The Yin and Yang of Foods

The traditional nutrient dense foods, such as bone broths, are extremely vital to our health. Another important aspect of food is in the energetics of foods as addressed in the Chinese diet system. In this system, foods can be hot, cold, building, cleansing, raw or cooked. For example, if a person is weak, they would need building foods, or if they have an overload of toxins, they would need cleansing foods. If we only look at foods as good or bad, we may miss the other healing qualities of a food. We always need to ask ourselves – how would this food work for me at this time? We know for example, that lots of sweets cause a weakening in the body, but a little bit of sweet, such as a turnip can be strengthening and tonifying. Cooked foods are building, strengthening and warming. A good example would be feeding a child who has been sick – broth or soup to rebuild and strengthen the system. Raw foods have a tendency to be not as warming as cooked foods, take more vitality to digest than cooked foods and have a cleansing effect. A good example of how raw foods could help would be eating a salad to cleanse after a period of eating lots of heavy foods. We are always looking for a balance between yin and yang and eating the right whole foods can bring our bodies into that perfect balance.