Dampness causes dysfunctionin our body. Photography by Calvin Sit. In Cantonese, the term lo foh originally referred to the TCM practice of using a small flame to slowly reach the desired heat. All rights reserved. “When we from Guangdong talk about slow-cooking soup, we’re talking about (simmered) lo foh tong, not those boiled ones,” said 76-year-old Wei. But is lo foh tong is really good for you? Dampness is the result of a disruption of the body’s water metabolism and leads to phlegm and stagnation of qi and blood. Therapeutic benefit: Promoting digestion and expelling dampness Methods: Take lotus leaf 9g and hawthorn 9g (hawthorn should be broken up and stir- fried), 2 cups of water, decoct into 1 cup of soup. There’s no set recipe; instead, cooks whip up different combinations of on-the-bone meat, beans, vegetables, fruit, and medicinal herbs depending on the local weather, season, and the diner’s constitution. TCM Perspective: Cough When you cough, it is due to your body’s natural reaction of clearing the irritants in your throat and airways. How to drain 'dampness' (濕) with traditional Chinese soup and tea Humidity is one of the downsides to life in Hong Kong. At the same time, the emergence of newspapers provided a new platform for the broader public to learn about and exchange information on diet and health. Pour in 8 bowls of water. Spices/herbs fennel, dill, anise, caraway, cumin, cinnamon, chives, garlic, ginger, scallions, cloves, basil, rosemary, and parsley, sage, turmeric, thyme, horseradish, nutmeg, small amounts of hot pepper, citrus peel, white pepper. It can also and commonly exist together with 痰, which is in direct translation known as ‘phlegm’. In TCM, Dampness is the source of many diseases and a very broad subject. Eating while stressed, eating at wrong time, over exertion over thinking, congenital predisposition... soup and dampness have little correlation, in general. TCM and Dampness Issues. Strengthen Spleen and Remove Dampness Soup. From an ancient book, dampness is described as cotton that has been soaked in oil. To put it simply, dampness simply refers to water retention. Dampness affects people with different constitutions such as yin (cold) and yang (hot) differently. Tuchong & VCG). On the muscle, bone and joint level, drowsiness is less pronounced for yang people. Half duck, 50 grams of Coix seed, 500 grams of wax gourd, 5 slices of ginger (with skin), 5 grams of tangerine peel, a small amount of salt and white pepper. Keep steeped in boiling water and drink throughout the day. Wash all the ingredients and place in a pot. When we overburden and tax our bodies we can be prone to outside influences weakening us … The aromatic, slow-cooked stew is a staple in Cantonese-speaking communities, and migrants from the region have popularized the dish not just across China, but around the world. For yang body types, it becomes ‘toxic’. Just fill in your email and we Heads up! The body feels sticky like a glue and the person feels sluggish. Despite making several attempts, I was never able to locate the source of this claim. The organs associated with the metal element are the lungs and large intestine. Art. How to drain 'dampness' (濕) with traditional Chinese soup and tea, White fu, similar size to a five dollar coin. Please refer to a previous article for a description of exactly what constitutes the TCM diagnosis of Dampness [1]. How do we get rid of damp? These can also balance the cooling effect from job’s tears and bring up the yang energy to promote water metabolism (or move water to where it should be going to). TCM World April 15, 2018 at 6:56 pm Reply Make sure the mung beans are cooked well. © 2020 Time Out Hong Kong Company Limited and affiliated companies owned by Time Out Group Plc. Instead, there’ll be pain around the shoulders, neck, back of the head, waist and joints. Dampness often starts in the legs and can work its way up to the organs in the abdomen. Dampness is an imbalance arising from having too much moisture/water trapped in … Time Out is a registered trademark of Time Out Digital Limited. We already have this email. Yao Limei is a doctoral student of folklore at Sun Yat-sen University. The popular Cantonese soup simmers at the juncture of traditional Chinese medicine and Western nutritional science. A high proportion of water in the human body is a source of illness. The characteristics of dampness are that it is heavy, sticky, difficult to get rid of, slows things down and tends to settle in the lower parts of the body like the legs and abdomen. 1. I would say 60 percent of people in Hong Kong are yang body types. “Our ancestors passed it on to us, and even if the doctors say that boiling is better than slow-cooking, you can’t possibly boil bones or chicken — there’s no flavor to it!”. Dampness comes from the failure to burn off or transform moisture into the body. How can you tell if you’re a yang or yin body type? Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! How many symptoms do you have? The name “lo foh tong” was a conscious attempt to cash in on this trend. Thanks for subscribing! But lo foh tong as health food is largely a media and commercial creation, driven by business interests and sold to increasingly health-conscious diners, despite the lack of any scientific evidence that it is effective. clicking the link in the email received from us. How do we know if we’re too damp? In this article, a description of various food and herbal substances that assist in the alleviation of Dampness conditions will be discussed in reference to those conditions in the skin, chest (upper jiao), abdomen (middle jiao) and pelvic region (lower jiao). If our intestines and stomach are not working properly, our ability to eliminate dampness is weak. TCM believes that high and frequent intake of raw, cold and spicy foods can damage the spleen and result in dampness accumulation. If the problem becomes worse, the dampness will affect their blood vessels and result in high cholesterol, high blood pressure and heart and kidney problems. Déjà vu! Obesity, loose muscle, fat accumulation in the lower body. Try another? The growing popularity of lo foh tong over the past several decades is closely entwined with China’s appetite for so-called yangsheng, a diverse set of wellness ideas vaguely grounded in traditional Chinese medicine. Dampness is also known as 湿气. Or make a Reuben and use raw, live sauerkraut! See more ideas about Recipes, Healthy recipes, Food. Dampness results from a number of things, commonly: sugar, dairy, alcohol, greasy foods, over eating (many of these with heat). The idea of dry pain fry and adding cinnamon or ginger is to add the warm or heat effect to this soup to help disperse dampness in addition to to damp draining effect. Still, most researchers recognize that lo foh tong, if not carcinogenic, is at least problematic. Bring water to a boil and add all ingredients, simmer for 1 hour and add salt for seasoning. Lower heat and simmer, covered with the lid slightly ajar for about 30 minutes or until the lily bulb is soft 4. By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. In spring, the soup should be adjusted to help eaters ‘expel dampness’; in summer it should chill; in fall it should moisturize; and in winter it must provide needed nourishment. Don’t worry! Yet, among the organs, the lungs are the most vulnerable to external pathogens, such as wind, heat, cold and dampness. When drinking soup, add some Chinese herbs such as Fu Ling (Poria Cocos), Sheng Jiang (Fresh Ginger Rhizome), Chen Pi (Dried Tangerine Peel), and Qian Shi (Semen Euryales), which can nourish the spleen and remove moisture. This drink has detoxifying and antipyretic properties. Therapeutic Effects Promotes spleen and digestive health, relieves dampness in the digestive system (stomach & spleen). Starting with the “reform and opening-up” period, material conditions began to improve, especially along the coast, and residents started paying more attention to nutrition and health. (Header image: A bowl of “lo foh tong” (left) and cooking pots in Guangzhou, Guangdong province. A damp yin person will feel tired, their skin gets oily but without many spots. But she’s cut down on the number of pots she makes a week from seven to two or three, and shortened the simmering time by half. There are two types of dampness addressed in Chinese medicine: chronic dampness that affects the stomach, urinary, and kidneys, or acute dampness that presents with symptoms of headache, fever, and swollen glands. Boiling food for long periods of time produces purine, so those suffering from high levels of uric acid, excess blood lipids, kidney diseases, or obesity are advised to avoid it. Recipe:A quarter of a whole dried tangerine peel White fu, similar size to a five dollar coin. The very name, lo foh tong, which literally translates to “old fire soup,” conjures images of traditional Chinese medicine and so-called food therapies. In more poetic terms, it is like being weighed down by concrete. The Men Who Lost Their Wives to ‘Eastern Lightning’, In Anti-Food Waste Push, China to Outlaw Binge-Eating ‘Mukbang’ Videos, Amid Power Rationing, Top Official Says China Has Enough Coal, China’s TV Industry Wants to Blacklist Known Plagiarists. Ingredients: 20g Zhen Jiao 15g Fang Feng 15g Du Huo 15g Qiang Huo 76g black bean 300g pork bone. The foods we eat have always been closely linked to class and wealth: In China, the rich historically favored thick stews, while the poor settled for simple broths. Soak lily bulbs in warm water for about 30 minutes, then drained 2. Feeling sticky after sweating. According to TCM principles, toxins are classified into four main categories - qi and blood stagnation, accumulation of phlegm, indigestion, and build-up of internal heat. It is nearly always associated with a weak spleen, often with a weak kidney and sometimes with a weak lung. Please click below to complete your registration. Your email address has not been verified. Wash the first 3 ingredients and put them in a soup bag. If dampness in the spleen is already present, certain foods like dairy products, processed foods, alcohol, sugars and sweeteners are said to exacerbate the situation. As the word suggests, dampness can make us feel heavy and tired. Feb 25, 2020 - Explore Willow Jewell's board "TCM Recipes For Addressing Dampness" on Pinterest. Place in a tea bag or tea sieve. Since 1999, articles have periodically popped up in Chinese outlets warning diners that the soups may be carcinogenic. When dampness is created by impaired digestion, it tends to end up in the lungs and large intestine. It wasn’t until the late Qing dynasty (1644-1911) and the early Republican period that so-called slow-cooked soups — which split the difference between stews and broths — became a daily staple of southern urbanites, especially in the commercial center of Guangzhou. The probabilities for a yang person to develop a tumour are very high. Cut lotus root into slices. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) we look at the body in its relation to nature and the environment. Within Guangdong, however, lo foh tong continues to be seen as a symbol of Cantonese tradition and cultural identity. Bring to a boil then simmer on a low heat for two to three hours. One of the few constants is time: lo foh tong should be simmered for hours in a clay or earthenware pot — hence the name. Guangdong’s affinity for slow-cooked stews is tied to South China’s damp and hot climate and longstanding cultural beliefs about the curative powers of food therapy. Health in Chinese medicine hinges on striking a balance between all the elements in our body. For simple obesity, it is suitable to drink frequently. DISRUPTED FLOW. We’re working hard to be accurate – but these are unusual times, so please always check before heading out. Place in a tea bag or tea sieve. If you’ve spent any amount of time in southern China, there’s a decent chance you’ve tried lo foh tong, or at least smelled it. Fill with enough water to cover the ingredients. As we can see, Ren-9 pertains to both groups of points and that is why this point is such an important point for the metabolism of fluids and a point I would always use to resolve Dampness or Phlegm. On a more severe level, it will transform into blood diseases, like uric acid or even vasculitis. Despite rationing and shortages, the practice of slow-cooking soups continued to simmer in Guangdong throughout the Mao era. In fact, this formula (or a modification of it) is prominently featured in virtually every text that mentions the herbal treatment of disorders associated with spleen qi deficiency. And if leather and furniture turn mouldy, there’s no reason humans should be unaffected by it. But if most Chinese think of lo foh tong as a classic Cantonese dish with restorative effects, it — or at least its name — is actually a relatively recent innovation. All Rights Reserved. If your cough persists for a long period of time or if you produce unusual secretions (of mucus or blood), it may signal some underlying health conditions that … With all of this rain let’s talk about Dampness! Then, eat a small amount, even if it’s a teaspoon a day until you build up to an entire bowl. In TCM, the lungs dominate one's qi (vital energy). A yang person feels hot, is prone to muscle and joint aches, and is more susceptible to skin conditions. For example, in the 1920s, a writer for the Guangzhou Republic Daily’s “Food Talk” column promoted the advantages of the new soups by drawing on concepts from TCM. However, once the body has reached its threshold of dampness, symptoms then begin to surface. To keep it simple, I will share about “Internal Dampness” which is one of the most common presentations of this pathology. Tone. While other examples dampness manifestations are less obvious to those unfamiliar with Chinese Medicine. Dampness is an ancient concept in Chinese medicine but to many a newcomer to Hong Kong, this indisposition is quite baffling. Then place the soup bag and blackbeans and pork bone in a soup pot. We each have a constitution we are born into. It is easy to rebound after losing weight. Luckily, through proper diet and the use of medicinal herbs, dampness can most definitely be reversed and optimal health can be achieved. Ginger 生薑 – 3 slices Citrus Peel (chen-pi) 陳皮 – one piece (pre-soaked and with white tissue removed) Humidity is one of the downsides to life in Hong Kong. Lo foh tong thus not only emphasizes the slow cooking and rich flavor of the soup, but also naturally calls to mind the healthful effects of TCM medicinal cuisine and yangsheng. Combine lily bulbs and 5 cups of water in a medium sized pot and bring to a boil 3. The source of this claim really good for you wasn ’ t until the countdown has finished before the. 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