Some cooling fruits, such as oranges, tangerines, grapefruits, starfruit, pears, grapes, Ya pears, watermelon, persimmons, papaya, melons, and bananas, should not be eaten on an empty stomach in the cool autumn and winter mornings, as they can deplete body heat and lower body temperature.
In autumn and winter, it is particularly inadvisable to replace meals with fruit, as this depletes body fat. Long-term consumption can not only lead to insufficient body temperature and reduced heat energy but can also cause calcium loss.
Children, the elderly, and those with weak digestive systems should not overindulge in raw and cold fruits and vegetables to prevent damage to the spleen and stomach, which can lead to indigestion.
Women should eat fewer or, preferably, no cooling fruits like pears, bananas, and water chestnuts during their menstrual period.
Those who intend to lose weight should note that eating fruit immediately after a meal is not advisable; having fruit as a dessert is not conducive to weight loss.
People who are recovering from an illness, postpartum, have a weak and cold spleen and stomach, indigestion, or chronic diarrhea should not eat large quantities of fruits like bananas, watermelon, persimmons, and apricots to avoid worsening their condition.
Grapefruit juice can interact with certain medications, so those on long-term medication should consume it with caution.
Among all foods, the main component of fruit is fructose, which does not need to be digested by the stomach but is directly absorbed in the small intestine. Foods containing starch and protein, such as rice, noodles, and meat, need to stay in the stomach for one to two hours or even longer.
If you eat your main dishes first and then fruit, the slowly digesting starches and proteins will block the rapidly digesting fruits. When all the food is mixed together in the stomach, the fruit, at a body temperature of 36-37°C, can easily rot and produce toxins, which is one of the causes of physical ailments.
As for eating sweets or fruit immediately after a meal, the biggest harm is that it interrupts and hinders the body's digestive process. The food in the stomach is prone to rotting and being broken down by bacteria into substances like alcohol and vinegar, which damages stomach qi and leads to gastrointestinal diseases.
The main problem with drinking soup between meals or after a meal is that it dilutes the stomach acid needed for digestion.
The correct order of eating is: soup, vegetables, rice, meat, and then fruit half an hour later.