In China, the idea that food and medicine share a common origin goes back 3,000 years. The Zhou Dynasty, which rose to prominence during the first millennium B.C., created the position of imperial nutritionist, who held a distinct post somewhere between
In China, the idea that food and medicine share a common origin goes back 3,000 years. The Zhou Dynasty, which rose to prominence during the first millennium B.C., created the position of imperial nutritionist, who held a distinct post somewhere between those of the emperor’s cooks and his doctors. Nutritionists — not the kitchen staff — oversaw the daily dining of the imperial court.
Surviving records from an ancient text titled The Rites of Zhou show that two imperial nutritionists were charged with “balancing the tastes of the four seasons.” The text goes on to say that “the imperial nutritionist handled the emperor’s daily culinary arrangements and formal banquets”; the latter were spectacular affairs, with frequent feasts and large-scale banquets including six different types of food and drinks, a hundred delicacies, and a hundred sauces.
The five elements theory and the yin-yang theory are key components of Chinese traditional beliefs regarding both food and medicine, and in turn, have become building blocks of Traditional Chinese Medicine. While traditions from other parts of the world (the Ayurveda dosha taxonomy in India, for example) bear similarities to TCM, none are quite like it. Below are the five elements and their components:
The heart is representative and connected to heat and fire and is best balanced by foods and medicines that balance their heat.
Also in the name of balance, liver-supporting foods and medicines help to moderate the liver’s function. These items are most effective when taken in moderation. Too much of them will negatively impact other components of an individual’s health.
The spleen/earth (or ‘soil’) elements exist to clean the body and rid it of impurities. Food and medicines taken to support the spleen will enhance the body’s ability to process everything it takes in, including food, drinks, air and medicines.
An important part of general health in our modern world is a healthy respiratory system that efficiently processes airborne impurities in order to maintain overall health. These foods help to build and maintain the body’s ‘air filtration’ system.
Ask anyone with kidney trouble: a healthy and properly-functioning pair of kidneys are crucial to one’s overall health. Foods with spice or ‘bite’ help to maintain renal health, the body system that includes the kidneys and bladder and manages waste disposal.
According the tenets of TCM, complete health involves regular consumption of foods and medicines that support all of the five elements and their corresponding body systems. If one or more body systems are not functioning or damaged, increased intake of dishes, tinctures, teas and medicines that include supporting natural ingredients will help to restore balance and health.
Source + Illustration Credits: Sixth Tone
