Dear,

Here is a chinese wisdom about health,hope you enjoy it:

If mind is clear and peaceful, then spirit will be peaceful; If spirit is peaceful your body will be healthy.

Anna

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Anna's Nature Regimen and Recipe Express

-- Keep your life close to the nature

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China's five-thousand years of culture and history reserved precious regimen. I'm digging out and would like to share with you. So this website,including this e-zine is not only about Chinese recipes, it's more about healthy life style.

Visit our website: www.healthy-chinese-recipe.com

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April 7th,2008

Issue #8

Table of Content:

1. Yin-Yang theory and its application on traditional Chinese medicine

2. About the 2nd month and regimen

3. Anna's 2nd month recipes

• a. Soybean Sprout Noodle
• b. Naval Bean with Chicken Salad
• c. Sweet Potato and Chinese Date with Yam
• d. Bamboo Shoot Salad
• e. Lily and White Fungus with Pork Rib Soup

4. Diet to remove excessive internal heat in spring

In spring,everything is reviving, Yang QI rises,which disturbs the heat accumlated in liver,gallbladder,stomach and intestines. Plus we ate lots of meat and oily food in holiday,are busy and always stay up all night. All these increase the excessive internal heat,causing the upper respiratory tract inflammation.

5. My story: How did I finally cured cough?

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1. Yin-Yang theory and its application on traditional Chinese medicine

Yin and Yang is the abstract summary to the opposite of certain interrelated things or phenomenon in natural. Yin and yang can be representative of opposite things or phenomenon such as hot and cold,day and night. They also can be used to analyze opposite aspects inside a matter such as egg white and yolk in an egg.

Such things belong to yang: warm and hot, bright, ascending, outward, moving, functional or hyperfunction. While anything that is cold and chill,dark,descending,inward,relative still,substance or functional retardation,pertains to yin.

Yin and yang is popular existing, relative, and infinitely divisible.

Yin and yang is opposite but restrict to each other. It's a custom to eat scallion when eating roast duck. Duck is breeded in water, pertains to yin. You'll feel greasy and appetite reduced after eating duck meat. But scallion belongs to yang,confronting and restricting duck's greasy,stimulating appetite.

Yin and yang is depended on each other for existence. Egg white is cool,pertains to yin, and egg yolk is warm,pertains to yang. None of them can exist without the other one.

Yin and yang keeps relative balance at certain period of time and certain extente . Yin increases while yang decreases, yang increases while yin decreases.

Yin and yang will transfer to the opposite direction at certain condition. In stock market, it must rebound when the shares hit the bottom.

Traditional Chinese medicine takes human body as a whole, using yin-yang theory to explain histological structure, physiological function, and pathological changes of the human body, and to serve as guide for diagnosis of treatment.

In histological structure,outside is yang while inside is yin; back is yang while abdomen is yin; Zang(heart,liver, spleen, lung, kidney) is yang while Fu(gallbladder,stomach,small intestine,large intestine,urinary bladder,sanjiao (three areas of the body cavity))is yin.

In physiological function, human body's normal life activity is the result of keeping yin and yang relative balance.

In pathological aspect, disease is a result of relative imbalance of yin and yang which leads to the hyperactivity or hypoactivity of yin and yang. If human's yin and yang separate life will be over.

In diagnosis, no matter how complicated it is in clinic,all diseases can be explained by yin and yang.

In treatment, adjusting yin and yang balance is basic principle. Using herbs with nature "cold" cures heat illness; Using herbs with nature "heat" cures cold illness. For example, eating watermelon is good to heat disasese as watermelon is cold in nature. Ginger-brown-sugar soup cures cold as ginger and brown sugar are all warm. 

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2. About the 2nd month and regimen

The 2nd month of Chinese Calendar in 2008 is from March 8th to April 5th, 2008.

In this month, some organs status:

• the Qi in liver is strong.
• the Qi(vital energy) in kidney is slightly weak.

Diet should

• Increase pungent foods intake such as glutinous millet, chicken, peach,shallot,leek, etc.
• Abstain from sour foods intake.

    This will assist kidney,supplement liver. Should relieve phlegm, perspire,to dispel Qi stored in winter.

The 2nd month of Chinese Calendar is the 2nd month of spring. For more spring regimen, please visit :

http://www.healthy-chinese-recipe.com/spring-regimen.html

Knowlege about food: All the food we eat has its own taste attribute:

Sweet: rice, beef,Chinese date,pumpkin,etc. Function: easy up.

Sour: small red bean, plum, hawthorn,etc. Function: converge.

Pungent: glutinous millet, chicken, peach,shallot,etc. Function: dispel.

Bitter: wheat, mutton, almond, and swamp cabbage,etc. Function: dry and solidify.

Salty: soybean, pork meat,kelp,etc. Function: soften.

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3. Anna's 2nd month Recipes

a. Soybean Sprout Noodle

Ingredients:

200g noodle

1 cup soybean sprout

1 tablespoon carrot,chopped

1 tablespoon ground pork

2 tablespoon mushroom,sliced

1/4 onions,chopped

1 tablespoon tomato sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 soy sauce

Procedure:

1. Clean soybean sprout,boil in water for 10mins,or thoroughly cooked.Take out,drain well.

2. While boiling sprout,cook noodle in another cooker(cook according to the noodle direction). Take out,drain well.

3. Heat oil in a wok,add ground pork, onions,soy sauce,stir fry 1min,add carrot,tomato sauce,mushroom,stir fry several times,add soybean sprout,noodle,salt. Stir fry 2mins. Add stock or water if dry.

4. Turn off heat,serve.

Serving Method(2 servings): Serve as main dish at lunch or dinner.

Beneficial Function: Much nutrient element is released during soybean germinates, so it's easy to be absorbed to eating soybean sprout than soybean itself.

It's easy to get vitaminB2-lack illness in spring while soybean is rich in B2.

Soybean sprout can cure neurasthenic,relieve tiredness,dilute speckle, and prevent anemia.

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b. Navy Bean with Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

1 cup navy bean(about 170g), cooked

250g boneless chicken meat

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon rice wine

1/4 onions

1 tablespoon salad sauce

Procedure:

1. Mix soy sauce,salt and rice wine,marinate chicken in the mixture for 30mins.

2. Add chicken,onions in a saucepan,add 2 times water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Continue to cook 30mins over low heat(you can check by using a fork to insert into the meat, if no red color the chicken is cooked).

3. Crush navy bean by using the back of a kitchen knife,put in a bowl. Cut chicken into small cubes,put in the bowl. Add salad sauce, stir well. Serve(if not salty enough,add some salt).

Serving Method: Serve as main dish at lunch or dinner.

Beneficial Function: Rich in protein,invigorate spleen and stomach,remove dampness, detoxination.

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c. Sweet Potato and Chinese Date with Yam

Ingredients:

1 sweet potato(about 150g)

5 chinese date,remove kernel

50g yam

2 ginger,thin flake

1 tablespoon crystal sugar

Procedure:

1. Clean Chinese date,remove kernel,soak in warm water for 10mins. Clean yam,peel,cut into small flakes. Clean sweet potato,cut into small flakes.

2. Add 3 cups water in a saucepan, add the above Chinese date, yam pieces,sweet potato flakes, and ginger flakes.

3. Bring to a boil over high heat,continue to cook 20mins,or until all the stuff becomes soft.

4. Add crystal sugar,cook until melt. Turn off heat,serve.

Serving Method: Serve as dessert, or snack between two main meal.

Beneficial Function:

Sweet potato: Smooth intestines,defecation,improve immunity ability,prevent cancer,aging,arteriosclerosis.Contains high dietary fiber.

Chinese date: Rich in protein,fat,sugar,organic acid,vitamin A,C,etc. Invigorate spleen and stomach,nourish Qi and blood,smooth the nerves.

Yam: Rich in vitamin and minerals while contains low heat. Prevent fat aggradation in cardiovascular system,prevent arteriosclerosis and aging.

This is very taste dessert in Spring. Sweet potato,yam and Chinese date are sweet flavor food,so they nourish spleen and stomach,prevent irascibility(protect liver).

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d. Bamboo Shoot Salad

Ingredients:

2 pieces fresh bamboo shoot(about 200g)

2 teaspoon sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 lemond

Procedure:

1. Peel bamboo shoot,clean,cut into small pieces.

2. Quick boil in water(about 3mins), take out,drain well.

3. Put in a dish,add sesame oil,salt,sprinkle lemond juice,stir well,serve.

Serving Method:(4 servings)

Serve as side dish at breakfast,lunch,or dinner.

Beneficial Function: Bamboo shoot is rich in dietary fiber which can promote bowel motility,help digestion,prevent constipation and colon cancer. It contains high protein,less starch,suitable for coronary heart disease,hypertension,diabetes and arteriosclerosis.

Bamboo shoot adsorbs fat,promote digestion and excretion. So it's a good choice for obese people.

Note: Bamboo shoot can be cooked with meat, or add in soup. Its taste is fresh. If you want to tastes its faint scent flavor, the best is to cook simple,adding ingredients as little as possible,especially for fresh bamboo shoot. Whatever cooking method, you'd better quick boil in water first to remove oxalic acid. And so, don't cook with food containing high Calcium such as tofu. When cuting,you can cut vertical near the needle top while cut across at the end wide part.

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e. Lily and White Fungus with Pork Rib Soup

Ingredients:

250g pork rib

2 tablespoon lily

1 tablespoon white fungus

1 block ginger

1 piece scallion(or 1/2 onion)

1 star anise

1 teaspoon salt

Procedure:

1. Tear open lily petal,clean,drain well.

2. Clean white fungus,remove pedicel,soak in warm water for 15mins. Tear up into small pieces.

3. Clean pork rib,add in boiling water,clean,quickly take out.

4. Add pork rib in a stock pot,add 5 cups water,add ginger,star anise,scallion,lily,white fungus, bring to a boil over high heat.

5. Continue to cook 2 hours over low heat with cover. Add salt,cook additional 10mins over medium heat. Turn off heat,let it stay 10mins with cover. Skim the fat on the surface,serve.

Serving Method: Drink soup and eat meat. Serve as soup at lunch or dinner.

Beneficial Function: In spring we are easy to suffer from excessive internal heat (the syptom is throat pain,cough,etc.). This soup has the function of nourishing yin,moistening dryness, helping moisten lung,clear heat, invigorate spleen,notify yin. It also has efficiency to skin.

There contains nature pectin in white fungus,which can moisten skin and remove speckle. White fungus is rich in food fibers which promotes intestine and stomach motility,eliminate toxin,and so helpful to obesity.

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4. Diet to remove Excessive internal heat in spring

The weather is gradually warming,but we're also facing a windy season. There are lots of complaints around us such as"I have sore throat for many days,pain to death." "I got mouth ulcer for 1 week, don't want to eat anything."

In spring,everything is reviving, Yang QI rises,which disturbs the heat accumlated in liver,gallbladder,stomach and intestines. Plus we ate lots of meat and oily food in holiday,are busy and always stay up all night. All these increase the excessive internal heat,causing the upper respiratory tract inflammation.

By right diet,we can prevent the excessive internal heat in spring. Actually, besides heat,we have to remove dampness in our body.

In spring, we should eat some food which nourish yin and  Qi, such as carrot, tofu, lotus root, chufa, lily, Tremella(white fungus), mushrooms, duck, and so on,and some soft-shelled turtle if applicable.

Second, we should choose some food that can clean up excessive gastrointestinal heat and humid, and is also low-fat, high-fibre, high-mineral, such as fresh shepherdspurse, leeks, celery, spinach and Toona sinensis, and so on.

In addition, bean products such as mung bean sprouts, soybean sprouts, black bean sprouts, broad bean sprouts, pea sprouts,etc.help to smooth and through QI in liver, and has the function of invigorate spleen and stomach. We'd better insist on eating these food in daily meals.

Porridges such as carrot porridge, yam porridge, chrysanthemum porridge, Chinese wolfberry porridge, egg droup tomato soup, also help to nourish liver.

Patients with upper respiratory tract infection, can try this recipe: Cook coriander(caraway, scallion(or/and onion), ginger and vinegar in water,drinking the soup. The soup can expel the interal heat.

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5.My story: How did I finally cure cough?

In last newsletter issue, I mentioned I got serious cough. Without pain, itch or phlegm, just cough and cough day and night. I finally cured by using the following herbs.

a. Egg with Crystal and Sesame oil Soup, last time i gave the details.

b. Pear with Crystal Sugar Soup. Cut pear into small pieces,add crystal sugar,water,cook for 15mins. Eat pear,drink soup.

c. Grosvenor Momordica Fruit. Crush into several blocks,bring to a boil in water. Drink soup.

d. Ji Zhi Tang Jiang, Chinese herbal medicine which is made of 8 herbs: Houttuynia cordata, the buckwheat, Chinese holly leaf, Aster, imperatorin, Poncirus trifoliata,ephedra and licorice.

So, if you have the same symptoms and don't want to take western medicine, then you can try the above herbs. I cured within 3-4 days.

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