Spring Festival: Don't Give Your Health a Vacation Spring Festival, a time to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new, offers a week's rest, making it a perfect occasion for family gatherings and visiting relatives and friends. Simply put, activities during this period mainly include: eating, drinking, playing, having fun, sleeping... After a busy year, it's time to give yourself a good holiday and indulge in food and fun. Here's a reminder: whether it's family reunions, hosting dinners, or leisure activities, health should always be the priority. Don't give your health a "vacation" during the "New Year"! The following health tips for the festival period are for your reference. 1. Eat in moderation, watch what you eat. During festivals and gatherings with friends and family, eating is indispensable. Eating is not the problem; the problem is how you eat! We should eat with civility and for health. The key to eating is to watch your mouth: Don't overindulge in feasting. Overindulgence is a major cause of gastrointestinal and other diseases. We usually eat on time, three meals a day, and our digestive system has adapted to this pattern. Overeating and binge drinking exceed the body's capacity for digestion, easily causing gastrointestinal dysfunction. After a large meal, a large amount of digestive fluid is needed in a short time, which significantly increases the burden on the pancreas, raises the pressure in the duodenum, and thus increases the risk of acute pancreatitis or acute cholecystitis. Additionally, binge drinking significantly increases the risk of acute heart attacks. Eat less greasy food. Eating too much greasy food can cause it to linger in the stomach and intestines, not being digested in time, which can easily trigger acute gastroenteritis with symptoms like abdominal pain, bloating, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Try to host family dinners at home. Restaurants and hotels often have a "deep-frying" step for meat, where prepared meat is cooked in hot oil before being stir-fried with other ingredients and seasonings. This cooking process increases the fat content in the dishes. Cooking at home not only strengthens bonds and friendships but also creates safe, delicious, and healthy meals. The general principle is to eat a varied diet, with plant-based foods as the main focus, and keep it light and low in salt. 2. Sit less, move more, get moving. During the Spring Festival long holiday, most people's lifestyles become "sedentary," burning little energy while consuming plenty of food. With this lifestyle, it's not difficult to gain 3-4 kilograms in a few days. Therefore, pay attention to the following points: Health lies in exercise. Move every day in various forms: walking, running, playing ball games, swimming. Exercise can also improve your mood. When watching TV, try to walk around or move. Avoid watching TV or being online for long periods. Don't play cards or Mahjong for extended periods. When participating in recreational activities, don't be too concerned about winning or losing. Extreme emotional swings are bad for cardiovascular health. 3. Ensure adequate sleep, but don't oversleep. It's a holiday, freedom from work and school, time to relax completely... staying up late to watch TV or surf the internet... leading to insufficient sleep. Lack of sleep weakens the immune system, reducing the body's ability to resist and recover from illness, making one prone to colds and aggravating other conditions or triggering flare-ups of existing diseases like cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and hypertension. Some children stay up late and play wildly with their parents, resulting in insufficient sleep. Lack of sleep in children can affect their studies and physical development. The general principle is to follow your regular sleep schedule, get enough sleep, but don't oversleep. 4. Drink for fun, but don't overdo it. No banquet is complete without wine, and when friends and family gather, drinking is inevitable. It's easy to get carried away and drink excessively. Excessive drinking affects health: It damages the intestinal mucosa and impairs liver function, affecting the digestion, absorption, and transport of nutrients; It can cause acute alcohol poisoning, leading to pancreatitis, which results in insufficient pancreatic secretion, thereby affecting the absorption and utilization of proteins, fats, and fat-soluble vitamins; It overloads the liver and gallbladder, speeds up liver cell metabolism, increases bile secretion, causing liver damage and triggering cholecystitis. Therefore, the principle for drinking during the Spring Festival is: if you can avoid it, do so. It's best to have an excuse ready. If you must drink, drink in moderation. The bond of friendship is what matters, not the drink itself. Remember: health comes first. In conclusion, while celebrating the festival, always remember that health is the top priority. Having health doesn't mean you have everything, but without health, you have nothing. Shopping for New Year's Goods: Health First "Nianhuo," or New Year's goods, are things needed for the festival, including food, clothing, accessories, daily necessities, toys... In times of material scarcity, New Year's goods meant a rare feast of good food, new clothes sewn by mothers stitch by stitch, and colorful fruit candies for children... As living standards have improved, life is like a festival every day now, but the tradition of shopping for New Year's goods before the festival continues. New Year's goods can be broadly classified into the following categories: Daily Necessities: Includes food and everyday items. Traditional Festival Items: Includes Spring Festival couplets, door scrolls, window paper-cuts, firecrackers, lanterns, etc. Visiting Relatives and Friends: Includes cigarettes, alcohol, candy, tea, health foods, etc. Electronics: Mobile phones, televisions, game consoles, treadmills, massage machines, etc. Clothing and Accessories: Sweaters, thermal wear, jackets, hats, scarves, gloves, etc. New Year's goods are generally for personal use or as gifts for relatives and friends. When purchasing for personal use, especially food and drinks, pay attention to nutrition and health. We have listed the following suggestions for your reference: 1. Don't buy too much. Food stored for too long can spoil, so it's not advisable to buy excessive amounts. Shops are open during the festival, so you can buy things anytime. 2. Buy less unpackaged food. Most unpackaged foods do not have labels for production date, shelf life, or manufacturer, posing food safety risks. Be cautious when purchasing. 3. Diverse and fresh food. A principle for shopping is to choose fresh foods over cured, smoked, or frozen ones; vegetables and fruits must be fresh. Another principle is variety. Your shopping list should include grains, meats, dairy products, vegetables, and fruits. Choose more white meats like sea fish, shrimp, and poultry, and less red meat like pork, beef, and lamb. 4. Pay attention to selecting snacks: Snacks are a must during the festival. Nuts are the top choice, including walnuts, melon seeds, hazelnuts, almonds, and pistachios. When choosing, check the nutrition label and opt for plain, non-marinated, or non-spiced varieties. 5. Buy healthy drinks: When choosing beverages, opt for light, non-sugar drinks or limit sugary beverages.
Yam, Bamboo Shoot, and Lotus Root Porridge Ingredients 30g Yam, appropriate amount of bamboo shoots and lotus root, 100g rice. Preparation 1 Peel and wash the yam, then cut it into pieces. Wash the bamboo shoots and cut them into sections. Peel the lotus root, wash it, and dice it. Wash the rice, soak it for half an hour, then drain. 2 Add water to a pot, add the rice, and bring to a boil over high heat until the grains begin to burst. Add the yam, bamboo shoots, and lotus root and cook together. 3 Reduce the heat and simmer until the porridge is thick. Nutritional Notes Yam contains various trace elements, especially a high content of potassium.
Steamed Seafood Dumplings Ingredients 600g wheat flour, 450g (water-soaked) sea cucumber, 100g eggs, 200g chives; appropriate amount of salt, cooking wine, sesame oil. Preparation 1 Wash the rehydrated sea cucumber, remove its internal parts, chop it finely, and drain. Scramble the eggs. Wash the chives and chop them finely. 2 Place the chopped sea cucumber, scrambled eggs, and chives in a basin. Add salt, cooking wine, and sesame oil, and mix well to make the filling. 3 Pour 70% of boiling water over the flour to form a lumpy dough, let it cool, then add 30% of cold water and knead into a smooth dough. Roll it into a long log and divide into small pieces about 50g each (makes 3 dumplings). Flatten each piece, roll into a round wrapper, fill with the filling, and shape into a crescent moon dumpling. 4 Place the dumplings in a steamer and steam over high heat for about 10 minutes. They are ready to eat. Nutritional Notes Sea cucumber is rich in protein, fat, carbohydrates, calcium, phosphorus, iron, and various vitamins.
This article is excerpted from "Ma Guan Sheng Talks About Nutrition" by Ma Guansheng, authorized by Phoenix Hanzhang Books. Reproduction is strictly prohibited.