Food and Medicine Stems from the Same Source (药食同源)

Gui Ying Lee

The day God created humans, he had already prepared food for us. Food is essential to human needs. Most people think that the food we eat is just to satisfy our hunger, but I think differently. The food we consume daily not only satisfies hunger, but also provides us with joy and nourishment to help our bodies grow stronger and healthier.  However, food can also hurt us and make us sick if we don’t eat it correctly. The Chinese have an old saying: “一方水土养一方人.” This means, “people are supported by the land and water where they live”. Traditional Chinese Medicine views food and medicine to be “一人一方”. In other words, every single person should have their own formula, treating the items they consume to be not just food, but also medicine.

Traditional Chinese Medicine theory categorizes food by color and taste: “五色养五藏，五味养五气.” Below are a descriptions of the five different colors of food that nourishes the five different organs of the body. In addition, there are also five flavors of food that contain energetic properties that move Qi in different directions (in, out, up, and down). All of these colors and flavors provide the body nourishment in their own ways.

Colors: 

1.White foods nourish the Lungs. These include pears, white fungus, turnips, cauliflower,  white yam……… These foods can help moisten the lungs to disperse fluids throughout the whole body. People who have dry skin often have a lung dysfunction and white color food can help.

2.Black foods nourish the Kidneys. These include black beans, black sesame seeds, black rice………. specially Rehmannia root. They can help improve the kidney function to produce essence such as bone marrow, improve mind and spirit and skin and hair.

3.Red foods nourish the heart. These include red beans, beets,  red jujube dates, cherry, strawberry goji berries ……. They can warm the body and help improve heart circulation to send blood throughout the whole body.   

4.Yellow foods nourish the spleen. These include papaya, peaches, and yellow zucchini…….They can help support the spleen in its functions of tranforming nutrients into Qi and Blood and transporting Qi and Blood to the outer limbs of the body.

5.Green foods cleanse the liver. These include mung beans, kale, arugula, green apples, dandelion  and cucumber……. They can reduce the extra heat in the liver. People with blurry vision and anger often suffer from liver heat. By consuming green foods, they can reduce liver heat, calm the spirit and improve their eye vision.

Flavors: 

1.Sour flavors calm the body and sooth the liver. A stressed liver can stem from overwork, lack of sleep, excessive alcohol, or a consumption of overly spicy or fried foods. These abuses can cause liver stress and raise liver heat, making it easier to become angry and irritated. Sour tasting food can help reduce this liver heat.  Sour food: Lemon, Pomegranate, grapefruit, Aloevera, chrysanthemum flower……… 

2.Bitter flavors can clear body heat by acting as a diurectic. These foods help the heat descend from the body through the urine. Bitter foods in this category include bitter melon, arugula, and artichokes,…..

3.Spicy flavors expel wind and cold from the body. When we feel cold, we crave hot and spicy foods because they can push out the cold from the body. Spicy flavors also include pungent herbs such as scallions, cilantro, and cinnamon.

4.Sweet flavors can tonify the body. The stomach and spleen like sweet foods. Sweet flavors make the body happy and help the body secrete digestive juices to aid in better absorption and elimination. If the spleen is weak, the body will lack energy. There will be abdominal bloating and irregular bowel movements. Sweet foods, in moderation, can strengthen these digestive functions.

5.Salty flavors help the body dissolve stagnation. Salt is essential for life and is connected to the kidneys. If the kidneys are weak, the body will lack energy. There will be low back, knee and ankle pain. According to Chinese Medicine, pain is a result of stagnation. Properly consuming salty foods, in moderation, can help strengthen the kidneys and improve their function.

I strongly believe that the best hospital is our kitchen and the best doctor is ourselves. Everybody is different due to their unique genes, personality, and lifestyle, so we should choose the foods that are right for our specific bodies. The body often changes, so we should make adjustments by what we eat everyday to ensure that our bodies are in their best condition.

If your body feels cold, warm it.

If your body feels hot, cool it.

If your body feels dry, moisten it.

If your body feels wet, dry it.

You hold the power to choose a healthy life.