Early Summer Health Preservation: Avoid Randomly Eating Fruits; Fruits Must Be Differentiated by Nature (Cool or Warm)
Although many fruits have just come into season in early summer, many people have already developed health issues from eating them. For instance, eating too many apricots can lead to "heatiness," with symptoms like dizziness, stomach pain, and nosebleeds, requiring a hospital visit. While summer is the peak season for eating fruits, and the vitamins, water, and minerals they contain are highly beneficial for human health, from the perspective of Chinese nutritional therapy, fruits are categorized as "cool" (寒) or "warm" (热). If your body constitution is not suited to eating cool or warm fruits, or if you consume them improperly or in excess, it can cause serious negative effects on your body.
So, how exactly are fruits differentiated by nature, and how should people choose them?
Cool Fruits Relieve Heat
According to experts, most fruits in summer are of a cool nature, such as pears, apples, and various melons. Generally, people with a "heat" constitution have a vigorous metabolism in summer, a dominant sympathetic nervous system, sweat profusely, often have flushed faces, a dry mouth and throat, are easily irritable, and tend to experience constipation. They particularly enjoy eating cold things in summer. Therefore, people with a "heat" constitution can appropriately eat more cool-natured fruits.
However, cool-natured fruits should not be eaten in excess, as this can be harmful. For example, apples are sweet and have effects such as stopping diarrhea, promoting bowel movements, and aiding digestion. Regular consumption can make the skin fair and tender. But due to their rich content of sugars and potassium salts, excessive consumption can harm the heart and kidneys. People with coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, nephritis, and diabetes should not eat them in large quantities. On the other hand, people with "Qi deficiency" (气虚) or fatigue can eat them more as a nourishing fruit.
Fruits like pears, citrus, and pomelos have effects such as relieving coughs, reducing phlegm, moistening the lungs, and aiding digestion, but eating too much can easily cause gastrointestinal upset, lead to toothaches or hemorrhoids, and even cause yellow spots on the skin. Therefore, people with stomach problems or a "cold stomach" (胃寒) should eat them sparingly.
It is important to emphasize that people with "Qi deficiency" or "spleen deficiency" should be especially cautious when choosing cold-natured fruits like watermelon, muskmelon, mango, pear, and banana, and it is best to avoid them. "Qi deficiency" generally refers to people with insufficient middle Qi, who are weak or children. These people often have pale faces, a thin build, and a poor appetite. "Spleen deficiency" means a poor digestive system with slow intestinal peristalsis. Therefore, eating more cold fruits will further reduce intestinal motility and lead to muscle weakness. Overeating can cause bloating due to indigestion. Thus, the elderly and children with poor gastrointestinal function are not very suitable for eating cool fruits. If they really want to eat some, they can have a small portion after lunch and before dinner, but not excessively.
Summer Cool Fruits: Muskmelon, Watermelon, Pear, Banana, Kiwi, Mango, Persimmon, Water Chestnut, Sweet Melon, Pomelo, etc.
Suitable for: "Heat" constitution
Warm Fruits Tonify Deficiency and Cold
Although there are many cool-natured fruits in summer, fruits like lychee, longan, and apricot are warm-natured and also very popular. Especially for people with a "deficiency-cold" constitution, they have Qi and spleen deficiency, a low basal metabolic rate, produce little internal heat, and their limbs remain cold even in summer. In comparison, these people have paler complexions than others, rarely feel thirsty, and dislike touching cold things, including entering air-conditioned rooms. Therefore, eating more warm-natured fruits is undoubtedly an excellent way to supplement the cold for this group.
However, for the average person, eating too many warm-natured fruits on a hot day can easily lead to "heatiness." For example, lychees contain components that lower blood sugar, and excessive consumption can cause hypoglycemia. For people with a "heat" constitution, who are already energetic and have difficulty sleeping at night, combined with a high metabolic rate, they should especially avoid eating warm fruits. Additionally, children with a fever or inflammation in any organ should also avoid them.
Summer Warm Fruits: Lychee, Peach, Longan, Guava, Cherry, Coconut, Durian, Apricot, etc.
Suitable for: "Deficiency-cold" constitution
Some Fruits Are Not Suitable for Freezing
Fruits with a nature between cool and warm are considered "neutral" (平和). These fruits, like grapes, pineapple, mango, olive, ginkgo, and plum, can be eaten by people of different constitutions. However, there are many considerations when eating fruit. One must be cautious, especially in summer, and not be greedy for coldness, as not all fruits are suitable for eating frozen.
Fruits must be fresh to be rich in nutrients. It is better to eat whole fruits and try to eat fewer canned fruits. Avoid drinking fruit juice, as this leads to a significant loss of dietary fiber. Also, when eating fruit, choose those with colorful flesh, such as hawthorn, sour jujube, kiwi, and mango. Their vibrant colors are rich in vitamins C and B and are very nutritious.
In addition to paying attention to nutrition when eating fruit, the most important thing in summer is not to be greedy for coldness. Many people love to freeze their fruits. Although chilled fruits have a great texture and feel refreshing to eat, fruits that are too cold can slow down gastrointestinal motility, leading to indigestion. This is especially important for those with a "cold stomach" or mild gastritis.
Some fruits, like lychee, persimmon, and pear, are generally fine after being frozen for one or two hours; they should not be left until the next day. Other fruits may not taste good after being frozen. For example, watermelon, cantaloupe, peach, and apricot often lose their sweetness after being frozen for one or two hours. This is not because of a loss of nutrients, but because the moisture from the freezer is absorbed into the fruit, diluting the sweetness. Therefore, such fruits are best eaten fresh. If you must freeze them, half an hour is enough. Additionally, it is best not to eat frozen bananas. First, they are not sweet. Second, the peel and even the flesh of a frozen banana turn black, which is the result of sugar fermentation, and it is best not to eat them.