Office workers often work overtime and have irregular eating habits, leading to poor stomach health. When stomach discomfort occurs, they usually rely on medication for relief, but the condition worsens over time. Stomach problems require long-term care; medication can only temporarily relieve pain. So, how should one care for their stomach? What should one eat to nourish and protect the stomach? Let's take a look at the introduction in the article below.
1. Chinese Yam
The Chinese yam has a tender flesh and contains extremely rich nutritional and health-preserving substances. The "Compendium of Materia Medica" states that the Chinese yam can "benefit kidney qi, strengthen the spleen and stomach, stop diarrhea, resolve phlegm, and moisten the skin." Recent research has shown that the Chinese yam can induce interferon production and enhance the body's immune function. The choline and lecithin it contains help improve human memory. Regular consumption can strengthen the body, delay aging, and is a popular health product. Imitation foods made primarily from Chinese yam and supplemented with konjac are nutritious, nourishing, and have beauty-enhancing effects, making them a rare and healthy culinary delicacy.
Jade Tai Chi Chinese Yam
2. Sweet Potato
Sweet potatoes are rich in protein, starch, pectin, cellulose, amino acids, vitamins, and various minerals, earning them the reputation of "longevity food." They contain 15%-20% sugar and have effects such as cancer prevention, heart protection, prevention of emphysema, diabetes management, and weight loss. In the Ming Dynasty, Li Shizhen's "Compendium of Materia Medica" noted that "sweet potatoes tonify deficiency, strengthen the spleen to whet the appetite, and fortify kidney yin," and that people who eat them live long. Traditional Chinese medicine regards sweet potatoes as a good medicine.
3. Cabbage
Cabbage has the effects of strengthening the spleen and nourishing the stomach, relieving pain and reducing spasms, detoxifying and reducing swelling, and clearing heat and promoting urination. It can be used for symptoms caused by internal heat, such as chest tightness, thirst, sore throat, difficulty urinating, poor hearing and vision, poor sleep, stiff joints, and dull abdominal pain. Its components, such as vitamin C, have analgesic and ulcer-healing effects. Cabbage simmered with Job's tears, dried tangerine peel, and honey can be used to treat epigastric bloating and pain, upper abdominal fullness, and stomach and duodenal ulcers. Simmered with red beans, winter melon, and rock sugar, it can reduce swelling and promote urination. Those with loose stools and a weak spleen and stomach should not eat too much.
4. Spinach
Spinach is sweet in taste and cool in nature, able to moisten dryness and nourish the liver, benefit the stomach and intestines, and relieve constipation. The "Materia Medica for Dietetic Therapy" describes it as "benefiting the five organs, unblocking the intestines, and resolving alcohol toxicity." Spinach can promote the secretion of the stomach and pancreas, increase appetite, and aid digestion; its rich fiber also helps intestinal peristalsis and facilitates bowel movements. However, spinach is high in oxalic acid, which can hinder calcium absorption. It should be avoided with high-calcium foods like tofu or seaweed, or briefly blanched before cooking to remove the oxalic acid.
Shredded Pork and Spinach Noodles
5. Longan
Li Shizhen once said: "Among fruits, lychee is the most delicious, but for nourishment, longan is superior." Unlike lychee, which is considered hot and damp in nature, longan can be used as medicine and has multiple effects such as strengthening yang, replenishing qi, warming the stomach, and tonifying the spleen.
6. Carrot
Carrots are sweet and neutral in taste. Traditional Chinese medicine believes they "lower qi, tonify the middle jiao, benefit the diaphragm, moisten the intestines, and calm the five organs, with the effect of improving appetite." The rich carotene can be converted into vitamin A, which can improve eyesight, nourish the spirit, enhance resistance, and prevent respiratory diseases. Carotene is fat-soluble, so it is most suitable to stew with meat, which also improves the flavor.
7. Pumpkin
The "Compendium of Materia Medica" records: "Pumpkin is warm in nature and sweet in taste, entering the spleen and stomach meridians." It can tonify the middle jiao and replenish qi, reduce inflammation, kill bacteria, and relieve pain. Its rich pectin can "adsorb" bacteria and toxic substances, including heavy metals like lead, thus playing a detoxifying role. At the same time, pectin can protect the stomach from irritation and reduce ulcers. Pumpkin can be cooked into congee or soup to nourish the stomach and intestines.
Pumpkin and Lily Sweet Soybean Milk Soup
Red meat
Strawberry Dafu
Milk toast