"How Can Qi and Blood Deficiency Be Managed Alongside Excess Damp-Heat?"

Blood and Qi Deficiency and Damp-Heat: Food-Based Remedies

Blood and Qi deficiency can endanger human health, leading to feelings of weakness and a lack of mental clarity. Damp-heat refers to the coexistence of heat and dampness, which is especially prevalent in the hot and humid summer and autumn seasons. When dampness and heat invade the body together, they can lead to various health issues. Therefore, it is important to address blood and Qi deficiency and damp-heat promptly through dietary adjustments.

Foods for Blood and Qi Deficiency

(1) Qi Deficiency

① Nourishing Foods: Beef, lamb, goji berries, chicken, pork, glutinous rice, soybeans, etc.

② Nourishing Diet: Yam, Lily Bulb, and Lotus Seed Soup; Ginseng-Steamed Squab; Peanut and Jujube Braised Pig Trotters.

③ Foods to Avoid or Consume Less: Raw radish, mustard greens, garlic chives, cress, amomum, chrysanthemum, tea, hawthorn, citrus, betel nut, garlic, peppermint, lotus leaves, etc. Avoid smoking and alcohol.

(2) Blood Deficiency

① Nourishing Foods: Black-boned chicken, black sesame seeds, walnut meat, longan pulp, chicken, pig blood, pig liver, brown sugar, red beans, etc.

② Nourishing Diet: Angelica and Prepared Rehmannia-Steamed Black-boned Chicken; Yam and Beef Stew.

③ Foods to Avoid or Consume Less: Peppermint, chrysanthemum, betel nut, raw radish, water chestnuts, garlic, etc.

Foods for Damp-Heat

Tofu: Clears heat and detoxifies.

Brown Sugar: Warm in nature, enters the liver and spleen meridians, and removes dampness.

Coix Seed: Cool in nature, enters the spleen and stomach meridians, nourishes the spleen, and removes dampness.

Whole Grains: It is recommended to consume more whole grains and pasta, and less rice cooked in electric rice cookers, as they tend to be more damp-inducing.

Millet: Millet enters the kidney, spleen, and stomach meridians, and can eliminate damp-heat in the spleen and stomach.

What is Damp-Heat?

Dampness refers to the presence of excessive moisture in the body, which can be external or internal. External dampness is caused by exposure to damp or humid environments, such as rainy weather or living in damp spaces, allowing external dampness to invade the body. Internal dampness is a pathological product often related to digestive function.

Heat refers to a condition of excessive warmth. In the context of damp-heat, heat and dampness coexist. This can be due to the hot and humid summer and autumn seasons, when dampness and heat combine to invade the body, or when chronic dampness transforms into heat over time.