Dietary & Nutritional Guidelines from a TCM Perspective
Article written by Jake Schmalzriedt, DOM. Re-published here with permission from Golden Flower Chinese Herbs.
Proper nutrition is essential for good health and a rich life, and is an important part of Oriental Medicine (OM), though often overlooked. At its core, the purpose of food is to nourish the body and maintain health and vitality. It is preventative medicine. The majority of today’s illnesses are chronic and entirely preventable. Roughly 75% of healthcare spending goes to treating preventable diseases and about ½ of the adult population in the United States have chronic health conditions. Proper nutrition in the form of a lifestyle diet should be key whether promoting well-being or when treating disharmonies in the body.
Nutritional therapy is often quite effective at treating common pathologies based on an OM diagnosis like qi deficiency or blood deficiency, but sometimes nutritional therapy may not be enough. This is often seen in diagnoses like qi stagnation or blood stasis. Nutritional therapy can, however, be an excellent supplemental therapy used in conjunction with other OM modalities like acupuncture or herbs. The nutritional principles discussed in this pamphlet can be applied to any type of cuisine or style of cooking.
This guide is intended to be used to help you & your patients develop healthy eating habits and begin the journey to a healthy lifestyle. It is important to note that no one diet is good for everyone. These recommendations are guidelines, not rules, and are used to aid in health and well-being, but may need to be modified to best suit individual needs and requirements. It is best to work with your practitioner, who is able to accurately diagnose and suggest dietary advice based on the presenting OM pattern or diagnosis.
| General Eating Habits | Foods the Should be Avoided |
|
Avoid: Raw, cold food, and iced beverages Excessive dairy Oily, greasy, and fried foods Refined sugar and limit overly sweet foods like fruit Refined carbohydrates Excessive alcohol intake Excessive meat consumption |
Daily Dietary Guidelines
Nutrition for the Kidney
A good diet protects and supports the kidney and its ability to function properly. Kidney is the foundation of yin and yang. A proper diet enables the Kidney to support and influence the yin and yang of the entire body, with yin energy nurturing, supporting, and moistening the body and yang energy warming, energizing, and moving the body. Kidney yang is the root of yang, providing energy and warmth for the entire body, enabling proper function. As the kidney dislikes cold, energetically cold foods depletes kidney yang and blocks its ability to warm the whole body yang. More specific to the digestive process the kidney yang can be seen in the digestive process as digestive fire. When the digestive fire is healthy and strong food is effectively transformed into qi and blood. If the digestive fire is weak it cannot provide enough warmth and energy to the digestive process, resulting in diarrhea, bloating, poor appetite, dull abdominal pain.
The Kidney is the source of life, or original qi, and is often called the “Root of Life” as it stores and controls the jing, the essence of our physical body. Jing is composed of prenatal jing that is inherited from the parents and stored in the kidneys and postnatal or acquired jing in the form of qi and nourishment is derived from food via the spleen and stomach and from air via the lungs. This nourishing essence supports the whole body with the surplus being stored in the kidney. Prenatal jing cannot be replaced or replenished, however it can be conserved through proper diet and lifestyle with the postnatal jing nurturing and supporting the prenatal jing. In cases of congenital insufficiency or constitutional weakness derived from poor prenatal jing, it is very important for the body to be supported and supplemented as much as possible by the postnatal jing.
Cooking foods longer at lower temps, like stews and bone broths, can be particularly beneficial for kidney support. Avoid raw and cold foods and drinks or ice water. Minimize eating raw foods, like salads especially in the winter.
| Recommended Foods to Support the Kidney | Avoid: |
| bone broths Celtic sea salt or Real salt: helps with adrenal health but use in moderation lobster, smoked fish, oysters, salmon, shrimp, tuna venison black sesame seeds, chestnuts, walnuts lentils, millet, oats, quinoa |
sugar, artificial sweeteners coffee, alcohol highly processed foods excessive intake of salt, table salt*Overeating *Eating late at night |
Beneficial Foods for Kidney Disharmonies
| Kidney Qi & Kidney Yang Deficiency | Kidney Yin Deficiency |
| Incorporate foods with strengthening and warming action, such as: cabbage, chives, fennel, leeks, onions, potato, radish, scallions, sweet potato, yam cherries, grapes, mulberry black beans, lentils chicken, duck, goat, lamb, pork, venison lobster, oysters, mussels, smoked fish, salmon, shrimp, trout, tuna walnuts, chestnuts, pistachio, lotus seeds, sesame seeds buckwheat, oats, quinoa, corn ginger, garlic, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, chive, basil spiced tea, yogi tea Foods to avoid:thermally cold or cool foods, raw foods, ice water |
Incorporate foods with actions to cool, moisten, and build yin and body fluids (jin ye), such as: asparagus, cabbage, carrots, cucumber, kelp, seaweed blackberry, blueberry, cantaloupe, grapes, pears, raspberry, strawberry, watermelon black sesame seeds, kidney beans, mung beans, string beans, sunflower seeds duck, eggs, pork abalone, carp, clam, crab, eel, octopus, oysters, perch, scallop, sardine barley butter, cream, goat’s milk Foods to avoid:warming foods in general |
| Kidney Jing Deficiency |
| Supplementing jing through nutritional therapy is not effective, however the foods listed above for kidney qi, yin, yang deficiency can be beneficial in helping support persons with kidney jing deficiency. Additionally, incorporate these foods that specifically preserve and protect jing: abalone, bone broths, chicken, kidney, liver cow and goat milk eggs mussels, oysters sesame seeds, walnuts Foods to avoid:hot and spicy foods |
Nutrition for the Liver
Nutrition can have a powerful effect on the liver and its ability to function properly. Often when discussing digestion and the liver the first thing that comes to mind is liver overacting on the spleen and stomach, impeding the digestive function and inhibiting the absorption of nutrients. Often what we do not pay attention to is the digestion of food by the spleen and stomach and how that plays an important role in providing the liver enough nourishment in the form of qi that was derived from food. If the liver does not get enough nourishment or not the right type of nourishment imbalance and disharmony in the liver will occur. Likewise proper nutrition can help resolve existing imbalances.
Nutritionally it is important to find a balance between getting enough energy and not taking in anything that will over excite, as this will exhaust the liver energy as well as the energy of the spleen and stomach. It is important to avoid stimulants including nicotine and caffeine. The emotion of anger is closely related to the liver, so alcohol is best in moderation or, for some, should be avoided completely. Some spicy and pungent food can be helpful in moderation as it can help to facilitate qi movement, as stagnation of qi is quite common with liver imbalances. However, too much of this can just as easily be a hindrance. It is also important to eliminate foods that congest the liver like saturated fats, hydrogenated fats, excess amounts of nuts, and highly processed foods. Eating habits can stagnate and congest the liver as well, so don’t skip meals, eat quickly, overeat, eat late, or eat when emotionally upset. Relax and enjoy the meal you prepared.
| Recommended Foods to Support the Liver | Avoid: |
| leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables, beets, carrots, chives blueberries, goji berries, grapefruit, strawberries eggs, liver, pork, venison (especially if there is deficiency) crab, crayfish, lobster, mussels, oysters, shrimp, squid, trout, whitefish flax, pine nuts, sesame cayenne, garlic, onion, vinegar, turmeric (careful with heat signs) olive oil cod liver oil, krill oil (increases anti-inflammatory omega 3 fatty acids) chrysanthemum tea, green tea, lemon or lime water |
spicy, hot foods (in excess) greasy, fatty, oily, fried foods alcohol, coffee, caffeine sugar processed, refined foods |
Beneficial Foods for Liver Disharmonies
| Liver Qi Stagnation | Liver Damp-Heat |
| Incorporate foods which have these actions: Calming the Liver celery, chinese leek, chives, garlic, radish, seaweed lemon, lime, grapefruit, plums crayfish, prawns, shrimp black sesame vinegar Moving Qi kelp, kohlrabi, leeks, mustard greens onion, radish coriander, marjoram, turmeric Use in moderation: chile, garlic, ginger, pepper, horseradish Foods to avoid:alcohol, coffee |
Incorporate foods that clear heat and drain damp: leafy greens like romaine lettuce, spinach cruciferous vegetables: collards, kale asparagus adzuki beans, mung beans cod liver oil or krill oil turmeric Foods to avoid:sugar, fruits, juices |
| Liver Fire | Liver Yin Deficiency |
| Incorporate foods with cooling and downbearing actions: celery, cucumber, daikon, kelp, lettuce, mung beans, water chestnuts, radish, spinach bananas, plums, rhubarb, watermelon yogurt Foods to avoid:alcohol, coffee |
Foods to incorporate have actions to nourish yin: celery, cucumber, mung beans, sauerkraut, spinach, tomatoes pears, plums fermented dairy Foods to avoid:acrid spices like curry, cinnamon, garlic, ginger, |
| Liver Yang Rising | Liver Blood Deficiency |
| Incorporate foods that downbear, clear heat, and nourish yin: celery, cucumber, mung beans spinach, tomatoes apples, lemons, mangos, mulberry fruit, rhubarb chia seeds (beneficial for high cholesterol) yogurt salt green tea, peppermint tea Foods to avoid:alcohol, coffee |
Incorporate foods that nourish liver blood: broccoli, fennel, longan, spinach, tomatoes red fruits and vegetables such as beets, blackberries, cherries, dark grapes, plums, strawberries, raspberries, red cabbage, yams beef, duck, egg yolk, poultry, liver, rabbit crab, eel, mussels, octopus, oysters sesame, sunflower seeds amaranth, rice Foods to avoid:bitter and acrid foods |
Nutrition for the Heart
The heart rules the blood and blood vessels, and stores the shen (spirit). Nourishment of the heart brings a long healthy life. The heart governs blood and circulation. For a normal heartbeat, with a smooth and even rate and rhythm, regulating circulation, heart qi and blood must be abundant.
The heart houses the shen. When the shen is harmonious, the mind is acute and clear, the physical body is exuberant, and the spirit is calm and peaceful. When the shen is disturbed, restlessness, insomnia, poor memory, anxiety, and panic will be present. When the shen is deficient, joylessness and lusterlessness will prevail. The heart requires qi and yin to properly house and anchor the shen. Proper nutrition can support the blood and yin of the heart and support the shen. Calm the shen by avoiding energetically hot foods, like ginger, garlic, alcohol, and coffee. This heat can easily be aggravated by stress and anger. Damp and phlegm can also adversely impact the heart and shen. By removing damp forming foods, like dairy and sugar, from the diet it can help aid in proper heart function and a healthy shen. It is best to cook foods with high heat and a short cook time, and with light salt and spice.
There is a connection between the heart and stomach. The stomach divergent meridian goes to the heart and is why you see dreamed-disturbed sleep issues or insomnia after eating large meals or eating late at night. Take a look at the stomach as well as the heart when presented with sleep issues. The best ways to prevent these issues is to adjust eating habits; avoid overeating and eat smaller meals, don’t eat late at night, use spices like anise, ginger, or mint to aid in digestion, reduce stress and relax while eating. Additionally, short 18 to 24 hours fasts can be beneficial to relieve the food stagnation.
| Recommended Foods to Calm the Shen | Avoid: |
| celery, cucumber, lettuce, mushrooms lemons, mulberries, schisandra berries chia seeds, jujube seeds brown rice, oats, whole wheat cow and goat milk, ghee basil, chamomile, dill*A simple diet is best *Light fasting (18-24 hours) brings clarity and calms the mind |
spicy, rich foods refined sugar, artificial sweeteners highly processed foods coffee, alcohol*Overeating *Eating late at night |
Beneficial Foods for Heart Disharmonies
| Heart Qi and Yang Deficiency | Heart Fire |
| Incorporate strengthening and warming foods for heart qi and yang deficiency: scallion apples, cherry, longan beef, lamb, pheasant garbonzo beans, lentils buckwheat, oats, rice aniseed, chile, cinnamon Foods to avoid:cold raw foods |
Incorporate cool, bitter foods to clear heart fire: salads, cabbage, celery, cucumber, dandelions, tomatoes, watercress, water chestnut apples, pears, rhubarb, watermelon Foods to avoid:warming foods |
| Heart Blood Deficiency | Phlegm-Heat Missing the Heart |
| Incorporate food with neutral and warming actions: cherries, longan, red grapes beef, chicken, eggs, pheasant, oysters aduki beans rice, oats, wheat milk Foods to avoid:hot foods and dehydrating food |
Incorporate cooling foods. It is also important to support spleen qi: cabbage, celery, daikon, dandelion, radish, red seaweed, watercress grapefruit, lemons, tangerines mung beans Foods to avoid:milk and dairy |
| Heart Yin Deficiency | Heart Blood Stagnation |
| Incorporate foods with neutral and cooling actions: peas apples, peach, persimmon, red grapes beef wheat (in moderation) milk, cheese (preferably goat) poppy seed, black sesame seed green tea, coconut milk Foods that support kidney yin also can be used to support heart yin Foods to avoid:hot foods and drying foods |
Incorporate foods that move stagnation: chives, leek, onion, radish, scallion, turnip hawthorn berry, peach crab, eggs, venison alcohol, chili pepper, turmeric, vinegar Foods to avoid:cold and raw foods |
Nutrition for the Spleen & Stomach
The spleen and stomach are the most important organs to support with nutritional therapy, as they play pivotal roles in the digestive process. Disharmonies of the spleen and stomach often occur together and can generally be treated at the same time.
Spleen
The spleen is in charge of nutrition and digestion. It is the source of acquired qi, creating energy from food and water. The spleen, along with the stomach, is responsible for the absorption, distribution, transformation, and transportation of that energy. The health of the spleen dictates how effectively nutrients are absorbed from food. When the spleen is functioning well, a person will exhibit dynamic energy, good appetite, and a healthy digestion. When there is dysfunction in the spleen, chronic fatigue and poor digestion symptoms like abdominal bloating, excess gas, diarrhea or loose stools, nausea, poor appetite, etc., will be present. People with disharmonies in this system must incorporate healthy eating habits into their life if they are to overcome their health concerns.
The spleen generally responds very well to dietary treatments. General foods that benefit the middle burner are mildly sweet foods like poultry, vegetables, and grains, however, overindulgence of sweet can be harmful to the spleen. Avoid sugar and excessive consumption of naturally sweet foods like honey and maple syrup. Cold foods contract and stagnate the middle burner and stops digestion, and are best avoided. Additionally, those without a strong middle burner often have low digestive fire and need to avoid those cold foods as they will perpetuate the condition, and alternatively eat more foods that are warming. Foods that are simple to prepare with a mild taste and mild seasoning are best. Make simple dishes prepared at a moderate temperature and cooking time. Don’t overeat or overindulge. Moderation is key. Meat stock, stock made from bones with the meat still on them, can be beneficial. Soups in general are advised, as they are easy to digest. Grains were beneficial at one point, but because of modern stressors, grains for most people with spleen disharmonies need to be limited.
Another main function of the spleen is to govern body fluids. If the spleen qi becomes deficient, the transportation and transformation function become impeded, resulting in damp-phlegm accumulation. Raw foods, cold foods and drinks, fruits, salads, dairy, and sugar cause and perpetuate damp conditions. In the case of spleen deficiency with damp, keep starchy carbohydrates low. Also pay extra attention to those foods on the avoid list.
Stomach
The stomach has a close connection with the spleen and is very import to the digestive process. Its main function is the absorption of food, separating the pure, which goes to the spleen and lung, and turbid, which goes to the small intestine.
Dryness and heat can damage the stomach. Hot acrid foods like coffee and alcohol, and spices like curry, garlic, pepper, should be avoided with stomach pathologies. Take time while eating, eat regularly, eat warm meals, and don’t eat late at night.
| Recommended Foods to Support the Spleen & Stomach | Avoid: |
| cooked and fermented vegetables, brothy soups cabbage, carrots, corn, onions, peas, string beans, sweet potato, yams apricots, apples, cantaloupe, dates, figs, grapes, papaya beef, chicken, duck, eggs, fish (bass, carp, herring, mackerel, sardine), goat, goose, lamb, spleen, veal, venison amaranth, brown rice, sweet rice coriander, cumin, garlic, ginger, vinegar |
Foods to avoid that weaken the spleen: cold foods and drinks raw foods like salads, and citrus fruits dairy products sugar and refined carbohydrates Foods that weaken the stomach: cold raw foods like salad, ice cream hot spices sugar and refined carbohydrates fatty, greasy, oily foods |
Beneficial Foods for Spleen & Stomach Disharmonies
| Spleen Qi & Yang or Stomach Qi Deficiency | Stomach Yin Deficiency |
| Incorporate foods that are slightly sweet and warming: soups carrots, cabbage, pumpkins, winter squash, turnip, onions, sweet potatoes, peas, yams apples, apricots, peaches, plums, dates, figs, raisins, cherries, grapes poultry, beef, lamb, turkey, venison, liver, trout, salmon, tuna, mackerel, halibut, shellfish peanuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, sesame, walnuts rice, sweet rice cayenne, black pepper, ginger, garlic fennel, cinnamon, aniseed, nutmeg Foods to avoid:raw, cold foods and drinks |
Incorporate foods that are mostly neutral and cooling: asparagus, cucumber, cabbage, eggplant, summer squash, watercress, water chestnut, zucchini apples, bananas, honeydew, pears, tangerines eggs, goose, poultry, pork, rabbit barley, millet, wheat Foods to avoid:coffee, alcohol |
| With Damp Accumulation | Stomach Qi Deficiency with Cold Accumulation |
| Incorporate foods for spleen qi deficiency, with the addition of foods that dry dampness: celery, lettuce, scallion, pumpkin, turnip aduki beans amaranth, rye Foods to avoid:raw, cold foods and drinks |
This pattern is often accompanied with spleen yang deficiency. Incorporate foods that warm and nourish: use dietary recommendations under spleen yang deficiency Foods to avoid:raw, cold foods and drinks |
| Stomach Fire | |
| Incorporate foods that are cooling: cucumber, mung beans, aduki beans, sprouts, tomatoes, peas, spinach, celery pears, banana, watermelon, honeydew melon, kiwi, rhubarb yogurt, tofu, soy Foods to avoid:warm and hot foods |
Nutrition for the Lung
Nutrition therapy can be used to prevent lung disharmonies as well as help treat existing conditions. The lungs are susceptible to deficiencies of qi and yin, and excess conditions of phlegm, dryness, wind-heat, wind-cold, and toxic-heat.
One of the most important functions of the lung is to govern qi and breathing. Supporting and strengthening the lung qi and yin through nutrition can be used to help with multiple aspects of the lung pathology.
1) Treating such symptoms as shortness of breath, dyspnea, weak voice, and weak breath.
2) Strengthening the exterior can help prevent external pathogenic invasions, like the common cold or allergies, or help resolve existing wind invasions.
3) Supporting proper lung function can help diffuse qi, moistening the body and preventing dryness. If the spleen is weak or over-taxed it can be the source of phlegm production. Instead of a fine mist, phlegm is sent to the lungs. If the lungs are unable to disseminate it throughout the body it ends up storing in the lung resulting in wheezing, dyspnea, shortness of breath, etc. Proper diet can help resolve chronic phlegm and prevent further accumulation.
To aid the lungs it is best to consume easy-to-digest foods that are fresh and lightly cooked, usually with less water and at lower temperatures. This helps increase the nutritional value and assimilation of food. By eating smaller meals at more frequent intervals over-taxation is prevented. Lung deficiency frequently draws on the kidney and spleen, and can deplete these organ systems as well, so foods that are beneficial to the spleen and kidney are often used to benefit lung. Conversely, in the case of lung pathology, remember to look at the spleen and kidney to see if either needs support as well.
| Recommended Foods to Support the Lung | Avoid: |
| cauliflower, leeks, horseradish, onions, radish, watercress almonds, almond butter / milk chili, curry, ginger, pepper spiced teas like ginger tea and yogi tea |
raw, cold foods like salads and fruits
Phlegm-forming foods and foods that can weaken the spleen, such as: |
Beneficial Foods for Lung Disharmonies
| Lung Qi Deficiency | |
| Incorporate acrid, warm foods to supplement the lung qi: asparagus, carrots, cauliflower, daikon, leeks, onions, mushrooms, mustard greens, olives, radish, sweet potato, water chestnuts, yams grapes, pears, peaches, tangerines black beans, garbanzo beans beef, chicken, duck, goose, quail, rabbit, tuna almonds, walnuts oats, rice, sweet rice garlic, ginger, thyme |
Foods to avoid: sweet food, refined sugar, citrus cold foods like ice cream or smoothies, ice water, salads raw vegetables dairy, tofu, wheat fatty, oily, greasy foods alcohol, coffee, cigarettes |
| Lung Phlegm-Damp Accumulation | Lung Heat |
| Incorporating a simple diet that is easy to digest is best, as well as foods that transform damp and phlegm: daikon, mushrooms, onions, radish, seaweeds, turnips, watercress cherries fennel, flaxseed cardamom, cayenne, cinnamon, garlic, ginger, horseradish, thymeFoods that treat qi deficiency should be incorporated to prevent further formation of phlegm
|
Incorporate foods that clear heat and nourish lungs: soups and congees help soothe lung heat apples, cantaloupe, peaches, pears, strawberry watercress and white fungus (most effective); asparagus, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, chard, daikon, mushrooms, radish, seaweeds tomatoes mung beans green tea, peppermint tea Foods to avoid:warming foods |
| Lung Phlegm-Heat | Lung Yin Deficiency |
| Incorporate foods that clear heat and transform phlegm: asparagus, daikon, radish, red seaweed, watercress grapefruit, lemons, pears, tangerines millet and rice green tea, peppermint tea, lemon tea Foods to avoid:dairy |
Incorporate foods that are slightly cooling and neutral to supplement and nourish lung yin: seaweed, string bean, white fungus apple, banana, honeydew melon, orange, peach, pear, tangerine, watermelon chicken broth, clams, egg, oysters, pork almonds, almond, milk, flaxseed, peanuts pine nuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds cottage cheese, cow’s milk, farmer’s cheese, butter (careful, don’t use dairy in excess, or if spleen qi deficiency exists) milk with honey(folk remedy) Foods to avoid:hot spices like basil, chili, cinnamon, cloves, |
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Footnotes:
[1]“Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.” Available From: http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/ resources/ publications/aag/chronic.htm, 2009.
[2] Ward, BW, et al., “Multiple Chronic Conditions Among US Adults: A 2012 Update,” Preventing Chronic Disease, 2014.
Article Resources:
Leggett, Daverick, Helping Ourselves: Guide to Traditional Chinese Food Energetics. Meridian Press, 1994
Kastner, Joerg, Chinese Hutrition Therapy: Dietetics in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Thieme, 2004
Pitchford, Paul, Eating with Whole Foods: Asian Traditions and Modern Nutrition. North Atlantic Books, 2002
