Spring is a season of growth and renewal for all things, and it is also a time when the human body needs to adapt to the season and focus on conditioning. Therefore, attention should be paid to dietary regulation during spring. The general dietary plan for spring should follow these three principles: I. High-calorie, high-protein principle.
During the early spring, the temperature is still relatively cold. To maintain basic body temperature, the human body consumes a certain amount of energy for warmth. Therefore, the nutritional composition during early spring should be mainly high-calorie. In addition to grain products, foods such as soybeans, sesame seeds, peanuts, and walnuts should be selected to replenish energy substances in a timely manner. Due to the stimulation of cold, protein decomposition in the body can accelerate, leading to a decrease in the body's resistance and making one susceptible to illness. Therefore, it is also necessary to supplement with high-quality protein foods during early spring, such as eggs, fish, shrimp, beef, chicken, rabbit meat, and soy products. These foods are rich in methionine, which has the function of enhancing the body's cold tolerance. II. Anti-disease and anti-toxin principle.
Spring is also a season when the climate shifts from cold to warm, with significant temperature fluctuations. Bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms begin to multiply and become more active, easily invading the body and causing disease. Therefore, in terms of diet, one should consume sufficient vitamins and inorganic salts. Fresh vegetables such as bok choy, rape, bell peppers, and tomatoes, and fruits such as oranges and lemons are rich in vitamin C and have antiviral effects; yellow-green vegetables such as carrots and amaranth are rich in vitamin A, which can protect and enhance the function of the upper respiratory tract mucosa and respiratory epithelial cells, thereby resisting the invasion of various pathogenic factors. Foods rich in vitamin E should also be consumed to improve the body's immune function and enhance its disease resistance. These foods include sesame seeds, green cabbage, and cauliflower. III. Principle of reducing sourness and increasing sweetness.
According to traditional Chinese medicine, "it is advisable to reduce sourness and increase sweetness in spring to nourish the spleen." This is because spring is a time when liver qi is vigorous. When liver qi is excessive, it affects the spleen, so it is easy to suffer from weakness of the spleen and stomach in spring. Eating more sour foods can make liver function overly active. Therefore, for dietary conditioning in spring, it is advisable to choose pungent, sweet, and warm foods, and avoid sour and astringent ones. The diet should be light and palatable, avoiding greasy, raw, cold, and irritating foods. In addition, spring is the off-season for vegetables. However, wild vegetables and mountain vegetables grow earlier than ordinary vegetables and are rich in vitamins. They can be picked and consumed to supplement the deficiency of ordinary vegetables.