Fruits are Divided into Cooling and Warming Types; Choose According to Your Condition
“A horseman kicks up red dust, the imperial consort smiles—none know it’s lychees that have arrived.” Now, this southern fruit is in season, its taste exceptionally delicious and fresh, making it a hot favorite among the public. However, it's not suitable for everyone. In fact, just like human constitutions, fruits have their own properties. If one isn't careful, some people get diarrhea from eating watermelon, while others develop mouth ulcers from eating lychees. Therefore, fruits must also be eaten correctly.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has the concept of the "Four Natures." This refers to the effect food has on the body after consumption, which can be "cooling," "warming," "neutral-warm," or "neutral-cool." If a food is not warming or cooling, it is classified as "neutral." Therefore, each fruit has its own "personality" when it enters the human body. TCM further emphasizes balance and harmony between yin and yang. Those with a "heat" constitution should eat more cooling foods, while those with a "cold" constitution should naturally eat more warming foods. The principle is the same when eating fruits.
Lychee is a special delicacy unique to southern China. It is considered a "warm-drying" fruit, so people with yin deficiency and excess internal heat should eat it sparingly (ideally no more than 0.25 kg at a time). Those with chronic tonsillitis and pharyngitis may find that eating lychees worsens their "internal heat." People prone to allergies may experience symptoms like dizziness, nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea, rashes, and itching after consuming fresh lychees. Eating too many lychees, especially on an empty stomach, can lead to hypoglycemia, a condition commonly known as "lychee sickness." Director Zhang reminds everyone that it's best not to consume large quantities of lychees continuously. Drinking a little salt water or cooling tea before and after can help. Drinks like mung bean water, winter melon water, and Sheng Di Tang (Rehmannia root soup) also have good therapeutic effects. For children, lychees, like mangoes and longans, are best avoided by children with "excessive internal fire," and even healthy children should eat them in moderation. For the elderly, those with constipation should try to avoid them. In particular, patients with liver, kidney, diabetes, or gastrointestinal diseases should be especially cautious.
Another example is watermelon, the most common fruit in summer. It has the effects of clearing heat and relieving summer heat, promoting urination, and lowering blood pressure. It also provides auxiliary relief for high fever and thirst, excessive sweating in summer heat, nephritis with reduced urination, and hypertension. Although watermelon is good, there are also rules to follow when eating it.
Watermelon is a cooling food that can easily harm the spleen and stomach. Therefore, people with a weak spleen and stomach, or those with chronic enteritis, gastritis, duodenal ulcers, or loose stools should eat it sparingly. Healthy people should also avoid excessive consumption, as it can damage the spleen and stomach, leading to indigestion or diarrhea.