The theory of health preservation in traditional Chinese medicine believes that “spring corresponds to the liver”, and spring is the time when liver yang is hyperactive. Therefore, “nourishing the liver” should be the priority in spring. The key to nourishing the liver lies in a good mood. A good mood can help nourish the liver, because depression and impatience may lead to stagnation of liver qi, which affects the liver’s dredging function, and also makes the neuroendocrine system dysfunctional, and the immunity declines, resulting in a lack of righteousness and evil into the body.
In terms of diet, it is necessary to “save acid and increase sweetness”, because in spring, liver yang is hyperactive. If you eat acidic foods, it is easy to lead to excessive liver qi, which can easily damage the spleen and stomach. Therefore, the spring diet should avoid acid, and it is not advisable to eat acidic foods such as mutton, dog meat, quail, sea fish, shrimp, and crab. It is advisable to eat sweet, warm and invigorating spleen products, such as yam, spring bamboo shoots, spinach, jujube, leeks, etc.
In the spring, the yang qi begins to rise in nature. Especially for the elderly, they should actively exercise outdoors. There are more negative oxygen ions in the air in spring, which can enhance the work efficiency and cardiopulmonary function of the cerebral cortex and prevent arteriosclerosis.
(Jiang Fei)