middle and replenishing Qi, and astringing the lung Qi. Han Zhenkui
Folk remedies and empirical formulas are for reference only and should not be used as a basis for diagnosis or medical treatment.