The joys of seasonal eating | Part 2: Spring forward!

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This is part two of a four-part series on seasonal eating. To learn the basics of what seasonal eating is in Chinese medicine, and learn about winter foods, check out part one. Then, come back and read on to learn about how best to nourish your Qi in the current season!

Here’s how to eat in the spring! 

In TCM, spring is associated with the element of wood and with the liver and gallbladder organs. Spring’s natural energy is to lighten up and move forward, shaking off the deep slumber of winter. Just like bare, dormant trees begin to grow buds and blossom, we can use the strength of spring to slough off the old and usher in a fresh, beautiful new experience of health, mental clarity and emotional well-being. Spring is the quintessential time of creating, cleansing, movement, growth and renewal. No more procrastination! This is also the time to focus on releasing emotions that no longer serve us, such as anger, resentment, frustration and irritability. 

The recommended foods for spring help give the body a break from the heavier and fattier foods of the winter. Taste-wise, the theme is sour; sour foods stimulate the bile, Qi, blood and fluids, while helping to break up fat and relieve depression. In spring, foods should be cooked by steaming, sautéing, or stir-frying for a short time. A spring diet should be lighter than the winter and emphasize young green plants and sprouts. Your diet should be comprised of foods that have purifying qualities to strengthen and cleanse the liver and gallbladder. Also, now is the time to remove chemicals and processed and refined foods, because this is the time your liver Qi is working on cleaning! Here are some suggestions: 

  • leafy greens 

  • lemon

  • lime

  • parsley 

  • pickles

  • radish

  • sauerkraut

  • spinach

  • sprouts (legumes, sunflower, alfalfa)

  • string beans

  • quinoa

  • vinegar

  • zucchini

  • artichokes

  • arugula

  • asparagus

  • beets

  • broccoli 

  • brussels sprouts

  • cabbage

  • cardamom 

  • carrots

  • cauliflower

  • dandelion greens

  • grapefruit 

  • kimchi

  • kombucha

Lemon or apple cider vinegar are also beneficial to move bile, especially taken in warm water first thing in the morning.

Also, add pungent herbs to your cooking, such as spring onions, garlic, mint, fennel, basil, rosemary and dill. The extra kick from pungent flavours helps to keep the liver and gallbladder supported in their functions since they are at peak in terms of activity for spring. When you move blood and bile, you strengthen your immunity, nourish your tendons and boost your eye health, too.

Raw foods are good for you... sometimes.

Raw food diets have gone in and out of fashion. Raw food can be great, but it’s not for everyone, and even if it works for you, it might not work all the time. 

If you’re feeling overall weak and deficient, or you’re always cold, don’t eat raw foods. These foods are themselves considered cold, in Chinese medicine terms. This means they’re a lot more work for your body to digest and they sap your energy, leaving you vulnerable to illness. Eating copious amounts of raw vegetables and cold foods weighs down the spleen Qi and makes the stomach Qi expend more energy to secrete more digestive juices to break this food down. This is an inefficient process which takes hours and even saps your regular energy. Notice how you feel tired after eating? The fatigue after eating is because all of your Qi is going right to your belly and costing your whole system tons of energy to maintain vitality!

This is where gently warming, cooked foods and foods with more neutral qualities will help enhance the pace of healing. 

When foods are properly combined to suit your constitution, the digestion process goes a lot more smoothly, and your body is better equipped to absorb key nutrients while eliminating waste. When you spend less energy having to digest what you’re eating, it frees up energy, which makes losing weight easier and helps smooth the aging process. 

This concludes your spring eating guidelines. As the spring progresses and you begin to feel the glimmers of summer on the way, visit again to read about summer eating!

xo

Julie Amar