Dietary Precautions for the Beginning of Autumn
[Abstract] "A summer without illness leaves one three-tenths deficient." Diet during the Beginning of Autumn requires attention. The "Autumn Tiger" runs rampant, and people are extremely prone to fatigue, lethargy, and poor appetite.
"A summer without illness leaves one three-tenths deficient." Diet during the Beginning of Autumn requires attention. The "Autumn Tiger" runs rampant, and people are extremely prone to fatigue, lethargy, and poor appetite.
A folk proverb says: "Plant eggplant in the start of summer, eat eggplant in the start of autumn." The Beginning of Autumn is the perfect time to eat eggplants. A folk custom is to place melons, steamed eggplant preserves, and fragrant glutinous soup in the courtyard to air out overnight the day before the Beginning of Autumn, and then eat them on the day itself. China's ancient art of health most emphasizes the changes in climate with the seasons; as the four seasons are different, diet and daily routines must change accordingly. After the Beginning of Autumn, the temperature transitions from hot to cool, the body's energy expenditure gradually decreases, and appetite begins to increase. At this time, it is necessary to scientifically absorb nutrients and adjust one's diet to supplement the summer's consumption and prepare for the winter.
"Piling on Autumn Fat"
In Beijing and other northern regions, there is a folk tradition of "piling on autumn fat" after the Beginning of Autumn. What is "piling on autumn fat"? During the hot summer, people often have a poor appetite. Once the Beginning of Autumn arrives, it means cool weather is near, and people begin to crave delicious food. They use the method of eating stewed meat to replenish the weight lost during the summer, hence the name "piling on autumn fat."
In the past, people paid great attention to the solar terms, and most of these customs were related to food and preventing disease, which is closely related to people's concern for their own health. "Food is the first necessity of the people," and the Beginning of Autumn is an important solar term, so people of course would not forget to eat. Therefore, the custom of "piling on autumn fat" became popular in the Beijing and Hebei areas. During the "dog days" of summer, people's appetites are poor, so many people lose some weight. During the Qing Dynasty, it was a popular custom to weigh people on the first of the "dog days." Usually, children were weighed, and their weight was compared to that from the Start of Summer to check for weight loss, which was called "bitter summer." At that time, health was often judged solely by whether one was fat or thin. Of course, if one was thin, they needed to "replenish," and the way to do this was to "pile on autumn fat" at the Beginning of Autumn by eating rich and delicious food. The first choice was to eat meat, "using meat to add fat." On this day, ordinary families would eat stewed meat, while more well-to-do families would eat boiled pork, braised pork, dumplings with meat filling, stewed chicken, stewed duck, braised fish, etc.
"Biting the Autumn"
In the Jiangnan region around Hangzhou, there is also a custom of eating watermelon on the day of the Beginning of Autumn. In the past, it was popular in the Hangzhou area to eat autumn peaches. On the Beginning of Autumn, both adults and children would each eat one peach, and after eating, they would keep the pits. On New Year's Eve, the pits were thrown into the fire to be burned to ash, and people believed this could ward off plagues for the entire year. In Tianjin and other places, the custom of "biting the autumn" is popular during the Beginning of Autumn. People believe that eating melons at this time can prevent diarrhea in the coming winter and spring. Zhang Tao's "Miscellaneous Records of Tianjin" from the Qing Dynasty records: "Eating melons at the Beginning of Autumn is called 'biting the autumn,' which can prevent diarrhea." People would place melons, steamed eggplant preserves, fragrant glutinous soup, etc., in the courtyard to air out overnight the day before the Beginning of Autumn and eat them on the day itself, in order to dispel summer heat and prevent dysentery. In the eastern and western parts of Sichuan, it is also popular to drink "Beginning of Autumn water," where every family member, young and old, drinks a cup at the exact moment of the Beginning of Autumn. It is said this can eliminate accumulated summer heat and prevent stomach problems in autumn.
"Nourish Yang in Spring and Summer, Nourish Yin in Autumn and Winter"—Autumn is the Right Time for Replenishment
The Beginning of Autumn is a major solar term that farmers pay great attention to. "A north wind before autumn, rain after autumn; a north wind after autumn, a dry riverbed" means that if a north wind blows before the Beginning of Autumn, it will surely rain after; if a north wind blows after, the winter might be dry. For farmers in the past who could only rely on the heavens for their livelihood, the significance of the Beginning of Autumn was by no means limited to food. In the Laixi region, it is a custom to eat "zha" (a type of small tofu made from bean powder and vegetables) on the Beginning of Autumn, and there is a saying: "Eating the 'zha' of the Beginning of Autumn keeps adults and children from vomiting or having diarrhea."
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and Chinese health practices, autumn is the most suitable season for the body to replenish. This is both to make up for the summer's depletion and to store physical energy and strength for the winter. Autumn supplementation should use gentle, non-greasy, and balancing foods. For example, water bamboo, pumpkin, lotus seeds, longan, black sesame, red dates, walnuts, Chinese yam, hyacinth beans, tremella, and lily can all have nourishing effects that moisten yin, moisten the lungs, nourish the stomach, and promote the production of body fluids.
In autumn, a large number of fruits ripen, and there are many varieties of melons, fruits, and legume vegetables, as well as abundant fish, meat, poultry, and eggs. People have a wider range of food choices, but they should pay attention to a balanced diet. Eat more warm, soft, light, simple, and fresh foods, as well as fresh vegetables and seasonal fruits that promote fluid production and moisten dryness. Avoid cold, hot, hard, spicy, and greasy foods. Avoid overeating. "The value of diet lies in its balance." In short, the principle of autumn health should be "a balanced diet and a tailored diet plan," and only through reasonable dietary pairing can one achieve the best health strategy.
Four Taboos for Replenishment to Ensure a Healthy Beginning of Autumn
Taboo 1: Failing to Distinguish between Deficiency and Excess
The therapeutic principle of TCM is to "nourish the deficient." Those who do not have a deficient condition should not use tonic herbs. Deficiency can be further divided into yin deficiency, yang deficiency, qi deficiency, and blood deficiency. Only by taking the right medicine for the specific condition can the body be nourished; otherwise, the effect will be the opposite, harming the body. Although health preservation is not as strict as treating a disease, it is at least necessary to classify the person into two main categories: those with a "cold" constitution and those with a "heat" constitution. Those with a "cold" constitution are sensitive to cold and prefer heat, have cold hands and feet, a pale tongue with a slippery pulse, and may have loose stools and clear urine. Those with a "heat" constitution have hot palms and soles, a dry or bitter mouth, bad breath, dry stools, dark yellow urine, a red tongue, and a rapid pulse. If one blindly takes medicinal food without distinguishing between cold and heat, it can easily "add fuel to the fire."
Taboo 2: "The More, the Better"
Any tonic taken in excess is harmful. The belief that "more tonics can cure illness if you are sick, or strengthen the body if you are not" is unscientific. For example, excessive intake of ginseng and antler products can cause abdominal distension and loss of appetite; excessive intake of Vitamin C can lead to nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.
Taboo 3: Emphasizing "Intake" while Neglecting "Output"
With the improvement of living standards, many households have meat and greasy food every day. The acidic and toxic substances produced from the metabolism of these foods need to be excreted in a timely manner. However, the fast pace of life has led many people to have irregular bowel movements or even constipation. Therefore, health experts have recently proposed a new health concept of focusing on "negative nutrition," which emphasizes the excretion of waste from the body, reducing the retention and absorption of "intestinal toxins," and advocating for timely and regular bowel movements while replenishing.
Taboo 4: Sticking to the Same Tonic Forever
Some people like to stick to one type of tonic according to their own taste, and over many years, this can develop into a "picky" or "craving" habit, which is detrimental to health. Because both medicines and foods have therapeutic effects, they also have certain side effects. Long-term and excessive use can affect the body's nutritional balance. This is especially true for the elderly, whose organ functions have declined to varying degrees and need comprehensive and systematic conditioning. Moreover, different seasons have different requirements for health supplements. Therefore, it is necessary to make adjustments based on different circumstances; one cannot stick to the same tonic forever.