"Suicidal" Eating Habits Reviewed
Too Salty
Salty flavor is the base for most complex flavors, earning it the title "king of all tastes." Salt has been known and consumed since the time of the Yellow Emperor, about 5000 years ago. Not only are most dishes inseparable from a salty taste, but even sweet and sour, or hot and sour flavors require a moderate amount of salt to be rich and palatable.
1. Salt - Enhances umami, cuts through grease, and has antibacterial and preservative properties. The main component of salt is sodium chloride. A certain amount of salt must be consumed daily to maintain metabolism, regulate the acid-base balance between body fluids and cells, and promote human growth and development. Additionally, iodized salt is beneficial for the thyroid. Gargling with light salt water not only treats and prevents oral diseases like a sore throat and swollen gums but also prevents colds. Drinking a glass of salt water in the morning can relieve constipation.
Caution: Daily salt intake should not be excessive, with 6 grams or less being recommended.
2. Soy Sauce - Primarily salty, with a fresh aroma. It enhances the flavor, freshness, aroma, and color of dishes, and also supplements nutrients. The amino acids in soy sauce are a major nutrient for the human body, especially some essential amino acids that cannot be synthesized by the body and must be obtained from soy sauce. Furthermore, for minor burns on a part of the body, applying soy sauce can relieve pain and detoxify. For swollen and painful fingers, soaking them in a mixture of heated soy sauce and honey can relieve pain and reduce swelling. Caution: When taking medications for cardiovascular and gastrointestinal diseases such as Eunonyl and Pargyline, soy sauce should not be consumed as it can cause side effects like nausea and vomiting.
Salt is an indispensable condiment in daily life. Without it, food would be bland, and one might feel weak. However, excessive long-term intake can easily affect health.
Too Sweet
Sweetness was traditionally called "Gan" in ancient times. In Chinese cuisine, it is used more frequently in the southern regions. In cooking, it can be used alone to make sweet foods or as part of various complex flavors to make food delicious and pleasant. It can also remove bitterness and fishy odors and has a certain effect of cutting through grease.
Sugar - It makes dishes sweet, increases their nutritional value, gives the finished product a smooth surface, and creates a golden or brown color when heated. During exercise, a moderate amount of sugar needs to be replenished to increase blood sugar levels, supply energy, save muscle glycogen, reduce the proportion of energy supplied by proteins and fatty acids, and delay fatigue. Sugar water can also stimulate the stomach and aid digestion.
Caution: Excessive sugar intake can lead to cavities and trigger obesity, diabetes, arteriosclerosis, myocardial infarction, and may even promote cancers such as breast cancer. Diabetics and patients with hepatitis should try to limit their intake.
Sugar is a staple in every household, but within its sweetness lies a potential threat to human health. In daily diets, those with a preference for sweets often suffer from various diseases due to excessive sugar consumption.
It is widely used in cooking but is generally not suitable for use alone. It can remove fishy odors, cut through grease, enhance flavor, whet the appetite, and make the food refreshing and palatable. At the same time, it has astringent and firming properties that can aid digestion.
Too Sour
Vinegar - Its main functions are to increase sourness, aroma, and umami, to harmonize flavors and cut through grease, and to remove fishy odors and other off-flavors. Vinegar can promote metabolism and is one of the effective ways to prevent arteriosclerosis and high blood pressure. Vinegar can also stimulate the appetite and promote the secretion of digestive fluids, while having strong antibacterial properties. It can kill various germs like Salmonella and E. coli within 30 minutes. Eating more vinegar can maintain the acidity of the intestines, achieving the effect of removing harmful bacteria. Simmering vinegar indoors for fumigation has a certain preventive effect against colds; gargling with vinegar water can treat mild pharyngitis. For burns, rinsing with vinegar can relieve pain and swelling, prevent blisters, and leave no scars after healing.
Caution: Vinegar should not be consumed in large quantities, especially by patients with stomach ulcers, who should avoid it to prevent bodily harm. It is also not advisable to eat vinegar with mutton, as this can weaken the medicinal effects of both and produce substances harmful to the human body.
Too Spicy
Chili peppers are actually a tactile pain sensation rather than a taste. However, by convention, they are also considered one of the "five flavors." Chili peppers are the representative of spicy flavor, an ideal condiment that stimulates the appetite and adds nutrients, and are especially popular in humid, low-lying regions. They can enhance aroma and color, and stimulate the appetite.
1. Chili - The spicy component of chili peppers, capsaicin, is nutritious and can enhance the appetite, making it widely used in cooking. Chili peppers contain various alkaloids that can stimulate the oral mucosa, promote saliva secretion and gastric motility, which is beneficial for food digestion. Chili peppers also contain a large amount of antioxidants that can prevent cancer and other chronic diseases, while also helping to clear the respiratory tract and treat colds. Long-term consumption of chili can enhance an individual's ability to resist aging.
Caution: Excessive consumption can cause nervous system damage and digestive tract ulcers. At the same time, patients with esophagitis, pharyngitis, toothache, hemorrhoids, tuberculosis, and high blood pressure should consume it in moderation.
2. Sichuan Peppercorn - It has the effect of removing fishy and off-flavors and enhancing aroma. Sichuan peppercorn contains various volatile oils and aromatic substances. In addition to its excellent deodorizing and defatting effects, it also relieves joint pain and toothaches and has the effect of warming the middle burner to dispel cold.
Caution: Because Sichuan peppercorn is a "hot" spice, it can cause dryness and lead to some illnesses of the digestive and urinary tracts, so it is not suitable for consumption in the summer.
3. Black Pepper - It has a fragrant spiciness that is delicious and whets the appetite. Black pepper can strengthen the stomach, promote gastrointestinal motility, enhance the appetite, accelerate blood circulation, and has detoxifying and anti-inflammatory effects. During a cold, chewing a small amount of black pepper every 4 hours can prevent the cold from worsening.
Caution: Black pepper is pungent, hot, and drying. People with excessive liver fire or a yin-deficient, heat-type constitution should avoid overconsumption. It should also be avoided during febrile diseases. Patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases should also not eat it. Furthermore, black pepper should not be cooked with meat for too long, as its piperine, piperidine, volatile oils, and fatty oils will cause its spicy and aromatic flavors to dissipate over high heat.
4. Ginger - Has a unique spicy flavor. Ginger can stimulate digestive fluid secretion, increase the appetite, aid digestion, reduce serum cholesterol, and has antipyretic, analgesic, cold-preventing, cold-dispelling, and cough-suppressing effects. When applied externally after being mashed, it can reduce inflammation and relieve pain. Drinking ginger soup can prevent colds in all seasons. Placing ginger on the navel can prevent motion sickness.
Caution: When ginger rots, it produces a strong carcinogen - safrole, so rotten ginger must not be eaten. At the same time, patients with stomach ulcers should also consume it in moderation.
5. Fennel - As an auxiliary ingredient, it can remove fishy odors and enhance aroma, especially suitable for braised dishes. It has effects of removing fishiness, stimulating the appetite, resolving phlegm, expelling wind, relieving spasms, treating constipation, and extending sleep time. Additionally, it helps prevent and treat gastrointestinal infectious diseases and relieve bloating and abdominal cramps.
Caution: It should not be consumed in excess. The volatile oil in star anise contains safrole, which is carcinogenic. Also, star anise is a "hot" food and is not suitable for consumption in the summer; pregnant women should also avoid it.
6. Curry - In cooking, it can add spiciness, enhance aroma, remove fishiness, and harmonize flavors. It has effects of dispelling cold, strengthening the stomach, resolving phlegm, and increasing the appetite.
Caution: Curry powder stimulates gastric acid secretion. Excessive gastric acid secretion can cause gallbladder contraction, inducing biliary colic. Patients with chronic cholecystitis should avoid it.
Too Umami
Umami is a deliciousness that people strive for in their diet, which can produce a comfortable and pleasant feeling. Umami mainly comes from amino acids, nucleotides, and succinic acid.
1. Chicken Essence - Chicken essence is rich in nutrients, such as abundant amino acids, proteins, and vitamins.
Caution: 1. Chicken essence contains a small amount of salt, so less salt should be added when using it. 2. The metabolic product of nucleotides in chicken essence is uric acid, so patients with gout should use it sparingly. 3. Chicken essence is less soluble than MSG, so if not used in soups, it should be dissolved first. 4. Chicken essence contains salt and is highly hygroscopic, so it should be sealed after use, otherwise the nutrient-rich chicken essence will grow a large number of microorganisms, which can then contaminate food.
2. Oyster Sauce - Made from oyster juice, also known as oyster oil. It is delicious and slightly sweet with a special aromatic fragrance, mainly used in savory dishes. In addition to containing 5%-8% crude protein, oyster sauce also contains various nutrients such as carbohydrates, organic acids, iodine, calcium, and vitamins. It contains as many as 17 types of amino acids, including 8 essential amino acids for the human body.
Caution: Oyster sauce contains sugar, so diabetics should consume it with caution. At the same time, it should not be overheated, otherwise its umami flavor will be reduced.