Food as Medicine: The Summer Season

Summer is finally in full swing! And for many, summer is the most joyful time of year. Gardens are full, the weather is hot, and vacations are on our minds. It’s no coincidence that the emotion associated with the summer season in Chinese Medicine is joy. In Chinese Medicine the summer season is associated with the Fire element, and the Heart, Small Intestine, Pericardium and Triple Warmer functions, organs and channels in the human being. Let me begin by explaining a little about the Fire element, and specifically the Heart organ in Chinese Medicine.

The Fire element is all about our community and having healthy relationships with others, which opens up our hearts and feeds our spirits. The classical texts of Chinese Medicine call the Heart organ “the officer of the Supreme Ruler… and out of it comes Shen Ming.” The Heart rules all of the other organs, or officers of the body, like a Queen or Emperor rules a kingdom. Shen Ming may be translated as spiritual brightness, and the Heart houses our Shen, or Spirit. The Heart allows for our connection to our spiritual reality. The Heart is also said to store all of the positive virtues that we cultivate in our life. The main virtue associated with the Heart is called “Li”, and means to have a “deep politeness, to be in union with the divine, and to be in a sacred knowing state of being, where we see how everything is connected”. This cultivation of virtues which is stored in the Heart was said to be part of the human mandate, our purpose on earth.

Since the Heart in Chinese Medicine has a more mental-emotional versus physical function, it may largely be thought of as the “frequency translator” organ, picking up on all of the quantum, or energetic phenomenon around it. Because the Heart is said to store all of these purely non-physical, energetic components (like fire), to have a healthy and balanced Heart organ is to keep it calm, empty, and still. Not unlike a candle, the fire in our Hearts should be light, steady, and well cared for. Not raging out of control, nor just flicking, the candle fire burns smoothly and peacefully. In this way the spirit is said to be able to reside in the Heart and feel nourished, and we feel at peace and a sense of unity in the world. If you’d like to learn more, I invite you to book an appointment with me here. Let’s now shift to discussing ways we can use food as our medicine during the hot summer season to best support our Hearts and the Fire element.

(Thanks to Heiner Fruehauf for some of the ideas above)

Eating in the summer season.

In Summer, Yang is at its peak, giving qualities of heat, humidity, and brightness. In order to balance this hottest time of the year, we should include cooling, calming, neutralizing, slow moving, and dry qualities in our foods. We should reduce heating, sharp (raw onions), acidic, intense, and oily foods. The best flavors to enjoy in summer include bitter, slightly astringent, and sweet. Salt should definitely be reduced. Too much salt can be a common cause of puffiness during the summer. 

Favorable summer foods.

Red colored foods resonate with the Fire element. Try including fresh strawberries, raspberries, pomegranates, hawthorne berries, beets, and cherries. 

Vegetables are important in the summer. Choose to have more asparagus, bitter melon, bok choy, beets, celery, corn, cucumbers, dark leafy greens, fennel, green beans, lettuce, summer squash, zucchini, fresh herbs (cilantro, parsley, basil, mint, dill).

Fruits such as apples, apricots, berries, dates, melons, peaches, plums.  

Lighter grains, such as quinoa, barley, buckwheat, white rice, and rice or bean glass noodles.

Proteins from lighter sources, including chickpeas, white beans, mung beans, tofu, fish, and hemp seeds.

Fats from avocados, coconut oil, shredded coconut, coconut milk, and goat cheese.

Cooling spices and fresh herbs are really the key to making your summer dishes shine. Toasted fennel, coriander and cumin seeds, cilantro, cardamom, basil, mint, and turmeric are ideal.

Beverage suggestions include cool water, not cold or iced water, coconut water, mint tea, and chamomile tea in the evenings to help calm the heightened Yang energy.

Foods to reduce.

Spicy foods.

Salt.

Coffee.

Vinegar.

Alcohol; red wine and spirits may be the most irritating. 

Raw onions and tomatoes.

Orange juice.

Red meat and egg yolks.

Yogurt and hard cheeses.

Anything fried or excessively oily.