阿客保
Natural and Holistic Therapy
Comprehensive Holistic Therapy that
is Good for Health and Fitness
CHINESE MEDICATED DIET
General Introduction
Chinese
medicated diet is not a simple combination of food and Chinese herbs,
but a special highly finished diet made from Chinese herbs, food and
condiments under the theoretical guidance of diet preparation based on
differentiation of symptoms and signs of traditional Chinese medicine
(TCM).
It has not only the efficiency of medicine but also the delicacy of
food, and can be used to prevent and cure diseases, build up one's
health and prolong one's life.
Origin and Development
Chinese medicated diet has a long history. The ancient legend "Shennong
Tastes a Hundred Grasses "shows that early in remote antiquity the
Chinese nation began to explore the function of food and medicaments,
hence the saying "Traditional Chinese medicine and diet both originate
from the practice and experience in daily life."
In the Zhou Dynasty, one thousand or more years B. C. , royal doctors
were divided into four kinds. One of them was dietetic doctors who were
in charge of the emperor's health care and health preservation,
preparing diets for him.
In The Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic, a medical classic in TCM which
appeared approximately in the Warring States period, several medicated
diet prescriptions were recorded. In Shennong's Herbal Classic, which
was published approximately in about the Qin and Han Periods and is the
extant earliest monograph on materia medica, many sorts of medicaments
which are both drugs and food were recorded, such as Chinese-date
(Fructus Ziziphi Jujubae),sesame seed (Semen Sesami), Chinese yam
(Rhizoma Dioscoreae), grape (Vitis), walnut kernel (Semen Fuglandis),
lily bulb (Bulbus Lilii) , fresh ginger (Rhizoma Zingiberis Recens),
Job's-tears seed (Semen Coicis), etc. In the book Treatise on febrile
and Miscellaneous Diseases written by Zhang Zhongjing, a noted medical
man, in the East Han dynasty, some noted medicated diet recipes were
recorded, such as Soup of Chinese Angelica root, Fresh ginger and Mutton
(Danggui Shengjiang Yangrou Tang ), Decoction of Pig-skin(Zhufu Tang),
etc., all of which now still have important values. Sun simiao, a
well-known doctor in the Tang Dynasty, listed and discussed such
questions as dietetic treatment, dietetic treatment for senile health
care and health preservation, etc. in his books Prescriptions Worth a
Thousand Gold for Emergencies and A Supplement to Essential
Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold for Emergencies. These two books
were substantial in medicated diet prescriptions.
According to history books, up to the period of the Sui and Tang
Dynasties about more than sixty kinds of books on dietetic treatment had
been published. But unfortunately most of them are lost. The book
Dietotherapy of Materia Medica by Meng Xian in the Tang Dynasty has a
great influence on later generations. It is the extant and earliest
monograph on dietetic treatment.
In the Song Dynasty, Wang Huaiyin and some others wrote Peaceful Holy
Benevolent Prescriptions, in which they discussed medicated diet
treatment for many diseases. A Book on How to Help the Old to Preserve
Health and Your Kith and Kin to Prolong their Lives by Chen Zhi is an
extant early monograph on gerontology in China. Of all the prescriptions
recorded in it, 70% are about medicated diet. it is emphasized in this
book that "dietetic therapy should go first for any senile diseases, and
then followed by medicine if they are not cured. " In the book
Principles of Correct Diet, a monograph on medicated diet, by Hu Sihui,
a royal doctor in the Yuan Dynasty, oceans of medicated diet
prescriptions and dietetic drugs were recorded; in addition, some
questions, such as diet contraindication in pregnancy, diet
contraindication for wet nurse, contraindication for drinking, etc. were
also discussed in this book. In the Ming Dynasty, Li Shizhen collected
and recorded in his Compendium of Materia Medica many medicated diet
prescriptions, dozens of which were about medicated gruel alone, and
another dozens of which touched on nothing other than medicated wine.
InEight Essays on Life preservation, a monograph on health preserving in
the Ming Dynasty, many medicated diets on health preserving and health
care were recorded too. Monographs on medicated diet treatment in the
Qing Dynasty varied in characteristics: in Recipe of Suixiju by Wang
Shixiong, over 300 species belonging to 7 phyla of medicated food and
drink were introduced; in Analysis of Food and Drink for Treatment of
Diseases by Zhang Mu, more medicated foods were touched upon; in
Cookbook of Suiyuan cooking principles and methods were dealt with;
while in Common Saying for Senile Health Preservation, also known as
Jottings on Health Preservation, by Cao Tingdong, about 100 medicated
gruel prescriptions for gerocomy were listed.
Medicated diet has been developing greatly in assortment on the basis of
traditional process, for example, medicated can, medicated sweets and so
on. Salutary food and drinks produced on the basis of achievements in
scientific research and having the effect of curing diseases have a
variety of sorts and vary in characteristics. There is medicated food
suitable for patients suffering from diabetes, obesity and
angiocardiopathy; there are health-care food and drinks suitable for
athletes, actors, actresses and miners; there are also health- care food
or medicated diets suitable for the promotion of children's health and
growth, or for prolonging life of the aged.
Chinese medicated diet has begun to go abroad. medicated cans,
health-care drinks and medicated wine made from traditional Chinese
medicine have been sold at the international market. Medicated diet
dining- halls have been set up in some countries. Personnel of academic,
industrial and commercial circles abroad have paid close attention to
Chinese medited diet-a special food, hoping to develop academic
exchanges and technical and economic cooperation in this respect.
Chinese medicated diet will make contributions to the health of the
people all over the world.
Characteristics
The characteristics of Chinese medicated diet are as follows:
1. Laying Stress on the Whole and Selecting Medicated Diet on the Basis
of Differential Diagnosis
By " Laying Stress on the Whole and Selecting Medicated Diet on the
Basis of Differential Diagnosis ", we mean that when prescribing
medicated diet, we should first make an overall analysis of the
patient's physical and health condition, the nature of his illness, the
season he got ill in and the geographical condition, etc, to form a
judgment on the type of syndrome; then decide on corresponding
principles for dietetic therapy and select suitable medicated diet. Take
a patient with chronic gastritis, as an example. He should take Galangal
and Cyperus Gruel (Liangfu Zhou) if he suffers from chronic gastritis of
stomach-cold type, but he can take Drink of Fragrant Solomonseal
Rhizome, Dendrobium, Black Plam and hawthron Fruit (Yu Shi Mei Zha Yin)
if he suffers from chronic gastritis due to deficiency of the
stomach-yin.
2.Suitable for both Prevention and Treatment, and Outstanding in Effect
Medicated diet can be used either to treat diseases or for healthy
people to build up their health and prevent diseases. This is one of the
characteristics in which medicated diet is different from treatment by
medicine. Although medicated diet is something mild, it has a notable
effect on the prevention and cure of diseases, health building -up and
health preserving. Here are some of the achievements in scientific
research of Shandong Traditional Chinese Medicine College:
Eight-Ingredient Food:It is prepared according to the experience in
ancient dietetic treatment and health care of imperial court in the Qing
Dynasty from eight dietetic Chinese herbs including Chinese yam (Rhizoma
Dioscoreae), lotus seed (semen Nelumbinis), hawthorn fruit (Fructus
Crataegi). 997% of the children who took it for 30 days have whetted
their appetite, and their growth has been improved too.
Nourishing Extract of laiyang Pear and mushroom: It is made from the
juice of Laiyang Pear (Malum Piri) and extract of mushrooms ( Lentinus
Edodes) and tremella (Tremella). If the middle-aged and senile patients
suffering from chronic diseases take it, not only can the symptoms of
their illness be alleviated, but their blood-fat can be brought down too
when they are suffering from hyperlipemia, and their immunologic
function can be improved.
3. Good in Taste and Convenient for Taking
There goes the saying "Good medicine tastes bitter" among the people,
because most of the decoctions of Chinese herbs are bitter. Some people
, especially children, take an aversion to the bitterness of Chinese
herbs and refuse to take them. Most of the drugs used in medicated diet
are both edible and medicinal, and retain the properties of food: colour, sweet-smelling, flavor, and so on. Even if part of them are
Chinese herbs, their nature and flavor are taken into consideration so
that they are made into tasty medicated diet by mixing them with food
and by careful cooking.
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